Euro 2012 Diary, Day 4 - Anticipating the Ox, and Today's Quick Picks

"So, just who was on that Milan backline, anyway?"

Today England plays their first match in the European Championships since I was still in my early 20s.  Since I was introduced to the game by and Anglophile friend of mine and I follow the English Premier League closer than I do any other in soccer, I'll always lean toward the three lions in a big international tournament. Against France, even more so.

But surprise news this morning out of the England camp shows that early 20s is nothing. Roy Hodgson is apparently set to put 18-year-old Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain in the starting side, and that's got me buzzing. The British media is already spinning it as a big gamble since Ox is still emerging as a top flight pro.  But really, England's recent record of playing teenagers in big competitions is pretty successful - think Michael Owen in '98 and Wayne Rooney in '04.  Sure, the teams as a whole have never achieved anything of substance, but they're always good for a dynamic young superstar or two.

Whether or not The Ox becomes a superstar in that tradition is now likely to be decided by this tournament, if he's really going to see major playing time. It was something of a surprise that he was even put on the squad to begin with, in fact the reasons given by the manager turned out to be completely made out of thin air, so to me his inclusion in the starting eleven, has to mean some impressive training ground performances and a general desire for Hodgson to at least try something dynamic in this tournament rather than play it safe.

Theo Walcott, who went to the World Cup as a teen himself in 206 but didn't make an impact, hasn't been playing much in the run up to this tournament. But he plays with Oxlade-Chamberlain at Arsenal, and I hope Hodgson pairs the two of them again today, if not to start, then for a significant stretch of the second half (can't find official lineup yet online). Lets see 'en put a couple of corvettes on the pitch and run circles around the Frenchies. If he just sends Ox out there to run about by himself while the rest of the lineup remains conservative (think Milner) then I was wrong in the previous paragraph and I can't see it do much good.

Walcott's pace paired with O-C's general disruptiveness could do major damage to a French side that's not exactly settled, and still trying to restablish itself after the disaster in South Africa. Add to it all the fact they've been professional teammates for the past year (Xavi/Iniesta Effect?). The time is right for England to get aggressive and take the game right at their opponents, don't sit back in midfield with Milner, bomb forward relentlessly with Theo and the Ox, and I say the rewards will come.

If a bit of magic happens out there today, this kid could become the next big thing on the international soccer stage. If it starts today, expect England to get a leg up in one of the longest running rivalries in western civilization, and France to face major questions on the true status of their national federation's rebuilding project.

I'd love to see him succeed, even though every passing year makes it harder for me to accept the super-success of the precociously young, I am a fan of the Ox. Plenty of better writers than I have chronicled his compelling rise on the scene, especially in recent days, and I definitely encourage you to read up on him if you're not familiar.  What would truly be awesome to see would be an "Arshavin '08-level" impact on the tournament, only this time instead of hope hope hoping for my team to sign the breakout star of the Euros, we'd already have him under contract.

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As for my picks, it's not looking good as I drop to 0-6.  But hey, still a long way to go, right?  How are YOUR picks doing, anyway????

Here's today's shots in the dark:

-England 2-1 over France

-Sweden 3-1 over Ukraine

My Record So Far:


Day 3 Results:  0-2
Overall: 0-6
Perfect Scorelines - 0

Fantasy Pool - 27.2 points, 28th Place of 29 (Dropped 2)

Today's Fantasy Lineup:

Martin Olsson - SWE

Yevhen Konoplyanka - UKR

Ashley Young - ENG

Karim Benzema - FRA