As a wave of player withdrawals decimate the leading nations, why has international duty gone from glamorous honour to annoying chore?

By Dan Ripley

PUBLISHED: 17:02 GMT, 12 November 2012

There was a time when being called up to represent your nation was a boyhood dream come true and the pinnacle of your football career.

But unless you’re Steven Gerrard and about to join the 100 club this week, it seems that representing your country in international football no longer has quite the glamorous appeal it once had.

Gerrard will need to pass a fitness test before facing Sweden in a friendly on Wednesday but England team-mates Theo Walcott, Wayne Rooney, Aaron Lennon, Kyle Walker and Jonjo Shelvey haven’t even risked it by pulling out of the squad completely.

Not risking it: Wayne Rooney picked up a knock playing for Manchester United at the weekend and withdrew from the England squad to face Sweden on Wednesday

Sorry, Roy... Liverpool's Jonjo Shelvey breaks the news to Roy Hodgson that he won't be involved this week

But it’s not just an England problem, with a wave of international withdrawals decimating squads from other nations. Some player excuses look more suspect than others.

Demba Ba for instance played the full 90 minutes of Newcastle’s 1-0 defeat at home to West Ham on Sunday and showed no visible signs of injury. But the striker has pulled out of Senegal’s squad to face Niger on Wednesday along with five other international team-mates.

If you’re Scottish (or English with a few ancestral links north of the border) the chances are you may want to sit by your phone as you could be next in line for a Scotland call-up in a squad managed by caretaker, Billy Stark.

Scotland, who sacked Craig Levein earlier this month, are without nine players from the original squad selected to play in Luxembourg – all of whom play for clubs in England’s Premier League or the Championship. Some would argue the home side may even be favourites now…

Down and out: Demba Ba was disappointed that Newcastle lost to West Ham on Sunday... so much so he withdrew from international duty

Even Europe’s big guns are in on it as Gael Clichy has pulled out of France’s squad to face Italy in Parma with a lower back injury despite playing 90 minutes in Manchester City’s 2-1 win against Tottenham.

Not even the blockbuster clashes are safe, with Germany hit by six absentees for their match with huge rivals, Holland. Miroslav Klose is convinced he cannot overcome a cold by Wednesday while Mesut Ozil’s withdrawal is officially because of ‘muscle problems’ – for what it’s worth that could be a dead arm.

On the positive side it does leave space for players to receive late international call-ups, with Shola Ameobi poised to make his Nigeria debut…although only because Chelsea pair John Obi Mikel and Victor Moses have been given leave by the Nigerian FA.

The 31-year-old who is capped at Under 21 level for England faces a long journey though as Nigeria face Venezuela in Miami. It’s no wonder friendlies take so much flack when you have an African side taking on a South American team in North America – what is the point?

Sniffles: Miroslav Klose scored at a rainy Stadio Olimpico in the Rome Derby on Sunday... but has since withdrawn from international duty with a cold

Believe it or not, friendlies still serve some purpose on the international front from a competitive standpoint.

They ultimately lead to FIFA ranking points, which in fine margins can be the difference between avoiding tougher sides in a major tournament or qualifying group.

To put that into perspective, a win for England on Wednesday could put them up two places to fourth in the world rankings while defeat may leave them as far down as eighth.

Should they make the World Cup in Brazil – that’s going from being a European top seed to a second seed (Brazil currently ranked 13th are automatically seeded top as hosts) so every win in any format does count.

But what does go against international friendlies is their puzzling schedule. Friendlies in the middle of August are incredibly disruptive to a domestic team’s preparation for a new season, while the current bouts of matches take place four months before the next round of UEFA’s World Cup qualifying games (discounting Northern Ireland v Azerbaijan and Macedonia v San Marino).

 

On leave: John Obi Mikel (left), played for Chelsea on Sunday but has been given leave by the Nigerian FA for this week

In truth the African sides have the Cup of Nations to prepare for in January (which makes Nigeria’s game in Miami even more confusing) but that doesn’t mean European sides have to compete too.

So who should we be blaming for all these international exiles? Should players care more about representing their country, regardless of where and when?

Or are the senseless selected dates of friendlies making it needlessly awkward for the football clubs that pay the players’ wages and nurture their talents?

There is always a place for friendlies but a more sensible solution would be to play them in the build-up to competitive games or in the usual fashion of just before a major tournament.

Ranking points or not, random friendlies are doing no one any favours.

It’s not quite the death of international football just yet but when did a boyhood dream become an annoying chore?

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