Nady;2875474 said:
Yes thats true. A player like Drogba (29 goals) for eg doesn't get as much praise as Rooney.
as Eyal mentioned, it's that Rooney is English, and Drogs isn't ... they'll praise Drogba like crazy when he does well, just as they did Cristiano, Titi, or Cantona ... but when it's an English player involved, suddenly the national pride factor overrides rationality, and the praise reaches another level ... it contributes heavily to the problem night is talking about ...
night;2875466 said:
The English media put the English players at a disadvantage. First they overhype every single player and you see headlines like "this year is our year" and "this year is the repeat of 1966". When England is knocked out, the media changes their face and they go on crucifying every player.
They oscillate between overhype and crucifixion which probably puts tremendous pressure on the England players to do well..
the English "pundits" get so convinced that English players from the Prem are the stars of their teams, thus believing the England national team to be a sort of Premiership All-Stars unit .... but that's just not the case ... and the growing hype of the Prem has only worsened the situation ...
I'm not an England supporter, and this should suit me fine ... but I don't like England because of their lack of entertainment appeal for me ... and the baseless arrogant hype just makes it worse ... but if they sorted themselves out and played well (to my eyes), then I could focus on enjoying what they display on the pitch ...
the performance against Mexico was very unimpressive ... some analysts did admit that that was the case, but not necessarily for the right reason ... apparently England were supposed to have delivered a thumping victory against Mexico at the "hallowed" new Wembley Stadium, in their last home friendly before departing to South Africa ... how could anyone expect a hiding to nothing against Mexico? well, due to the very same "overhype" and thus overrating of the England players' abilities ... Mexico are not a great team at the moment, but they are not bunnies either ...
there was an element of ludicrousness from the commentary and analysis -- like with Crouch's goal, when it was glossed over quite quickly that the goal was both offside and a handball; what hypocrisy for a country that still complains about Maradona's hand of God goal ... I know some fans may readily admit it, but the TV coverage certainly didn't ... anyway, this was no big occasion, so no need for me or the opposition to fuss about it too much ...
the other thing that I found ludicrous was when England were being praised for being able to win even when they were playing badly ... I find that hilarious because it was Mexico's profligacy and lack of fortune in front of goal, combined with the aforementioned offside + handball Crouch goal, that kept England in front at the break ... Vela should have buried his chance, but his tame effort made Robert Green look a hero, while Salcido was unlucky to see his curling shot go out off the upright ... if Crouch's goal was disallowed (as it should have been), and Vela took his chance, then guess who's not only not playing well, but not winning too?
this isn't about reading too much into England's potential based on one match; I'm sure Capello would have taken note of everything that didn't work ... no, the point is about how the pre-tournament tradition of English "pundits" and analysts creating baseless expectations through the media lives on strong ...
but wouldn't it be ironic if, since this could be the last-chance saloon for a few of the 30+ year-olds, the excessive hype actually makes the need for success inescapably apparent, thereby energizing those players to finally rise to the occasion?
Rooney and other English players get the same attention every year when the national game starts. Even more of an emphasis this year since Rooney did so well. 
... and you've hit the nail on the head as far as the situation is concerned ...
