4. The Midfield
Gareth Barrys tournament-ending abdominal injury didnt seem like terminal news to Englands prospects at the European Championships; however Frank Lampards exclusion from the tournament through a thigh injury is devastating. The Chelsea midfielder has 90 International caps and 23 goals to his name. He played an instrumental part in the blues season, captaining them to the FA Cup and Champions League double. The good news is Scott Parker got through a whole 90 minutes against Belgium having previously playing a mere one minute of Tottenhams last four Premier League fixtures and only an hour against Norway. Ashley Young is in the form of his career, scoring four times in each of his four appearances for England prior to tonights game against Belgium. Though he did not score this time, he did provide the assist to Danny Welbeck. Steven Gerrard is always a danger whilst the jury is still out on Theo Walcott. Oxlade Chamberlain looks promising though was hauled off tonight after a disappointing performance. The much maligned inclusion of Liverpools Stuart Downing in the 23 man squad still draws ire, as he scored zero times and provided no assists last season. Fellow Liverpool midfielder Jordan Hendersons inclusion as the replacement for the injured Frank Lampard also provoked frustration - he scored only twice in 48 appearances last season. Can England shrug off these injuries and win the Euros with this midfield? Verdict: No
Joseph Dempsey
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Joseph is an accredited football journalist and has interviewed nearly all of the current 20 Barclay's Premier League managers. He is also a correspondent for Bleacher Report and has written for Caught Offside and Give Me Football.
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