“So before voting for quotas, which would have to be voluntary anyway, consider why it might be that clubs who like to buy British – Sunderland or Derby, for example – are not prospering from all the quality cast-offs unable to get a game with the big teams. Just as there was no golden generation, there is no abundance of English quality either, and Wenger knows that better than anyone.”
http://blogs.guardian.co.uk/sport/2007/11/18/before_ringfencing_english_tal.html

Since Steve McClaren took over as England manager, and despite starting in every match bar one (for which he was suspended), he’s only scored 3 goals, all of which were against the weakest team in the group, Andorra. He’s only scored once in his last 7 games for England, and even under Sven-Gorran Eriksson, he only managed eight goals from 45 appearances, and all but one of those eight were against extremely poor opposition (Andorra, Sweden, Serbia and Montenegro, Hungary, Macedonia, Azerbaijan, Trinidad and Tobago). Not exactly a world-beating record, is it? His record for Liverpool means very little for England if he can’t maintain it during internationals, and I haven’t seen any evidence that he can thus far in the qualifying campaign.

None of this is to say that he’s a bad player – clearly, he isn’t. He’s just not the same player when he’s in an England shirt.

Micah Richards takes his athleticism for granted, way too often. A team with superior athletes than Austria, will exploit the hell out of him, as happens all the time in the Premiership. He’s young though and has plenty to learn.

Lampard and Owen don’t care, at least Gerrard does. It was a friendly, get over it, nobody cares.