Ibrahimovic is a menace, pearce clearly isn't ready

The menace of Zlatan Ibrahimovic hangs over English football at both club and international level. This evening, Arsenal at The Emirates will be seeking to subdue him as they so lamentably failed to do in their last-16 first leg European Cup tie at San Siro. But with a 4-0 deficit to eradicate, even if they succeeded in that task, it is hard indeed to see them surviving. And in the summer, in the European Championship finals, it is England who will face the towering Ibrahimovic when they meet Sweden. But at least they should be able to call upon a more resilient and experienced central defence than they did last week at Wembley when Holland were able to run through at will, above all in the inspired shape of Arjen Robben, who combined exceptional pace with skill and flair to score those two memorable goals. Stuart Pearce, a highly controversial stop-gap England manager, decided in his dubious wisdom that he could do without Manchester United's Rio Ferdinand, while only belatedly calling up Joleon Lescott before leaving him on the bench. True Gary Cahill scored a spectacular goal, but at the heart of defence neither he nor the inexperienced Chris Smalling truly convinced, while Cahill's uneasy performance for Chelsea in Naples put a large question mark against his abilities — and his huge transfer price. Meanwhile, who will be in charge of England in the Euros and what chance will they have whoever it is? Pearce has generously informed us that he'd be happy to be in charge of England for the Euros. Frankly, I don't feel he is ready at all. It seemed tactless and gratuitous not to make Steven Gerrard his skipper against Holland, instead preferring Scott Parker, admittedly in excellent form, at Wembley. And why with so few matches to come before the Euros recklessly throw in youngsters to see, as Pearce said, whether they can confront the ‘magnitude' of such an occasion? Harry Redknapp is still the favourite to manage England, but the FA are understandably delaying their decision, just as Harry is delaying his. Shrewd and highly effective though he is at club level, is Harry potentially an ideal England manager? A lonely job in which wheeling and dealing, always his speciality, is of no consequence. From gulfnews