Mad Brit Diary

Englishmen are secondary players in the Premier League.

(Friday, February 3, 2006) -- The only English player on Arsenal's roster in the recent loss at home to crosstown London team West Ham United was Sol Campbell, and he was substituted for at halftime. So what does that tell you about the quality of English players in the European Premier League? Sorry, I mean the EnglishPremier League.

Or what does that tell you about how hard it is for English players to get a shot at playing in their own country's top league. Or should I even be talking about this issue? Gee, these days, in some places, you can't even use the term foreigner, even though I'm reminded I'm a foreigner all the time.

Just imagine, if no native player was listed on the roster of a top club in say Italy, or Germany, or France, or South Korea, or Japan, or Iran, or even Major League Soccer, there would be uproar in the media. But you really don't want to imagine that, do you? It might just stir up a bit of national pride, or common sense, which for now has been buried?

Now, the issue of foreign players is just so ho-hum in the British press. It's even all old news. And that's all right, but it's nice to discuss the issue now and then. Hey, I love watch Thierry Henry, Ruud van Nistelrooy and Brain McBride in the EPL, but I can't help thinking coaches on English clubs are just grabbing overseas talent without taking a good look at a lot of young English guys hoping to earn a paycheck.

On last February 14, Arsenal, which is coached by the charming Frenchman Arsene Wenger, was the first EPL team to name a completely foreign 16-man squad for a match. Chelsea of London was the first to field a team with an entirely foreign lineup on December 26 1999. According to Wikipedia, when the EPL kicked off in 1992-93, there were just 11 players named in the starting lineups from outside the United Kingdom. By 2001, foreign players competing in the EPL amounted to 36 percent. In 2004-05, the figure had risen to 45 percent.

Who knows? This season it could be over 50 percent.

Wikipedia also states that "Arsenal's 85 percent foreign-player figure (rising from 64 precent in 2000-01) is the highest of any club over the period. Chelsea has since been overtaken in terms of the number of foreign-born players by Liverpool (72 percent).

Ironically, now that Swede Sven-Goran Eriksson will not be coaching England after this summer's World Cup, there's be a cry for a Englishman to coach the national team, which is funny because there haven't been too many cries for English players to start at Arsenal.

But, pray please tell me, what Englishman is qualified to coach the English team. No English coach has won the EPL title since its inception in 1992. A couple of Scots, a French dude and a smart-talking Portuguese chappie, are the only coaches to win the EPL. For my money, give the England job to Dutch coach Guss Hiddink or Frenchman Gerard Houllier. Now am I a contradiction or what?

Going back to English players in the EPL, the major problem is that English top talent, is so darn expensive. So coaches like Wenger and Sam (Win At All Costs) Allardyce go trolling European leagues for cheap talented young players or aging past-their-due-date old geezers. You do wonder how much effort Wenger and Allardyce take at looking at young English talent in the lower leagues?

Incongruously, while foreign players saturates the EPL, England's national team finds itself with probably the strongest squad since 1990. Players such as Frank Lampard, John Terry, Steven Gerrard, Michael Owen, Ashley Cole, David Beckham, Wayne Rooney, Rio Ferdinand, Gary Neville and Joe Cole are all internationally known qualities. So, maybe, I should just shut up.

And gong back to poor old Sulzeer Jeremiah (Sol) Campbell, whose trip to the World Cup is looking bleaker by the day, he stormed out of Arsenal's ground after taking a shower and is not very happy. Still, he has the pop singer Dido, a devoted Arsenal fan, to comfort him.

Heard a rumor, have a gripe or a tip? Feeling lonely? E-mail the Mad Brit at themadbrit3@aol.com.