Upson v Lescott v King… The race for England’s 2010 World Cup squad

It has been the case for a long time now that the strongest part of England’s team in terms of first choices and suitable backups has the centre back position. The likes of Tony Adams and Sol Campbell have made this position theirs for long periods, leaving other top quality centre backs on the bench and the position has seemed determined already in recent years through the performances of world class duo John Terry and Rio Ferdinand. Those two will surely be on the plane to South Africa this summer but who else will be going with them? Enter the candidates…

John Terry (Chelsea)

Terry will undoubtedly be at South Africa this summer. He’s current England captain and has impressed Fabio Capello in his performances for him so far. An ever-present for Chelsea who top the Premiership currently and possessing a knack for scoring important goals, Terry will be one of the first names on the team sheet for the games, let alone in making the squad. Terry made his international debut in 2003 and became a starter ahead of Sol Campbell by Euro 2004. Whilst Terry does not have the pace to deal with fast opposition, his reading of the game and no-nonsense defending make him extremely difficult to get past plus he is excellent in the air. A no-brainer.

Rio Ferdinand (Manchester United)

Like Terry, Ferdinand will surely be going to South Africa but Ferdinand’s place as a starter is not as certain as his defensive partner’s. Within the last few weeks Ferdinand has put in a number of poor performances and numerous mistakes and defensive lapses have cost both England and Man United. Ferdinand has always said to be somewhat lacking in concentration which causes problems for his side but his general play has always overcome that problem. With his form continuing to be terrible at the moment questions over Ferdinand’s mental being and whether he’s on the decline are haunting the man who cost Man U £33 million and Capello will hope to see a big improvement from the big centre back if he’s to keep his spot.

Matthew Upson (West Ham United)

Upson is a man whose career has had a number of ups and downs. Much of his early career was spent at Arsenal where Upson failed to hold down a first team. He was then brave enough to move away from Arsenal to join a smaller team – Birmingham – in order to get first team football. Upson became a regular for Birmingham after recovering from previous injury problems and his impressive form led to an England return. Upson then completed a move to West Ham United in January 2007 but he didn’t complete a game for the Hammers until August as his injury problems returned to haunt him. Upson kept his head high and has since become a key player for West Ham, now being their captain and one of the few players impressing this season as the Hammers fight against the threat of relegation. Valued so highly by West Ham that they dismiss any suggestions that he could leave to ease a supposed financial crisis, Upson is an imposing defender who has gone from looking out of his league for England to looking comfortable on the international scene. If he stays fit he will probably be on the flight to South Africa.

Joleon Lescott (Manchester City)

Lescott proved a revelation for Everton after signing for the club from Wolves back in 2006, winning Everton’s player of the year in his first season at the club and then proving a huge goal threat in the following season and his early season form led to a first England call-up. Lescott was unfortunate enough that his emergence on the international scene coincided with England underachieving under Steve McLaren and failing to qualify for Euro 2008 and he, along with fellow England new boy Scott Carson, was originally deemed not international quality. Lescott’s Premiership performances continued to impress though and this summer he became one of Manchester City’s big-money signings and he has been a regular for the mega-rich club so far this season. City’s defence have recently been criticised for being too poor in the air with Lescott partnering short Ivorian Kolo Toure but Lescott’s goal scoring habit for Everton shows that his aerial ability is not to be mocked and he is solid and always keen to go in for a tackle.

Phil Jagielka (Everton)

Jagielka has spent the majority of his career at Sheffield United where his specialist position was never clear with the versatile player appearing in both midfield and defence. His 2007 move to Everton proved the catalyst for his improvement and he has flourished after being given a regular position at centre back by David Moyes. Jagielka made his international debut back in 2008 but was soon made to look out of depth on the international scene by European champions Spain when David Villa eased past him en route to scoring. Despite this, expectation on Jagielka to perform on an international stage is high as he has become one of England’s top defenders following his move to Everton. His biggest problem currently is that he has been out of action since April and it is yet to be seen whether his form will be as good when he returns as it was before he picked up his injury. If Jagielka does come back in the kind of form he produced beforehand then he’s a certainty to make South Africa.

Ledley King (Tottenham)

Fast, strong and composed. King would be the perfect candidate to replace Ferdinand in the starting line-up should the United defender’s form continue to flatter to deceive. If he weren’t so injury prone that is. King has always impressed throughout his career at Tottenham and when he has appeared for England but injuries have hit him so frequently that he now doesn’t even partake in training exercises with the rest of the squad in order to avoid unnecessary injury. Fate has not been kind to King; the one tournament where he was fit and looked like being first choice alongside Ferdinand whilst Terry was injured was at Euro 2004 where he excelled in the opening game against France. King was then forced to leave the England camp though as his wife was giving birth, denying him the chance to show his calibre at an international tournament. King has had some slight injury problems so far this season but it’s yet to be seen whether he will be able to get a clean bill of health in time for the tournament. Capello is said to be a big fan of the Tottenham man and King could easily make the squad should he remain available.

Gary Cahill (Bolton)

Providing Ireland don’t snap him up first, Cahill could be a shock inclusion in England’s World Cup squad. Considered a terrific prospect whilst at Aston Villa, Cahill was allowed to leave the club for Bolton in 2008 as he sought first team football. Cahill has since been a regular starter for Bolton and one of their best players, being called up to the England squad earlier in 2009 through his impressive appearances. Strong and confident, Cahill is perhaps too good a player to be at Bolton and would surely feel at home on the international stage. It wouldn’t hurt Capello to try him out.

Michael Turner (Sunderland)

Of this list of players, Turner is the only one to have never received an England call-up. Why that is the case is a mystery as Turner has proven an absolute beast of a player in the best league in the world. Turner’s dominating displays for Hull were crucial in keeping Phil Brown’s side in the top flight and he was linked with the likes of Liverpool and Manchester City before joining Sunderland for a fee believed to be as low as £4 million, making him one of the biggest contenders to Thomas Vermaelen’s claim to be Premiership signing of the summer. Turner stands huge at 6’4 and is unsurprisingly excellent in the air. Whilst not the fastest of defenders he reads the game well and is solid in the tackle and has been excellent for Sunderland so far this season. Capello could do worse than to give Turner a try.