Portsmouth goalkeeper David James insists he is none the wiser as to which of England’s three goalkeepers will be the number one shot-stopper in South Africa (England have World Cup betting odds of 11/2 to take the top prize in South Africa).
James has been selected as part of boss Fabio Capello’s 30-man provisional squad with fellow keepers Joe Hart, of Manchester City, and West Ham’s Rob Green. All three keepers look set to make the final 23-man squad, as it would be a strange move indeed from the Italian tactician if he were to travel to the World Cup with just two goalkeepers.
“I genuinely don’t know where I am. Mr Capello does not give too much away,” said James. “The way he sets his squad out means it is no longer a case of a first XI with an additional number of players.
“All I know is that I am totally fit and happy with myself and my form. And I’d like to think that other people are also happy with me.”
In some ways it is perhaps not such a surprise that the keepers, and maybe even Capello, are at this time unsure of who will be the number one at the 2010 World Cup. Football pundits have been divided on the issue for some time, with good cases to be made for all three to take the number one jersey.
At 39-year’s-old, James is the oldest man in the squad and the most experienced of the three keepers involved, with 39 international caps to his name.
Rob Green, 30, has nine caps, while 22-year-old Joe Hart has just one international cap – in a friendly against Trinidad and Tobago in 2008.
Green started England’s last friendly fixture, a 3-1 win over Egypt, and some have suggested he will be the main man in South Africa. England goalkeeping legend and the country’s all-time most-capped player, Peter Shilton, has voiced his concern that the goalkeepers don’t know who the number one is and has backed Green.
Shilton feels if Capello confirmed who his top stopper is now, it would give the chosen number one a massive confidence boost ahead of the tournament in South Africa.
At the start of the 2009/2010 season many expected James to be the number one by the time the World Cup came around but the Portsmouth veteran has suffered with injuries over the course of the season and has played less football than either Hart or Green.
However, James has done it all before and is as good a shot-stopper as any, although there may be occasional questions about his decision making but these have grown less frequent as he has matured.
Joe Hart, who spent the 2009/2010 season on loan at Birmingham City, was named as the Premier League?s top keeper in the PFA Team of the Year and many believe the youngster has proved himself enough ahead of the international showpiece.
However, at 23-years-old and with just one full season of Premier League football behind him (although he did enjoy a brief spell as City’s number one in the 2008/09 season before the arrival of Shay Given), there are question marks over his experience, with the goalkeeping position one of the most stressful in major international competitions – especially if penalties are required.
England face two friendly fixtures ahead of their first game against the USA in Group C on June 12 (England 8/15 to beat the USA in the World Cup betting market).
Capello will lead the Three Lions in warm up fixtures against Mexico (May 24) and Japan (May 30), with whoever starts in goal in those games the most likely candidate to be England?s first choice when the tournament gets underway.
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