http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/fo.../England-v-Moldova--Rickie-Lambert-watch.html Makes for an interesting read, the team could definately do with more players like Lambert!
There's one piece in amongst all of the NewsNow list [there are loads, so go look] where, once again, the journo seeks to show that he is one of the few who understands what Lambert is all about. He then goes on to describe Rickie's attributes in such a vague and loose way that one is left with the impression that the only reason he knows anything is because he's glanced at a couple of other articles, rather than watch Lambert in action for himself.
The best thing that tabloid journalists love about the current "flavour of the month" is it allows them to knock them down at the first opportunity. It's all feint praise.
Have to agree CBK. First chance they get the knives will be out! Luckily Rickie is very level headed so hopefully won't be phased by either all the praise now or the flak later.
Yeah he's old enough to take it in his stride. Just annoys me that majority of these journos at some point in their career probably covered lower league / local football, but you'd never know it. So many of them really don't appear to actually understand the game or be able to spot the good apples from the bad apples player personality wise. They are all very late to the Rickie Lambert party, much like the leeches most of them are.
What I have liked about Lambert playing for England is how he seems to have brought "the joy of playing for England" back into fashion. The lad is a credit to his club and family.
When we lose 1 nil or draw nil:nil on Tuesday, it will be all Rickie's fault: lower league player, small prem club, too slow, too old, blah blah blah. I don't care. I am just so happy for Rickie the person. It's a lovely story and if he gets any flack I think he should hold a press conference, retire from international football with three appearances, two goals, two assists and tell the journos to stick that in their pipes and f**k off!
Players like your Lambert make it almost worthwhile watching England games.The trouble is that I suspect that when bigger names become available he will get dropped in favour of them.The media have a lot to answer for here.Lambert is a good,honest player with a knack of being in the right place at the right time.Personally I would put him right up there with the best in The Premiership - and I'm not a Saint!
You may well be right (though if he has a good game against Ukraine, Roy would risk mob action if he drops Rickie), and the annoying thing is that Lambert's attributes happen to be the ones many of those bigger names are missing. England has plenty of racehorses, but have lacked players who can build possession intelligently and play a quality ball from an advanced position. Not sure whether Rickie can be influential against top-level competition, but it'd be a shame to drop him from the squad in favour of yet another player who can run and finish, but cannot pick a pass.
I'm sure Rickie is aware that he should have got himself into shape earlier. He has always been a good and productive striker, but needed to be fitter in order to climb the leagues. We were lucky to get Rickie and he was lucky that he met a rich club in League 1 willing to take a chance on him (thanks to Pardew).
There is horrible snobbish attitude from many journalists in the papers today. The praise they have given Lambert is quite patronizing. Moldova were probably league 1 equivalent but it was a job done. It will be a lot harder away from Wembley against tougher opponents and you just sense these journalists getting ready to jump on Lambert and Dykes speech about the lack of English players if they fail.
Rickie had to drop back in order to get the ball, then created three goals by intelligent passes into the path of other players (Theo's disallowed for offside)...the fact he had to do this had more to do with the quality of his team rather than the quality of the opposition. He may have got more goals if someone supplied the ball to him like that.