One can only imagine the shade of purple Fergie and co turned upon the news that not only do they have to wait through the duration of the Euros with baited breath hoping that their players return unsaved, now they have to contend with the prospect of players also playing for ‘team GB’ to boot.
The club v country debate has is always bubbling under the surface, with ill-timed international friendlies and injuries being sustained on international duty – we all remember the injury to Owen and his club at the time Newcastle’s reaction – but expect the issue to rear its ugly head with gusto once more as we head towards the summer.
With the Olympic team now able to consist of players who have participated in the Euro’s, albeit minimally, with England’s record at such tournaments, it is not impossible to envisage our players not only playing in Poland and Ukraine this summer, but also for team GB, further placing strain on their bodies and taking away their down time, something that is vital for them given that most will have played a full season for their clubs and will be going into another one straight away.
Should players such as Rooney be called up to take part in team GB, they could potentially miss the majority of their club’s pre-season training, and also the Community Shield match, which takes place on the same weekend as the Olympic final. Not only will this anger player’s clubs and their managers – after all it is the clubs who are paying the hundreds of thousands of pounds for the players wages and their medical bills, but it could also potentially cause anger amongst fans who want to see their clubs do well and players performing up to the level they expect.
Should players be fatigued after a summer of international duty and this then impact on their performance for the clubs throughout the coming season, don’t expect this to go unnoticed by the fans – they are the ones spending their money on football tickets, and deserve players to be at the top of their game, not suffering from the effects of playing for ‘team GB,’ having been denied both a rest in the summer and also a full pre-season – or any at all.
A good pre-season is vital to clubs for a variety of reasons, allowing new players to link up and form understandings with current players, getting the players fit after a summer away from the club and conditioning them to prevent injuries. More than a couple of people have remarked on the fact that Barcelona’s pre-season left a little to be desired, and attributing the vast amount of muscular injuries their players have sustained at the beginning of the season to this.
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It is also worthy of note that players will credit full pre-seasons as a reason for improved form during the season – Anderson has stated that this summer has been the first time he has participated in full pre-season and his form has improved for it. Likewise, the scintillating form of Wayne Rooney – who this debate may affect more than most due to his ban for the first three games meaning that he will, especially should England go home early, have played less games than most – can be put down to the player having a proper rest in the summer. This is something that would not happen anyway due to the Euro’s this summer, but would be magnified further should a player be included in team GB, removing any chance of a break for players should England crash out early.
It is not just English players that are candidates for the Olympic team, but Northern Ireland, Wales and despite strong objection from the SFA, Scottish players. Again these players although not playing in the Euro’s would lose the chance of a break during the summer and the chance of pre-season, and possibly playing in the Community Shield. For a player such as Ryan Giggs, whose name has been mooted as a potential squad member, a rest in the summer and a good pre-season is vital, and one can only imagine Fergie’s reaction to this potential situation.
The issue of players sustaining injury playing for team GB would also be a problem, especially if managers have objections to their players taking part when they should be with their clubs, and potential litigation seems a likely outcome should this situation arise.
Either way, with managers already uncomfortable with the prospect of Euro 2012 approaching, the prospect of them losing key players for an extended period of time which will directly impact on the club’s pre-season and potentially the season to come, expect this debate to gain momentum as the summer gets ever closer.