Balloon D'or; the English feel alone
So the nominations for best player in world are out; and not one English player is on the twenty three man shortlist. Sadly it's not a surprise.
The Premier League is represented by five great players; Manchester United's Robin Van Persie, Liverpool's Luis Suarez, Chelsea's Eden Hazard, Manchester City's Yaya Toure and finally new Arsenal signing Mesut Ozil.
Everyone will expect it to be a two horse race with Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo going head to head; but don't rule out the world's most expensive player, former Spurs man Gareth Bale.
Men’s shortlists for the FIFA Ballon d’Or 2013
The following 23 men (in alphabetical order) are in contention for the FIFA Ballon d’Or 2013:
Gareth Bale (Wales),
Edinson Cavani (Uruguay),
Cristiano Ronaldo (Portugal),
Radamel Falcao (Colombia),
Eden Hazard (Belgium),
Zlatan Ibrahimović (Sweden),
Andrés Iniesta (Spain),
Philipp Lahm (Germany),
Robert Lewandowski (Poland),
Lionel Messi (Argentina),
Thomas Müller (Germany),
Manuel Neuer (Germany),
Neymar (Brazil),
Mesut Özil (Germany),
Andrea Pirlo (Italy),
Franck Ribéry (France),
Arjen Robben (Netherlands),
Bastian Schweinsteiger (Germany),
Luis Suárez (Uruguay),
Thiago Silva (Brazil),
Yaya Touré (Côte d’Ivoire),
Robin Van Persie (Netherlands),
Xavi (Spain)
So why aren't there any English born players in the list?
Sorry to say but it's the same reason why I very much doubt England will win the World Cup; the influx of foreign players is at the expense of the English players.
In Messi, Ronaldo and Bale you have a rare exceptional talent who would get into any side in the entire world; but the list is twenty three strong so there really isn't an excuse why at least one English player should make it.
Wayne Rooney hasn't played bad but the competition is very strong.
Premier League clubs need to work in tandem with the English FA or the situation will only get worse; but just where do they start?
The loan market is more popular than ever with top clubs loaning out youngsters, mainly English players to lower league clubs. Now no-one can deny they need experience but surely if a player is good enough then he should be able to break into the first team? In many cases average players earning silly money stand in the way. The long term effects are it will effect the national side; it looks like it already has.
The loan market works in so many ways; the player gets 'game time' and fit and that in turn works out well for the club they are loaned to.
Andros Townsend is a great example of the loan system; no less than nine clubs before finally breaking into the Tottenham side and then of course England.
Can he win the Balloon D'or one day?
His form has to be consistent to even be considered but there is little doubt he has the talent.
His teammate at Spurs is midfielder Tom Carroll, another player out on loan.
Carroll plays for the country of his birth at under twenty one level and big things are expected of him.
On the international stage in goal is keeper Jack Butland, another player out on loan.
If they are good enough to represent England at under twenty one level then they should be good enough to do it at the club they play for and not loaned out.
It's great to see the talant coming through and clubs really should learn to trust young players who will only get better.
Alan Hansen once said on Match of the day, "You'll win nothing with kids," Sir Alex Ferguson soon proved him wrong on that!
Written by Paul Moore, a football fan.