There may be three months to go before the World Cup kicks off but for some managers the decision-making process boils down to 90 minutes tomorrow.
Ninety minutes to decide who makes their final 23 and boards the plane for Brazil. It is a test of footballers’ temperaments and abilities as well as an examination of many managers’ thought processes.
Take England. Roy Hodgson has named a 30-man squad for the friendly against Denmark. (See pictures)
The criteria he prioritises in narrowing it down – in ruling between footballers with very different but competing claims – will be revealing.
First is to choose between polar opposites at left-back. If Leighton Baines is a certainty to travel, his potential colleages are the rising star and the fading force, potentially England's promising full-back against arguably their best ever.
Luke Shaw is an uncapped teenager, Ashley Cole a 33 year old whose 106 games for his country put him fourth in the all-time standings. Shaw is tipped to join Chelsea; Cole has lost his place in the side at Stamford Bridge.
The veteran has the tournament pedigree and is entitled to believe that his efforts over the years should earn him the nod.
Jose Mourinho argued that the players who ensured England qualified should go. Yet, the Portuguese is biased: Hodgson has conceded he could drop a “big name” and two of the imperilled are the Chelsea veterans.
Frank Lampard is another centurion, a man who often stands in as captain and who probably remains the finest finisher in the squad.
Yet, he turns 36 in June, Hodgson could take two other seasoned midfielders, in Steven Gerrard and Michael Carrick, and Jordan Henderson’s running power could be more valuable in the heat of Brazil.
The Liverpool player and James Milner, a perennial favourite of Hodgson’s, offer remarkable versatility. Milner is approaching 50 caps but is a fringe player for Manchester City. He is one of 13 midfielders in the squad, a number that may have to be trimmed to eight or nine. It is the area where places are at a particular premium.
For some, the first move would be to axe Tom Cleverley. A petition to ban the ineffective and unpopular Manchester United player has garnered thousands of signatures. However, Hodgson has invested plenty of faith in Cleverley, who was a regular in his starting 11 last season.
Elsewhere, whichever option he chooses, difficult decisions await.
Andros Townsend sparkled in the wins against Montenegro and Poland that secured England’s spot in Brazil. Now he is not certain of a start in the Tottenham Hotspur team – Aaron Lennon, who often keeps him out, is not in Hodgson’s squad – and the in-form English winger is Liverpool’s Raheem Sterling, who has been scintillating.
Ross Barkley has the potential to become an England great but, hampered by injury, his performances for Everton have tailed off whereas Southampton captain Adam Lallana has been consistently influential.
If it is a straight choice, who goes? If they are competing for one position with Arsenal’s Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, another who Hodgson rates, then who makes way?
The question of form versus pedigree is pertinent in attack. Hodgson has two forwards who can operate on the left or as strikers.
Danny Welbeck has been a constant in his reign, scoring more regularly for his country than his club. In the Premier League he has been outperformed by Jay Rodriguez, who had an undistinguished international debut in November’s defeat to Chile.
There is a further issue in Hodgson’s forward planning: if he only has one spot among the back-up forwards for a target man or a predator, then does he value Jermain Defoe’s poaching skills or Rickie Lambert’s hold-up play? Or does he go outside the current 30 to opt for the raw power of Andy Carroll?
Because if Hodgson has months to ponder, he only has one game to evaluate most in an international shirt. His eventual selection will say much about what type of players he feels he needs in the World Cup.
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