Hargreaves is World Cup hero
Posted by DavidM in England, Owen Hargreaves, World Cup | 2 July 2006
For every villain their has to be a hero - so for every Rooney there is a Hargreaves.
After Shrek's sending off and with Beckham already off the pitch, Hargreaves was the player who stepped up and drove England through to a penalty shoot-out. An phenomenal work-rate saw Hargreaves racing forward to get on the end of England's standard long-ball, then charging back to defend the hole in front to the defence.
He was deservedly man of the match and has had an excellent World Cup, finally silencing the England boo-boys who had queried his selection.
The crowd have had a point in the past though. I think the silver lining to the very, very dark storm-cloud that was Sven's defensive tactic is that it created a role for Hargreaves which showed off his true ability. With Gerard and Lampard looking to play forward from midfield, Hargreaves' role was to provide extra defensive cover, hold the ball and distribute it simply to those two.
He deserves a lot of praise for his performances this tournament, but it remains to be seen whether the changes we all hope McClaren brings will suit him as well.
Comments
Hargreaves was superb!The the defense was overall quite good.The offense was in a word offensive.I noticed after a bit Portugal trying to avoid Hargreaves and stay out at the edges.The midfield needs to be built around Hargreaves simple as that.
