It pains me to hear any world class footballer compared to Cobi Jones (not that Cobi hasn't done his best). Every England fan I know thought Cole was the top performer of the Cup for their squad (outside Hargreaves, but no one in England likes him enough to admit that). He certainly played above expectations as did Crouch, in my opinion.
I also think the comparison of Joe Cole to Cobi Jones is not a good one. They are simply not in the same class, and that's not a meant to be a knock on Jones. It's like comparing most DI and DIII players in any sport, and we here know all about that. What I sometimes haven't liked about Cole in the past is a tendency to do beautiful footwork and then not finish. But, as OS points out, hardly anyone finished for England in the WC and Cole produced a beauty. I am not a Chelsea supporter, but I'd love to have him on my side.
To me, the biggest disappointment in the midfield was Frank Lampard. One of the English press wrote that "the jounalists and cameramen learned when to duck--whenever Frank Lampard prepared to shoot." His official number was 24 shots on goal, tying him with Maniche and Thierry Henry. His teammate Steven Gerrard, however, had 2 goals in fewer than 10 shots (ESPNsoccernet's listing ends there). And even Beckham, with his limitations, was able to score in his distinctive way. But, I don't see a lot of Lampard and I'm willing to believe he had a bad run. I just don't think it's fair to say that the English midfield were uniformly poor--there were definitely some who played better than others. And the striker situation was a disaster, putting far more pressure on the midfield to score.
Crouch is not pretty, or usually very efficient, but he can score. With the right lineup--usually 4-4-2, with the other striker small and quick, he gives defenses fits.
And, I think the biggest disappointment of all was Eriksson, who made all of the rest possible.
I just watched
Fever Pitch again last night--can't wait for the EPL to start!
