With the retirement of Steven Gerrard and Frank Lampard from the England national team, there is a gaping hole in the central defensive midfield of the squad.
The two members of England’s so called Golden Generation each featured in over a hundred games for the Three Lions, and were automatic selections for the starting eleven no matter who was managing the national team. With these two legends gone, their former understudies in midfield, as well as new call ups to the squad, have attempted to replace them. One of these call ups was Newcastle United’s Jack Colback.
Colback was called up for games against Norway and Switzerland, but was injured and hasn’t been called up since. With the Premier League entering its final weekend, an evaluation of the “Ginger Pirlo’s” performance against other candidates for the England midfield as based on this current season should be made to decide whether Colback is worthy of becoming a capped England international.
Arguably the only player who’s spot is secure in defensive midfield for England is Liverpool’s Jordan Henderson. The former Sunderland man has established himself as the leading candidate to receive the captain’s armband from the departing Steven Gerrard. Manchester United midfielder Michael Carrick has played excellently for England, although his body may not permit him to play much longer at a high level, as he’s 33 with a long history of injuries. Arsenal men Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Jack Wilshire have struggled with injuries and are used in a variety of positions by Hodgson, although they are both still young and can make progress. Tom Cleverley has had a good year rehabbing his much maligned image at Aston Villa, and has England national experience. Ryan Mason has had a breakthrough year at Tottenham, and is anther versatile player with a great engine. Fabian Delph has established himself as a Hodgson favourite, while James Milner has been a staple in the squad as a utility midfielder. Tom Huddlestone is a defensive midfielder on the rise at Hull City. Finally, Jonjo Shelvey and Ross Barkley are young attack minded midfielders who would not be competing directly with Colback.
Where does this leave Colback? He has been one of the few bright spots in the Magpies season, going box to box with passion and energy, passing with efficiency, and making many good challenges. His competition is therefore the other energetic midfielders in the England setup. Former Sunderland teammate Henderson occupies the starting position in England’s engine room, and this is extremely unlikely to change, as the 24 year old will likely only improve. Therefore, Colback would have to establish himself as a bench contributor who could step in seamlessly if Henderson were to succumb to an injury. Fabian Delph is likely the best competition, winning his first seven caps this season, beginning by being called up at the same time as Colback in September. Although statistically Colback has had a better season than Delph, boasting more goals, assists, tackles, interceptions, as well as a slightly higher passing percentage, Delph’s season with the squad versus Colback’s without cannot be ignored. Therefore, despite the fact that Colback arguably has been slightly better than Delph this season, it will require a injury or likely a chance in a friendly for Colback to make an impression on Hodgson. Even if this does occur, Colback will then have likely no more than two games to demonstrate that he is England material.
