Are the England U21 team's poor performances representative of a lack of quality players?

Dejected England players after the UEFA European U21 Championships, Group A between England and Norway at HaMoshava Stadium on June 8, 2013 in Petah Tiqwa, Israel.

The English are very enthusiastic about their football. They wait on the wings as they await one golden generation after the other.

I think it can be safely said that the English club structure is extremely hospitable to young talent. That’s why one is a bit flustered by the result of the recent U21 European Championship. England were knocked out of the competition even before they play their final game against hosts Israel. If their performance against Italy was lacklustre, they were demolished by Norway. England had been tipped to be one of the stronger sides in the group defensively, having not conceded any goals for 900 minutes prior to the tournament. But they were exposed by the clinical Norwegian side, who scored three goals before England could grab one for consolation.

The U21 side’s coach, Stuart Pearce, had expressed his high expectations for the side given the solidity in defence, the creativity in midfield and the goals in the forward line ahead of the tournament. However, as it turned out, nerves not only got the better of the players, but the coach too as he made wholesale changes from his side that played against Italy. The first goal that England conceded against Norway threw up an area that England have suffered with in the past cup competitions – that of the tentative goalkeeper as Butland did not deal with the corner and the defense appeared lax after an incomplete clearance. However, more pressing questions remain unanswered. Is it the quality of the side that was lacking or was Stuart Pearce unable to muster a balance out of the squad available to him? Or is it England’s tendency to slip up under the pressure of big occasions?

After the defeat to Italy in the first match of the group stage, Stuart Pearce came out firing against his critics by pointing out that he had been without the services of many players who should have ideally been on the pitch. Pearce said, “If you bring your best players, you stand a chance of winning the tournament. If you don’t bring your best players, you take your chance when you get there. That applies to every country in the world.” Pearce was pointing towards some players who have had a greater role to play at their respective clubs such as Jack Rodwell and Alex Oxlade Chamberlain. Pearce was tight-lipped with explicit statements but he said enough to point out where the problem lay. He said, “one or two do not want to give their summers up to go and represent their country … that’s just how it is.” However, Pearce’s statements can’t be taken uncritically as these were comments made after a disappointing failure against the Italians and disguised some of his tactical failures. However, they do point in a direction where English football might be lagging behind.

In addition to the clash of priorities between club and nation, there is also the huge level of expectations to battle against. Also, the spotlight that these youngsters are thrown into at such a young age is also unnerving. Just as a case in point, Wilfried Zaha has been in the media glare even before he signed for Manchester United. Jordan Henderson, who was a key midfielder in Stuart Pearce’s side, has already been battling his ‘value’ at Liverpool. One can tend to forget how young and impressionable these lads can be. The U21 competitions are a platform for these players to prepare for the bigger stage, so that when they land at the World Cup they play as if they belong.

Stuart Pearce picked up another interesting case of this failure to garner experience at U21 level for English players as he pointed in the direction of Theo Walcott. Pearce said, “You only have to look at the development of Theo Walcott. He went to the World Cup in 2006. Since then, he could have gone to two World Cups, two European Championships, three under-21 European Championships, two under-20 World Cups and an Olympic Games, age permitting. I think he has only played five and a half tournament matches. We have to address that, so our brighter players, like the Oxlade-Chamberlains, can get tournament experience – playing time – and don’t just go to them.”

As England move towards World Cup 2014, they will be calling upon some of the talent that has participated in this competition. It will be interesting to see their preparedness for such a high-profile competition. England need a change of attitude going ahead; they need their best young players to be playing at these competitions and rubbing shoulders with the corresponding best of the world at that age. An early exposure to a more demanding atmosphere might be more detrimental than fruitful.