Unsurprisingly, most of the criticism has come from people who wouldn't know Lionel Messi from Terry McFlynn, and many wouldn't be able to tell the difference in their style of play.
I expect ignorant criticism from people who don't understand the game. They haven't spent years at the top of the game- playing or coaching or even analysing - to understand why their criticism of the Socceroos style is so ridiculous.
It got me thinking.
Craig Foster should know better right? I mean he's supposed to be a leading anayst of the game in this country so surely he can see how flawed his constant "Beautiful Football" argument is. Besides his long running agenda to get Socceroos coaches not named Guus sacked, his articles are fairly poor, at least from a journalistic point of view, so he can't have his job based on his journalistic merit's
He's very rarely fair and balanced. He tells us why beautiful football is the greatest and can never be beaten without explaining why it often fails (see Arsenal's last few season)
His articles contradict each other (on the rare occasions that he's not rehashing his beautiful football argument). He says in one argument that Guus had this same team playing a great brand of football, then in another article tells us that the current team has had alot of changes from the 2006 version and will struggle to make an impact on the world stage because of it.
So I thought, if an average football fan like myself can see this and Craig Foster can't, maybe he's not as qualified as we're all lead to believe.
I wondered if he'd make the current Socceroos team. I wondered if he'd even make the squad!
As a player Foster was an attacking midfielder, our current first choice attacking midfielders are Tim Cahill, Harry Kewell and Brett Emerton.
At his peak Foster managed to play 30 games (over 4 years!!!) for 5 goals in the second tier of English football. By that standard he'd be lucky to be an A League marquee signing!
Tim Cahill has currently played 131 games (37 goals) for Everton who are one of the best teams in the top tier of English football, he's been nominated for the ballon d'or, he scored Australia's first ever world cup finals goal and has even been described by one of Foster's peers Rale Rasic as the best Australian footballer he has seen in his lifetime. You're not threatening his spot Craig.
Kewell played 275 games (57 goals) in the English top flight, is currently in great form playing in the strong Turkish league, and is arguably the most high profile Socceroo ever. His spot is safe too.
Brett Emerton has played 190 games for Blackburn in England's top flight after 92 for Feyenoord in the Dutch top flight. He's a versatile player and has spent alot of time playing as a right back, he has been possibly the most consistent player for the Socceroos over his 69 caps and you couldn't find a player more willing to bleed for the jersey. Not many players in Australia's history could take his Socceroos spot.
Our next best options are Mark Bresciano and Mile Sterjovski
You could argue that Bresciano would be in any starting Socceroos team if fit after his past 10 years playing against the worlds best in Italy's premier competition.
Sterjovski has played in the top flight of leagues all over Europe including France, Switzerland, Turkey and England. He takes his place in the squad.
Jason Culina plays primarily as a defensive midfielder for the national team, but is equally good as an attacking midfielder and his years playing in Holland and in the UEFA Champions League give him his credentials.
In the Current Aussie squad, the other attacking midfielders are Richard Garcia and Nick Carle.
Richard Garcia made it to the English top flight this season, and has now been taken into the last few squads as Pim Verbeek seems to be impressed by him.
Nick Carle has had a very simlilar career to Craig Foster.
Both spent alot of time spent playing in Australia after short term early moves overseas, and Carle is currently in the English second tier, where Foster's career peaked. Carle is only 27 and his career can still see him reach greater heights, but for whatever reason, Pim Verbeek doesn't seem to be a fan. Maybe that's why Foster seems to have a problem with Verbeek, who knows.
But at this point Australia has 7 or 8 attacking midfielders that make the team before Foster comes into consideration.
So ultimately this man that seems to have such strong opinions on everything, this man who is meant to be one of our leading pundit's, this man who influences (or at least tries to influence) our opinions on football, if he was born into the current generation of players, may not have gotten a cap for the Socceroos. Would we take his opinion as seriously if that was the case?
I don't think so.
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