Fit to be Captain of England?

Who is fit to be captain of England? David Beckham, Steven Gerrard, Frank Lampard, Paul Robinson, Rio Ferdinand, Sol Campbell, Michael Owen, John Terry, Gary Neville, Ashley Cole?

These players are the most senior in the squad. We saw Beckham sent off against Austria, Owen taking the band, then he came off with Gerrard taking it. On Wednesday Owen came off and gave the armband to Terry, who was reported to have said he kept the band and sneaked it out all the way home, to frame it with his shirt.

I was hesitant when Sven Goran Eriksson picked Beckham, who had been lambasted for his sending off in WC1998, but he was the darling of the public and his football had turned for the much better. Right now Beckham is doing a good job, though I wish he would get at the players much more to boost them. Owen is just right as vice-captain with Sol Campbell as deputy vice-captain. Terry has stated he is fit and ready to captain England, a call that could well be heeded. Do you think Beckham is still fit enough to lead England, or maybe any other person mentioned above are believed to be better suited right now?

I also found this report:

"John Terry is better equipped to captain England than David Beckham, according to a company which measures leadership qualities. The 24-year-old Chelsea defender, who is captain of his club, scores more highly in the study by leadership measurement consultancy SFL than the Real Madrid star. Terry outshines Beckham in the four key study areas - the ability to inspire as a role model, motivator, ideas generator and coach.

John Fay, SFL's managing director, said: "We measured the players' leadership abilities by assigning scores to their individual behaviours and attributes. "These are categorised into four key areas. In the role model criteria, Terry scored 3.9, double Beckham's score of 1.8. We believe this is because Beckham's celebrity lifestyle has a damaging effect on the players' respect for him in the dressing room. By contrast, John Terry's no-nonsense, tough approach makes him an ideal role model for international football leadership."

But while Terry is a fair way down Sven-Goran Eriksson's pecking order, SFL rank him higher than his more experienced team-mate. "In the criteria of motivator, Beckham scored 2.8 in recognition of his ability to motivate through his actions, but is roundly beaten by Terry with a full-house 4.0 points, who not only plays with unbridled conviction, but whose vocal presence encourages his team-mates throughout the game," Fay added. "As ideas generators, both players achieve broadly similar scores, 2.8 to Beckham and 3.0 to Terry. As a 'coach', Terry is more able to win the respect of all members of the team.

"It is unlikely that Wayne Rooney would have shown a similar dissenting attitude to Terry as he did to Beckham in the Northern Ireland match."

Fay concluded: "Leadership is the deciding factor for England to win the World Cup. On the basis of our study, it is clear that Sven needs to make a bold leadership decision and address the issue of captaincy. And that means appointing John Terry now."

According to the above, Terry is statistically better equipped to lead than Beckham. Pick three players, captain, vice-captain and deputy vice-captain, they can be from the above players or elsewhere in the English league. You may know or sense someone else not included who could be a better skipper, or at least be included in the England squad.


RedsMan.