Later today Fabio Capello will make the biggest decision as England manager when he cuts seven players from his provisional squad of thirty who have been training in his favourite Austrian hide away.

Capello and his management team have been watching their squad as they trained and played in friendly matches against Mexico and Japan. None of the players have bathed themselves in glory. There have been so many poor performances that pundits have a plethora of players to berate. So many that some have said it would nearly be better to start again, that said they have only seen the games not what happened during the training sessions. All we know from the training sessions is that Gerrard is not 100% fit.

In the Mexico game the makeshift/second choice defence was frail and the second choice Mexican strikers exposed but failed to exploit the openings that were served up on a silver platter. Walcott seems to be playing like an under age player who thinks if he kicks the ball past the defender in the hope that his pace will help him win the day. His decision-making and delivery was so poor that Wayne Rooney got so frustrated he lost his cool. Not what the nation wants but probably what it expects. The papers reported that Beckham was giving Walcott advice on crossing and delivery. Should he not have done that four years ago? When the boy Walcott was an unexpected passenger in Ericsson’s squad for the world cup in Germany.

Warnock and Baines both looked like strangers and will probably be severed in favour of utility men Carragher & Milner who can cover Ashley Cole if the need arises. What Fabio wouldn’t give for John Terry to have kept it in his pants so he could avail of the services of Wayne Bridge.

Central defence is another precarious position as none of the ‘stars’ are fit or in form. John Terry still seems to be suffering the hang over of Bridgegate and struggling for pace. Ferdinand is far from fit and hasn’t played enough games to have any form at all, infact when he has played he has been suspect but is still surviving on the hype of him being the most expensive footballing defender. His back problem could flare up at any time and seems to be more problematic than Ledley King’s notorious knobbly knees. Using Carragher as cover for left back you can have King and toss a coin between Upson and Dawson. If you don’t favour the traditional coin tossing method Dawson would probably edge it as he has familiarity with the rest of the Spurs band of brothers and has been in good form in helping secure the last Champions League spot for his club.

The first casualty of the midfield should be Barry he isn’t fit and won’t be ready. However Fabio likes him so he is saved for now pending medical clearance. Carrick has been found lacking in the warm up games and has been anonymous in the games that mattered for United. Parker would also get the chop, a good pro and reliable player but not good enough with or without the ball to be more than a passenger.

All of the strikers should go. Being able to score goals is what wins World Cups, even though some of those chosen do not have international pedigree. The one ‘world class’ player Wayne Rooney seems off his game and if the frustration builds he will earn a suspension from a number of yellows but more probably from a red card in a crunch match. So keeping options open in the striking department is paramount.

Back to the Barry issue, Huddlestone makes the squad if Barry is declared unfit after his latest bout of scans in the morning. He provides something different in an almost quarterback role, given the opportunity he would enjoy and exploit the time and space to deliver killer passes for waves of England attacks.

So the seven sacrificial lions are in no particular order:

Warnock
Baines
Carrick
Walcott
Parker
Upson
Huddlestone/Barry(if unfit)

Enjoy your holidays lads, maybe I’ll see you in Ibiza.