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June 16, 2010

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Kaiser slams England's style of play

GERMANY great Franz Beckenbauer says England has "gone backwards" under coach Fabio Capello and the team's discouraging start to the World Cup has occurred partly because of a lack of domestic talent in the Premier League.

Beckenbauer, in a column for South Africa's The Times newspaper, said he didn't think Capello could "still change much there."

England got off to a bright start against the United States on Saturday, taking the lead after four minutes. But England allowed an equalizer for a 1-1 draw when goalkeeper Robert Green spilled a shot by Clint Dempsey and the ball rolled across the line.

"What I saw of the English against the USA had very little to do with football," Beckenbauer, the only man to win the World Cup as both player and manager, said. "It looked to me as if the English have gone backwards into the bad old days of kick and rush.

"The English are being punished for the fact that there are very few English players in the Premier League as clubs use better foreign players from all over the world," Beckenbauer said.

Beckenbauer's comments were published widely in the British media, with The Times carrying a report under the headline: "Franz Beckenbauer puts the boot into 'kick and rush' England."

Meanwhile, England striker Wayne Rooney and defender Ashley Cole have resumed full training before the team's second World Cup match against Algeria.

Both players were knocking the ball freely yesterday after missing the previous day's session. Rooney took a hit on the ankle on Saturday, while Cole usually takes an extra day's rest after matches.

Center back Ledley King, whose groin injury is being assessed by medics on a daily basis, missed training as expected.

"It will be a blow if Ledley is out. We've got good replacements, but Ledley is a big, big player for us," striker Peter Crouch said. "We hope he will recover as quickly as possible."


 

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