The Sven Sage Part Two: The Case for the Prosecution
In response to Mike Olford's case for the defence of Sven-Goran Eriksson, Martin Barraclough argues that the Swede’s departure from the England hot-seat was long overdue.
Sven-Goran Eriksson finally succumbed to the ever-increasing pressure on his shoulders last week by deciding to resign from the England mangers position after the World Cup.
The final straw in a long line of problems came from an English newspaper who claimed Eriksson had suggested there was corruption in the English game as well as admitting he would be interested in managing Aston Villa and was planning to leave in the summer anyway if England won the World Cup.
Since Eriksson became England’s first ever foreign coach following Kevin Keegan’s resignation in 2001 he has been guilty of numerous off-the-field misdemeanours which have brought shame and embarrassment upon the FA and the national team.
Preparations for the 2002 World Cup were disrupted with news of his affair with fellow Swede Ulrika Jonsson and on the pitch England threw away a brilliant chance to reach the Semi-Finals of the tournament when they went down 2-1 to ten-man Brazil in Shizuoka.
The following year brought more controversy for Eriksson after he met with the then new owner of Chelsea Roman Abramovich allegedly discussing a possible role at the Bridge. In 2003 England also lost 3-1 to Australia in a friendly at Upton Park, with Eriksson bizarrely substituting the entire team at half time.
Eriksson agreed a lucrative contract extension with England in 2004 despite again meeting Chelsea representatives. Euro 2004 ended with penalty shoot-out despair against Portugal and that tournament was followed by news of an affair with FA employee Faria Alam (for which he was later cleared of misconduct by the FA).
The results against Germany and Argentina were certainly highlights of the Swedes tenure, but passion and creativity have all too often been lacking from performances when England really should have done more. The shambolic defeat against Northern Ireland in which Eriksson deployed a five man midfield against one of the world game’s weaker outfits baffled many and England also produced shocking displays against Denmark and Spain amongst others in friendlies.
Eriksson has done the sensible thing in offering his resignation following five years of living off one great result against Germany. His antics off the field have brought shame on the English game and the FA should have sacked him a long time ago rather than rewarding his disloyalty with a whopping pay rise.
His motivational skills have been criticised by past players and he has obviously always lacked the patriotism that this role should involve. England have got a great chance in the World Cup, but if the three lions win the competition it will down to the fact they have some world class players rather than anything Eriksson does.
Sven, thanks for the 5-1, but it’s time to hand back the reigns to an Englishman.
Martin Barraclough
