Emile Heskey plans to erase the most painful moment of his career by helping England move within touching distance of the World Cup finals in today’s qualifier against Andorra.
The 31-year-old has endured more than his fair share of disappointments in an England shirt, but nothing hurt quite as badly as being sent into international exile by Sven -Goran Eriksson without even an explanation.
His crime was to give away the free-kick that led to France’s equalizing goal against England at Euro 2004. England went on to lose the match and Eriksson made Heskey the scapegoat.
For the next three years, Heskey barely featured and never heard a word from the Swede to justify his decision.
But the snub only served to strengthen Heskey’s desire to make the most of his chance if a England call ever came again.
He did just that in 2007 when Steve McClaren brought him in from the cold to partner Michael Owen, only for England to fail to qualify for Euro 2008, denying Heskey redemption in a major tournament.
When Fabio Capello replaced McClaren he soon realized Heskey’s muscular presence, which had so enhanced Owen’s predatory instincts, could also provide an ideal foil for Wayne Rooney.
The results have been impressive. With Heskey to take the bumps and bruises, Rooney has run riot, scoring eight times in six matches, while Heskey has chipped in with two goals in two games.
Their partnership has helped England to six successive wins to move seven points clear at the top of their World Cup qualification group. A victory over Andorra would all but seal a trip to next year’s finals.
“You’re going to feel harshly treated if the manager doesn’t explain to you why you’re not playing or why you’re not in the squad,” Heskey said.
“Someone’s got to take the blame at the time. It could have been someone else, but it was me,” he said.
“It could have been dealt with a bit better. I don’t know whether I was an easy target to leave out of the squad and not to talk to. I don’t complain. You get on with your game and let that do the talking,” Heskey said.
Heskey’s resurgence has been mirrored by the England team itself. After failing to qualify for Euro 2008, a group of players castigated for a lack of passion have responded to Capello’s strict regime.
Saturday’s 4-0 victory in Kazakhstan underlined the Capello effect. A lackluster opening against fired-up opponents on a poor pitch could have spelled disaster under McClaren or Eriksson but England were cajoled into grinding out a win.
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