STEVEN HOWARD
LIKE Old Man River, Steven Gerrard and Frank Lampard keep rolling along.
Maybe all the way to Brazil 2014.
There is a real element of Dad’s Army about the England midfield out here in Moldova.
Gerrard, Lampard and Michael Carrick could all start tonight in the first qualifier of a World Cup campaign that will hopefully end in Brazil.
Had we suggested after the 2006 World Cup in Germany that Gerrard and Lampard would still be England’s midfield pairing EIGHT YEARS on, there would have been a national outcry.
In fact, there was. And that was just the suggestion they could still start the qualifying process for Euro 2008.
Lampard will be 36 during the tournament in South America, Gerrard 34 and Carrick almost 33. And yet Roy Hodgson seems more than prepared to stick with them.
After the shambles of South Africa, Fabio Capello pledged a switch to younger players. Before Euro 2012, Hodgson tempered this with talk of an evolvement through youth and experience.
Yes, we have new faces in Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Danny Welbeck out wide and up front.
But the engine room is still made up of battle-hardened, old sweats.
Sure, a fit Jack Wilshere would provide another option. And, yes, Tom Cleverley is very much in the mix.
But, for the moment, it’s still Gerrard and Lampard. Lampard and Gerrard. Who would have believed it?
There could be no greater evidence that there remains a huge, worrying gap between the so-called Golden Generation and their successors.
Yet you can’t argue with Hodgson’s claim we should be looking at how the old boys are still playing not checking up on the birthdate in their passports.
The England manager said yesterday: “Am I concerned that some of my players could be in or approaching their mid-30s by 2014? No.
“Otherwise I would be making the decision not to use anyone who’s 30 when the World Cup comes along and speculating on the young ones getting us to Brazil.
“The first thing we have to do is qualify and many people seem to think that’s a simple task.
“It’s not. To make sure we do, I need all the players at my disposal who can get us there. Then we’ll see.
“There have been a lot of World Cups when people of 35 and 36 have made a fantastic impact. Pele would be one.”
Well, except Pele was only 29 when he played his last World Cup in 1970.
More relevant may have been Zinedine Zidane, who turned 34 during the 2006 tournament.
And, bang up to date, 33-year-old Andrea Pirlo at the Euros.
Then there was the case of the unheralded Georges Bregy.
Hodgson, though, remembers him well from his days as Switzerland boss.
He said: “I brought him back into the national team at 35 and he was arguably our best player in getting us to the World Cup in 1994 and through the group stage.
“I don’t write anyone off on grounds of age. I let them write themselves off in terms of performances that don’t justify selection.”
As for whether the team had quite evolved in the way he wanted, Hodgson had one get-out clause.
He said: “That’s difficult to answer given the number of injuries we’ve suffered. We are currently without nine players who were at the Euros plus Wilshere.
“Until they are fit, until they are making it more difficult for senior players to keep their places, I cannot answer that one.”
There is little doubt, though, that Lampard deserves to keep his England spot.
He had a wonderful run with Chelsea in the Champions League and was the star turn as England beat Italy 2-1 in Berne last month.
And, lest we forget, Clive Woodward’s team that won the rugby World Cup in 2003 were often described as dangerously decrepit.
There might have been some serious talk in the Moldovan capital last night but Gerrard still managed to raise a laugh.
Talking about the build-up to Euro 2012, he said: “I remember reading quite a few of you guys calling for Paul Scholes to be brought back in the set-up — and he was 34 at the time. That gives me a few more years yet!”
Gerrard’s backing of age and experience was hardly surprising — well, turkeys don’t vote for Christmas.
Agreeing totally with the man sat alongside him, he said: “It doesn’t matter how old you are.
“The manager knows who’s playing well, who’s in form and who deserves to be picked.
“Frank’s certainly still a top player and has been for years. I judge a player on what I see with my eye, not his date of birth.”
The Liverpool star does know, though, that this will be his and Lampard’s last World Cup push.
Gerrard said: “I’ve been here for 13 years and am coming up to 100 caps.
“If I hadn’t had so many injuries, I’d have passed that mark and might have the record by now.
“But I’m still enjoying it and at an age where I need to make every moment count.
“As for our chances in Brazil, well, I’m always realistic and honest. And, at the moment, we’re not exactly one of the favourites.
“But that doesn’t mean you stop believing, working hard to improve and trying to learn from the mistakes you’ve made at previous tournaments.
“This team has every chance to improve in the next few years.
“We have to keep the faith. Miracles do happen. We’ve seen it before.”
As for Moldova, if their players are anywhere near as easy on the eye as their stunning women then England could be in for a shock.
But, let’s face it, facts are facts.
Moldova are world ranked 141 and 47th of the 53 European countries.
England, incredibly, are third on the planet behind only Spain and Germany.
Yes, we know that doesn’t make sense.
But an England defeat out here tonight makes ever less.
