Well that question hangs in the air… The depate that surronds England manager Steve Mclaren is whether he should stick with Emile Heskey who put in a decent shift against Israel or whether he should revert back to Peter Crouch who has done well in an England shirt over the long term.
I personally would stick with Heskey. He has done really well at Wigan and has worked hard to get himself recalled to the England squad despite missing a good chance against Israel he did the hard work of winning balls in the air and outmuscling defenders and that allowed Owen to move around and score goals and he took his shot fine.
Elsewhere on the pitch is an interesting matter. Micah Richards and Shaun Wright Phillips have done well on the right but I would still replace them with Becks and Gary Nevville when the two of them return from injury. However since neither is available for the Russia clash they should both keep their places.
As for the centre of midfield. Like Heskey, Gareth Barry proved his call up was the right decision. He played very well against Israel but Russia will provide a stener test than Israel, Hiddink has made them a well drilled and organized side that we will struggle to break down. I would take a scrappy 1-0 at the moment. I will be watching the game and I am begging for an England victory.
Prediction: England 1-0 Russia
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After another sterling England performance against Russia I would expect Heskey to be in future England sqauds and with this form it should be Rooney or Heskey because the latter’s partnership up-front with Michael Owen is not only natural, but almost telepathic.