Pull the other one, Jermain

Article by Michael Halepas

With England having qualified for World Cup 2014 one of the questions on lips is which players will make the plane to Brazil? During the recent international friendly break members of Roy Hodgson's latest squad were interviewed by journalists and asked the inevitable questions - Do you think you'll make the final cut? What do you think you need to do in order to secure a place?

The answers to these questions are almost as predictable by now as the questions themselves. 'Stay fit', 'Perform to a high standard for my club’ are the more obvious answers that players give. In one such Q&A session our very own Jermain Defoe was asked something similar. His response, as reported in the media was:

"Getting into a World Cup squad is based on merit and you have to play for your club," "If you are not getting the opportunities to play, it will be difficult.

Essentially JD's publicised opinion is that he needs more game time at Spurs in order to show his worth to Roy Hodgson. While the response might not have been overly surprising, it still rankled with at least this Spurs fan. JD seems to be confusing quantity over quality when it comes to minutes on the pitch.

What goes without saying is that JD is one of a cluster of English forwards who benefit directly from a severely shallow talent pool from which the England strikers will be selected. Excluding Messrs Rooney and Sturridge the remaining strikers who qualify for England selection would struggle to make it into the squads of any of FIFA's top 10 ranked countries.

Outside of the top two English strikers, the competition JD faces for the remaining striking places comes from Darren Bent, Andy Carroll, Ricky Lambert and Danny Welbeck. One wonders how many international caps would have accrued for these four had they been of Dutch, Italian, French, Brazilian, Argentine origin.

For JD to suggest that his chances are directly linked to how much playing time he gets is foolhardy. JD is 30 years of age now. He's had a career spent mostly in the Premier League and has been present in a number of England squads. It's fair to ask the question - what is there left for JD to show us?

If JD is being serious about the assertion that game time is all that is needed let's consider his position a little further. Whether JD is correct or not the consequence of his comments is that a certain amount of spotlight and pressure is applied to his club manager. Some might say he’s passing the buck a little.

Let's put to one side the fact that JD has not averaged 10 league goals a season for Spurs since he rejoined the club (5 full seasons). This may be a telling fact for many but we must remember that the squad will be picked on form in the short term more than anything else. Let's concentrate on this current Premier League season.

JD feels that he should represent the national team at a tournament held in South America which will comprise the best footballing nations on the planet. JD clearly feels he has the ability to help England beat some of the most fearsome and able football teams around.

So, what is there that JD can show to doubters that he hasn’t already?

Looking at JD's performances in the Europa League his supporters might argue that he has scored a number of goals in European Competition already this season. It's one thing to be a regular goal scorer in the Champions League but to back up your case for inclusion in the England squad by pointing to goals scored against Tromso and Sheriff is plainly an insult to those strikers who do the business against the big boys in Europe.

Let's look a little closer to home. The West Ham game at WHL is a good match to consider because JD started that game having 'justified' his starting berth after goals in the Europa League in midweek. West Ham came to WHL with an unenviable record. Even the most ardent West Ham fans expected a hiding at WHL that day. Most would surely agree that that game was JD's opportunity to show everyone that he is worthy of a place in the Spurs starting XI. Did he take it? Absolutely not.

For a Spurs team chasing at the very minimum a top four finish JD would’ve been expected to bag himself at least a brace in that game in order to silence the doubters. What was the reality? JD made no mark on the game at all. Remember that at 30 years of age, JD is or has either peaked or is at his peak.

Having failed miserably to look even slightly dangerous in the West Ham match JD was predictably returned to the substitute’s bench for future games. Note that his efforts in training did not warrant a starting place either.

The next league game at WHL was against Newcastle. In that match JD came on as a 69th minute substitute. He lined up alongside Soldado in an attempt to break the Geordie resistance. What did JD do in that appearance? Nothing worthy of note.

It's not unusual for spectators of a match to forget an individual is playing if that player is out of the play for a while but what struck me about JD's performance in that match, something I can't remember experiencing in any other game at any other time of my life - I twice forgot he was playing!

To be fair to JD, he has not had an abundance of minutes on the pitch domestically. Having said that however, even JD would surely agree that he is more likely to be used as a ‘super’ sub for the national team rather than as a starter ahead of more capable strikers. That being said, let’s take a look at JD’s ‘super’ sub appearances against teams less polished than the international sides he’d be taking to the field of play against next summer.

JD has made substitute appearances against Crystal Palace (83rd minute), Swansea (81st minute), Arsenal (69th minute), Chelsea (77th minute) and Hull (70th minute). Let’s also remind ourselves that this Spurs team has had more attempts on goal than any other Premier League team this year. With that as the backdrop, JD has failed to hit the back of the net in each of those games that he’s been relied upon as a substitute. JD has not been able to contribute to a league game with an equalising or winning goal this season. Maybe a more pertinent question from a sports journalist to JD might be what kind of contribution he feels he makes to the team when he’s failing to score against even the average teams?

This is the player who believes that more minutes equals an England spot. A player who believes he can tear apart some of the best defences in the world despite making little or no impact against even the leakiest Premier League defences. Afraid not JD. More goals and more displays of brilliance will probably get you noticed more. Just a suggestion.

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