Stuart Pearce has warned the FA that England will continue to fail at World Cups unless there is radical change in the approach to major tournaments.

England’s insipid performance attracted widespread criticism, notably from former England manager Glenn Hoddle, who described it as ‘very disappointing’. Pearce had no inclination to quibble with a man under whom he played international football.

The Under 21 head coach was speaking in the wake of his side’s 1-0 defeat against Italy, a result that leaves their hopes of progressing at Euro 2013 in jeopardy. Pearce did not try to defend the abject display in Tel Aviv but took his chance to highlight a number of significant issues.

While Italy were able to call on the services of Paris Saint-Germain’s Marco Verratti, who was given the blessing of Italy senior coach Cesare Prandelli to represent the Under 21s, Pearce went into the opening Group A game missing a staggering 17 eligible players.

Big-name absentees is a recurring theme for England at Under 21 tournaments but Pearce believes the implications are far-reaching and says they will ultimately prove detrimental both to player development and England’s hopes of success.
‘I will tell you now what you need to do to win a tournament,’ said Pearce. ‘It was exactly the same as the French, Spanish and Germans before. You qualify with your best players.

‘Then you take your best team and players to the tournament. That is the only way you will be successful. We’ve done a study over the last 10 years. It is around the top seven teams in Europe and incorporates the four top teams in South America and Mexico.

‘In that time, only Spain surpass us in terms of qualification, from Under 17s to seniors. But when you flip it on its head, and ask how many of our top 50 players who are playing in the senior squad now have got tournament experience before they get there, we finish second bottom of the group.

‘The statistics are there. It is whether you want to ignore them and think it doesn’t matter, we will just turn up and try to win a World Cup. Or do you want to put the building blocks in place?’

The delivery of Pearce’s message was considered but there was no mistaking the severity of his words. Norway, who England face in Petah Tikva on Saturday, have come to Israel with a squad containing 15 players who have been capped at senior level. England, by contrast, have five.

Holland, who are in Group B, have 12 players in their 23-man party who are regulars in the senior team, while Spain’s side includes Barcelona pair Thiago Alcantara and Cristian Tello, Iker Muniain of Athletic Bilbao and Malaga’s £35million-rated midfielder Isco.

Pearce could feasibly have named a side here that included Phil Jones, Danny Welbeck, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Jack Wilshere but none of that quartet would ever be considered for Under 21 duty now that they are part of Roy Hodgson’s plans.

‘I had 20 caps before the (1990) World Cup in Italy but nothing prepared me for stepping out into the pressure that came my way,’ Pearce recalled. ‘From that experience, I said, “That can’t be right”. It is a pathway I don’t want young players to tread. I want them to get experience (of tournaments).

‘You only have to look at the development of Theo Walcott. He went to the World Cup in 2006. Since then, he could have gone to two World Cups, two European Championships, three Under 21 European Championships, two Under 20 World Cups and an Olympic Games, age permitting.

‘I think he has only played five- and-a-half tournament matches in that (seven-year) period. We have to address that, so our brighter players, like the Oxlade-Chamberlains, can get tournament experience. You have to win at this level to get success at senior level. The stats bear that out.’

http://futbolgist.com/2013/06/07/england-can-never-win-world-cup-pearce/