King Stands By on Wounded Knee
Fabio Capello welcomed one of the finest center-backs of his generation to the England squad but Ledley King's fragility remains a concern
Ledley King knows the drill by now. Every morning after he has played he wakes to find his knee puffed up and painful, with another week of recuperation, mind-numbing gym work and endless lengths of the swimming pool ahead before he kicks a football again in anger. His surprise recall to the England set-up is unlikely to alter that routine. The only difference may be that the facilities he uses to undertake his specialist muscular exercises and monotonous front crawl will be those at Arsenal rather than Tottenham Hotspur.
Fabio Capello welcomed one of the best center-halves of his generation back into the fold on Monday after almost two years in the wilderness, though it says everything about King's fragility that it must remain in serious doubt whether he will actually add to his 19 caps against Slovakia or Ukraine. On ability alone the 28-year-old would arguably command a first-team place in the national set-up at the expense of John Terry or Rio Ferdinand. Yet, given that the cartilage in his left knee is effectively wrecked to leave the bones rubbing together, with the fluid that floods into the joint after rigorous exercise requiring time to drain, the logic behind his involvement with the England team is less obvious.
The national coach may consider him a player who can fill in seamlessly for either of his established center-backs at the last minute. He has had Ferdinand and Terry fit to start four of his 11 games in charge – and only one of the qualifiers – and, with Matthew Upson lately suffering from a calf complaint and Jonathan Woodgate overlooked, King offers an experienced and reliable alternative whether he can train with his team-mates in the build-up to a game or not. That same reasoning might apply to his filling in for a team-mate at a major finals should an accumulation of yellow cards rule out either the captain or the vice-captain through suspension for a solitary game at a tournament. The player is good enough to excel instantly, as Capello witnessed against Chelsea on Saturday.
Yet the agonising reality is that King's inclusion in a 23-man party for a World Cup would represent a risk if the schedule, as it surely would, demanded he play more than once a week. At best there are three days between the latter knock-out rounds of South Africa 2010, a stage England – whether realistically or not – aspire to reach. The centre-half's body could not cope with such exertions. Harry Redknapp had serious concerns last month over whether King would be fit to play at Hull on a Monday night and then the Carling Cup final on the following Sunday. "That may be a day or two short because he needs the full week," he said in the build-up to the game at Wembley.
On that occasion he did feature twice. "He never trains. He can't," added Redknapp. "Instead he observes drills at set-plays in readiness of filling in, usually for Michael Dawson, if his knee allows on match-day. His tally of 16 games since Redknapp's appointment actually represents something of a triumph. There were only four Premier League appearances last season, leaving Juande Ramos to bemoan that he had been left with "a Rolls-Royce in the garage".
Capello may risk the same scenario by taking him to South Africa but, before taking that risk, has decided to take a closer look. "The England management have spoken to Tottenham Hotspur FC today and explained that they will take no risks at all with Ledley King," a spokesman said. "They fully understand the player's injury situation but they wanted to have a close look at him in the team environment as Ledley has not previously been part of a Fabio Capello squad. He will be monitored during the week by the England and Tottenham Hotspur medical staff before any decision on training or playing is made."
If he features against Slovakia then he is unlikely to be ready to play any part in the competitive fixture against Ukraine. That suggests King will be rendered an unusable substitute for Saturday's friendly and, at best, a potential playing replacement in the subsequent qualifier. Yet Capello – who selected the Spurs captain for his first squad against Switzerland in February 2008 only to see him withdraw through injury – is likely to have little to no opportunity to integrate the defender into his training routines at London Colney ahead of either match.
King would normally use an international break as an opportunity to rest up before forthcoming Premier League fixtures and those at Soho Square are acutely aware of the fitness issues that surround him. Cruel as it is, he could yet remain the best centre-half the modern-day England team never really had.
Fabio Capello welcomed one of the best center-halves of his generation back into the fold on Monday after almost two years in the wilderness, though it says everything about King's fragility that it must remain in serious doubt whether he will actually add to his 19 caps against Slovakia or Ukraine. On ability alone the 28-year-old would arguably command a first-team place in the national set-up at the expense of John Terry or Rio Ferdinand. Yet, given that the cartilage in his left knee is effectively wrecked to leave the bones rubbing together, with the fluid that floods into the joint after rigorous exercise requiring time to drain, the logic behind his involvement with the England team is less obvious.
The national coach may consider him a player who can fill in seamlessly for either of his established center-backs at the last minute. He has had Ferdinand and Terry fit to start four of his 11 games in charge – and only one of the qualifiers – and, with Matthew Upson lately suffering from a calf complaint and Jonathan Woodgate overlooked, King offers an experienced and reliable alternative whether he can train with his team-mates in the build-up to a game or not. That same reasoning might apply to his filling in for a team-mate at a major finals should an accumulation of yellow cards rule out either the captain or the vice-captain through suspension for a solitary game at a tournament. The player is good enough to excel instantly, as Capello witnessed against Chelsea on Saturday.
Yet the agonising reality is that King's inclusion in a 23-man party for a World Cup would represent a risk if the schedule, as it surely would, demanded he play more than once a week. At best there are three days between the latter knock-out rounds of South Africa 2010, a stage England – whether realistically or not – aspire to reach. The centre-half's body could not cope with such exertions. Harry Redknapp had serious concerns last month over whether King would be fit to play at Hull on a Monday night and then the Carling Cup final on the following Sunday. "That may be a day or two short because he needs the full week," he said in the build-up to the game at Wembley.
On that occasion he did feature twice. "He never trains. He can't," added Redknapp. "Instead he observes drills at set-plays in readiness of filling in, usually for Michael Dawson, if his knee allows on match-day. His tally of 16 games since Redknapp's appointment actually represents something of a triumph. There were only four Premier League appearances last season, leaving Juande Ramos to bemoan that he had been left with "a Rolls-Royce in the garage".
Capello may risk the same scenario by taking him to South Africa but, before taking that risk, has decided to take a closer look. "The England management have spoken to Tottenham Hotspur FC today and explained that they will take no risks at all with Ledley King," a spokesman said. "They fully understand the player's injury situation but they wanted to have a close look at him in the team environment as Ledley has not previously been part of a Fabio Capello squad. He will be monitored during the week by the England and Tottenham Hotspur medical staff before any decision on training or playing is made."
If he features against Slovakia then he is unlikely to be ready to play any part in the competitive fixture against Ukraine. That suggests King will be rendered an unusable substitute for Saturday's friendly and, at best, a potential playing replacement in the subsequent qualifier. Yet Capello – who selected the Spurs captain for his first squad against Switzerland in February 2008 only to see him withdraw through injury – is likely to have little to no opportunity to integrate the defender into his training routines at London Colney ahead of either match.
King would normally use an international break as an opportunity to rest up before forthcoming Premier League fixtures and those at Soho Square are acutely aware of the fitness issues that surround him. Cruel as it is, he could yet remain the best centre-half the modern-day England team never really had.
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