Mickey's Misery

Michael Dawson looks set to be omitted from the England World Cup 2010 squad. It was on the cards from the start - he was always an outside chance, has no international experience and didn’t even play in the mickey-mouse friendlies building up to the group stages.

Preferred instead is Mathew Upson, East London’s finest centre half. A centre half who has been struggling with a relegation battle all season and whose team conceded an average of 1.74 goals per game, the same as Portsmouth. A team who conceded 36 goals against the teams in the top half of the table, showing that maybe he struggles against top class opposition? Whilst Spurs only conceded 24 against the top half.
Upson is a centre half who was part of a defence that only managed to keep a clean sheet percentage of 21%. I have seen brothels with a better clean sheet ratio.
Michael Dawson on the other hand has been a changed man this season. Gone are the days of him being partnered with Kaboul and acting like Bambi on Ice skates during the squeaky-bum seasons of past.

Dawson has been a part of the fourth-best team in the Premier League. A team that kept a joint-first place “best home defence”, paired only with Manchester United. A team that kept 34% clean sheets this season.
He has been a mountain of a man this season and the type of player that would run through a concrete wall if he believed that a football was on the other side.
Daws is arguably the most in-form defender in the England squad and yet chosen above him have been two injury-prone central defenders (one of which has no pace), a central defender involved in a relegation battle all season and Jamie “the second best right-back in the country” Carragher. Amazing. Surely if Terry and Ferdinand are ruled out, then the best partner for the King of WHL should be his defensive partner week-in, week-out?

I do feel sorry for Michael, but to look on the “glass half full” side, at least he will be fully rested for the start of what will be a very long season. King will conquer.