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www.Shearer9.com Attacking scale puts Shearer ahead on points By Henry Winter It was strange to witness Alan Shearer making his way into Wembley's royal box rather than the penalty box. The chatter percolating around England's injured centre-forward focused on the winner his replacement, Les Ferdinand, scored against Bulgaria. Shearer, as ever, smiled and signed autographs, not betraying even a flicker of frustration. A short-term absentee, it would be strange if the Premiership's predator supreme did not lead England's attack at Euro '96. A cursory glance at Terry Venables's teams reveals the coach's commitment to Shearer. Of Venables's 15 previous internationals (including the Dublin debacle), Shearer began all but one, playing in tandem with Peter Beardsley (five times), Teddy Sheringham (four), Nick Barmby (twice) with one outing each alongside Ferdinand, Stan Collymore and Ian Wright. A Ferdinand bandwagon may be gathering pace, following his successful pairing with the outstanding Sheringham on Wednesday, but the Gallowgate evangelists ignore certain realities. Appropriating, for a moment, Venables's Ajax-inspired ready-reckoner of a player's worth, Shearer appears fractionally superior to Ferdinand. The four criteria for assessment are technical, tactical, personality and pace. On technical matters, which involves touch and finishing, Shearer probably pips Ferdinand by a point. While Ferdinand's goal arrived from two excellent touches, there were other moments when he overplayed the ball, allowing Borislav Mihailov to gather. "If we're going to be a top team, we should have been leading by two or three at half-time," Venables reflected. "It's to do with accurate finishing." David Seaman has matured into England's premier goalkeeper Tactically, Shearer again shades Ferdinand. Part of the reason why Shearer has managed only five goals in 21 internationals is his willingness to run wide, drop deep, so creating space for others. With Sheringham proving such an accomplished deeper-lying catalyst, the spearhead striker can focus more on charging into the box, as Ferdinand primarily did. Each forward's pace is on a par while, in evaluating personality, both popular and disciplined individuals make significant contributions to the team. It may simply be Ferdinand's smiling exterior as a player, but Shearer always hints at a greater determination, a real preparedness to suffer for the collective cause. On two occasions, this observer has encountered an uncomplaining Shearer hobbling out of Wembley after spending an evening being kicked for his country. The debate will intensify as England build again for Croatia, next month. What is beyond dispute is that Venables has chosen the best four strikers in the land: Sheringham and Shearer, with Ferdinand and the precocious Robbie Fowler, now capped, in reserve. If Shearer and Sheringham appear the best double act for the Euro '96 opener against Switzerland, whom they so effortlessly dissected last year, other areas look even more settled. David Seaman has matured into England's premier goalkeeper while his cover at Wembley, Ian Walker, may soon earn his first cap to blood him before Euro '96. Gascoigne and Ince offer growing hope for English respectability at Euro '96 Leading England out against Switzerland should be Tony Adams, the country's premier centre-half who was absent against Bulgaria. Out wide of Adams, Gary Neville and Stuart Pearce appear established at full-back. The two Pauls, Ince and Gascoigne, seem to have settled the central-midfield debate with their individual and combined excellence on Wednesday, complementing each other well and showing impressive discipline. They covered each other's backs, chased the right balls, and never strayed from their allotted duties, a situation that added to England's balance. Ince's anchoring echoed that of the strong and relentless Marcel Desailly for AC Milan. Gascoigne almost echoed Turin 1990. Sharing 53 caps and a knowledge of the world's most technically demanding league, Serie A, Gascoigne and Ince offer growing hope for English respectability at Euro '96. There is an irony that it is England's two hottest heads who understand how best to compete with the elite of Europe. Sheringham, too, looks an automatic choice, if such a commodity exists in a pressurised world where injury lurks on every match day. The obsession with Sheringham's paucity of pace overlooks the fact that, unlike the pell-mell Premiership, international football demands a variety of speeds. Sheringham's ability to slow England down, inject some thought and precision, makes him highly prized by Venables. Finding a mobile, ball-playing partner for Adams probably represents Venables's most taxing problem If the spearhead position is handed to Shearer, and England revelled in his alliance with Sheringham against Switzerland, then the 'position vacant' sign hangs over only three dressing-room pegs: the two flank roles and Adams's central-defensive accomplice. On the right of midfield, news of Darren Anderton's return is encouraging, though he faces a race against time to regain a semblance of match sharpness. Steve Stone, an enthusiastic understudy, has filled the right-sided position with gusto and goals but lacks Anderton's vision and breadth of tricks. On the opposing flank, Steve McManaman's discomfort at crossing left-footed was not in evidence on Wednesday, the Liverpool playmaker preferring to cut inside his full-back, Emil Kremenliev. Entering the inside-left channel, McManaman can either shoot right-footed, lay the ball off or continue dribbling. The cross to the far post may be out of the equation but McMananam indicated his international potential, particularly in the absence of a genuine left-winger. Finding a mobile, ball-playing partner for Adams probably represents Venables's most taxing problem. Gareth Southgate shows signs of promise, though he needs to display more confidence when darting into midfield to pick up opponents. But what Southgate and Co really proved on Wednesday was that Venables has options, a situation confirmed by a glance at the royal box. Source: The Daily Telegraph Friday 26 March 1996 |