Soccer: Keegan problem - Shearer or Owen?

by GLENN MOORE

The burger vans were wiping up, the rubbish men sweeping away the detritus of another game, and the queue to escape from the carpark was down to five minutes.

Another shower was on the way. Yet outside the entrance to Wembley's banqueting hall on Sunday were several hundred England fans, still waiting patiently for a glimpse of their heroes and, for the lucky few, an autograph.

Then the captain emerged and, as one, the crowd bayed: "Shear-er, Shear-er."

This is the man, remember, who is booed at most English premiership grounds, who, excluding the Luxembourg hat-trick, and penalties, has scored three goals in his last 17 internationals, and against Brazil that afternoon, had missed two excellent chances.

After a bright start, he had been overshadowed by Michael Owen and the critics who had written him off at the start of the season were beginning to raise their heads back above the parapet.

The public, to judge from this unrepresentative sample, and the broader poll of a Wembley crowd who had regularly chanted his name, have regained their faith.

The England manager, Kevin Keegan, like his three predecessors, swears he never lost it. Yet after Sunday's match, the debate about England's forward line has taken another turn.

Once again the question is: should it now be Owen plus one? Or remain Shearer plus one? And who should be the one? Or are Owen and Shearer now compatible?

These are questions that Keegan will have to resolve before England's first match in Euro 2000, against Portugal in Eindhoven, in a fortnight.

Before that he has to decide on the forwards he will actually take to the tournament. Keegan is due to name his squad after Thursday's Wembley international against Ukraine, and choosing five from six strikers - Shearer, Owen, Emile Heskey, Kevin Phillips, Robbie Fowler and Andy Cole - is likely to be one of his key decisions.

Keegan's fondest wish is that Shearer and Owen establish a winning partnership - and who can blame him?

Such has been the reliance on Shearer and, to a lesser extent, Owen, that no other potential partnership has anything like their individual and combined experience.

At 20, Owen has already spent nearly as much time hanging around the penalty boxes of the international arena as Fowler, Cole, Heskey and Phillips combined. Shearer, meanwhile, has missed just 25 minutes of Keegan's 11-match reign.

However, in the last nine hours under Keegan, England have scored five goals in six matches, just two of which were scored by strikers - Shearer's overhead kick against Belgium in October, and Owen's equally well-taken close-range strike on Sunday.

That was England's first goal in more than four hours' play since Paul Scholes' brace in Glasgow. Who would have imagined that Keegan would preside over such an impotent side?

In the past, Shearer and Owen, though ostensibly well-suited have appeared too selfish to combine. Both, as Shearer has admitted, run into the same areas. Both players spoke positively about the partnership afterwards.


Though Keegan is a fan of Fowler, his lack of fitness means the permutations for the front two appear to have come down to two from Shearer, Owen and Heskey. One past his peak, the others yet to reach theirs.

Though early impressions suggest Heskey would work well with either, his lack of experience means the others are likely to start against Portugal.

Should Fowler prove his fitness against Ukraine on Thursday, when he is likely to start alongside Shearer, the last squad place would appear to be between Cole and Phillips.

- INDEPENDENT