Tom Cleverley: What exactly does he do?

[DarrenFreemansPerm]

And neither do I.

No, of course you don't.

 

[Jim Van Winkle]

Having Tom Cleverley in the England squad brings me as much joy as when Dennis Wise made the England squad.

For those of you that need that spelling out. He is gash, uninspiring and plays football like a crab.

You think of the players United have had playing that role e.g Robson and Keane. Cleverley is more Djemba Djemba or Kleberson than Robson or Keane.

For England, Henderson has come one leaps and bounds this season, does the same role a hell of a lot better and has starting chipping in with some goals too.

 

[withdeanwombat]

I admit I don't rate this player, but so what ? Doesn't matter what I think - it's what his manager(s) think that counts.

I hear Forest are after him.

 

[joeinbrighton]

Cleverley is more Djemba Djemba or Kleberson than Robson or Keane.

That will be Kleberson who won the World Cup with Brazil in 2002 and who was man of the match in the final, yes?

He was poor at United, but it happens. Very different footballing culture for a South American coming to England and the ones who have acclimatised and made it have tended to play elsewhere in Europe first, which Kleberson hadn't.

 

[Brighton TID]

Tom certainly went missing last night.

Oh yeah, he didn't play.

 

[Stumpy Tim]

The petition is probably down to the injustice that Cleverley, who has shown he's not good enough as this level & isn't getting much game time at his club, continues to make the England squad while in-form players like Adam Johnson & even Tom Huddlestone are overlooked. If Huddlestone & Cleverley swapped clubs, I think we all know it wouldn't be Cleverley in the England squad

 

[Jim Van Winkle]

That will be Kleberson who won the World Cup with Brazil in 2002 and who was man of the match in the final, yes?

He was poor at United, but it happens. Very different footballing culture for a South American coming to England and the ones who have acclimatised and made it have tended to play elsewhere in Europe first, which Kleberson hadn't.

That would be him. Kleberson the guy who peaked too soon then. You kind of prove my point in playing for the World's top clubs/countries not only do you have to have the ability but also the consistency and mental strength for a sustained career. For me Cleverley has none of these.

 

[joeinbrighton]

The petition is probably down to the injustice that Cleverley, who has shown he's not good enough as this level & isn't getting much game time at his club, continues to make the England squad while in-form players like Adam Johnson & even Tom Huddlestone are overlooked. If Huddlestone & Cleverley swapped clubs, I think we all know it wouldn't be Cleverley in the England squad

While I see the point you are making and it may well have some validity, I'm not sure that's really the case.

I mean, using your examples of Tom Huddlestone and Adam Johnson, the former of whom I rate quite highly. Huddlestone may now be playing for unfashionable Hull but before that he played for the eminently more glamorous Tottenham for 8 years, during which time he won 4 England caps. Then, with Adam Johnson, he may now be playing for Sunderland, by no means an unfashionable club anyway, but before that he played for Manchester City for 3 years, during which time he won 11 caps for England, mostly as a substitute. In his case, I think it's more a case that the current manager rates him less than his predecessor did and feels he has better and more reliable options in the wide positions, where England are well stocked.

The reason Hodgson keeps Cleverley in his squads, I feel, is because he is the type of player he likes, that is to say an industrious player who will work hard to win the ball back when the opposition has the ball, which when you have the defensive mindset that Hodgson tends to have as a default position when he sets his team up to play against the better nations, is probably going to be more than half the time. Same reason he would always have James Milner in his squad. He's not a terrible player by any means, just not quite up to the standard to be having a regular starting berth at Manchester United or be in the first choice England team. I would compare him to Kieran Richardson as a player who won a few England caps early on his career while trying to break through at United, before ending up having a decent career at lower end Premier League clubs as Richardson has with Sunderland and Fulham. Cleverley it could be argued would be more suited to playing in a team where he is one its key players, as he was the season he was on loan at Wigan and played a key role in keeping them in the Premier League.

 

[Stumpy Tim]

I would compare him to Kieran Richardson as a player who won a few England caps early on his career while trying to break through at United, before ending up having a decent career at lower end Premier League clubs as Richardson has with Sunderland and Fulham.

Proves the point really. Richardson got his England caps when he was trying to make the grade at United. When he moved on, he moved out of England contention.

 

[keaton]

If you go back a couple of years there were a fair few posts that he was the future of England football, and technically superior to the rest of the squad, etc, etc.

 

[Not Andy Naylor]

Is that question related to the thread about the first gay footballer coming out?

 

[BadFish]

Uninspiring, unadventurous, laborious and dull.

Sounds like the perfect match for the current England team if the Denmark game is anything to go by.