Fabio Capello seems destined to name a very young England side for the game against France at Wembley, with the likes of Andy Carroll, Jordan Henderson and Keiran Gibbs all starting (see Totesport match betting).
The Italian manager has nailed his intentions to the wall already by confirming the three young players will all be amongst his starting XI at Wembley on Wednesday night – and they are 11/10 to be part of a winning England team.
Capello has previously looked to bring through the next generation of England stars during qualifying for the 2010 World Cup in South Africa. That was heralded by many as a new era for England, but this optimism soon waned as the likes of Jamie Carragher came back from international retirement and then it emerged the boss had attempted to persuade 35-year-old Paul Scholes to come back into the England frame.
Many England fans will be delighted to hear the likes of Carroll, Henderson and Gibbs will all the given an opportunity to impress – and many will hope they can make the same kind of impact Adam Johnson has made during the early games of his international career. He has scored two goals for England already and is 11/4 to add to this on Wednesday.
England will be fielding a young side, but fans are going to have to remember this is a rather pointless friendly against an under-par France side (who are 13/5 to win, with 9/4 for the draw) – and what percentage of the new faces in his squad will be involved when England play their next Euro 2012 qualifier against Wales in March? It is a definite the more traditional faces will be back for then.
That is especially true among the striking options, as come March 2011 Wayne Rooney and Jermain Defoe are not going to be replaced by the likes of Gabriel Agbonlahor and Jay Bothroyd yet again.
Newcastle striker Carroll seems the best bet for a long-term striking option to come from this friendly experiment. It is 18 years ago that a young striker from Gosforth made his England debut against France at Wembley. On that day, Alan Shearer started an illustrious international career with a debut goal that saw him become a hero for all lads growing up around Newcastle.
Gateshead-born Carroll has followed in the footsteps of his hero by graduating into the famous Newcastle number nine shirt and will now be looking to copy Shearer’s introduction into the England side, and the 21-year-old is 5/1 to open the scoring for Capello’s side on Wednesday night.
Despite his high-profile off-the-field problems Carroll has impressed many with his powerful performances in the Premier League, and at a time when England are not too blessed with striking options – something exemplified by the fact Capello has turned to the likes of 32-year-old Kevin Davies and Championship forward Bothroyd (who is 15/8 to score anytime against France) in recent months – this really could be a big chance for the lad.
A great performance would catapult him up the ranks of England forwards for the coming years, and as the first England striker to have a ponytail in history then he could spark a new craze among the kids around Newcastle. Better that than the Fabricio Coloccini permed-mullett though.
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