Anyone Fancy A Beer?

By Adam Humphrey, writing from Barcelona

“Anyone fancy a beer? Beer mate? Beer anyone? C’mon lads let’s have a beer before the game, cheers cheers and all that, just like down the pub on a Sunday afternoon.”

Where to start with this all time low barrel scrapper of incentivising by England’s manager in the pre-match build up to the Slovenia game. To offer a beer in the changing room in a stereotype of English football was one pathetic move to try and drum up some lonely moral. Apparently, not all players took part in the prematch booze up and I should think so too, not because a few sips of beer may hinder their performance but it might actually improve their visual acuity going on the last 2 games. It was a tacky attempt to conger up some last hope enthusiasm.

Let us look at why this was done instead of what actually took place, and as while a lot of the country of England may enjoy this story in the name of emphasising masculinity through camaraderie, I would like to know what this has to do with the manager actual skills in general. To imagine his thought process with his staff prior to the trip to the liquor store is something worth looking into, as this well established disciplinarian lets his hair down to show his true colours. Albeit this will probably be his last game or 2 (if any momentum or luck is in the air on Sunday) and this bizarre act to ‘relax’ the players uncovers a few flaws of the FA in hiring the Italian dictator to begin with.