| England international Warren Barton played
five years at Wimbledon and seven at Newcastle before returning
to the Dons at their controversial new home in Milton Keynes
via short spells at Derby and QPR. At 35 he combines playing
and coaching with an active role in a company
Gibbon and Barton International Travel Ltd. offering football
club breaks.
The Purist meets Warren Barton
Soccerphile: We have Iceland and Japan over this month,
what do you say to those who say they are not ideal preparation
for Euro 2004?
Warren Barton: I was at the British Sportswriters' awards
the other week and Sir Clive Woodward, who won the rugby World
Cup with England in November, said some very interesting things
in his speech. He basically feels that in our country we never
prepare for anything properly! Compare the national team with
our big clubs when it comes to attention to detail and you
start to see what he means.
Soccerphile: But in Sven-Goran Eriksson's case it's
always going to be a case of damned if you do, damned if you
don't!
Warren Barton: I don't see anything wrong with the
build-up this time, to be honest. Questions are bound to be
asked when so few of the opposition are household names -
for instance, Nakata hasn't made the trip - but that misses
the point at this stage of the game. What this tournament
represents is an acknowledgement that there's no point playing
competitive games at the intensity level of an Argentina,
for example, and it's not as if you're going to want to play
anyone who's also qualified for the main event. Given that,
and with no disrespect to Japan or Iceland, to an extent it
doesn't matter who you play. They may not have many famous
players but what England need is to get everyone focused,
draw a line under all the endless experiments with substitutions,
and get those set-pieces and so on as sharp as possible.
Soccerphile: People think of the Hong Kong trip and
the fuss over the drinking and bonding when they think of
prep for Euro 96 - hosted by England - but you yourself played
a part in the June friendlies a year prior, when Sweden, Brazil
and Japan also came over, which was the only other time Japan
have played England?
Warren Barton: Yes, I played against Sweden at Elland
Road when they were over with Brazil and Japan for a similar
tournament to the one being held in Manchester. We drew 3-3
but what I remember most is the atmosphere Terry Venables,
who was coach then, was trying to generate. From that point
of view taking the lads away from Wembley wasn't such a natural
thing to do and it made a nice change. The object of the exercise,
which I can appreciate more since I've had my UEFA B coaching
badge for four years now, is to foster a club spirit among
the lads, forget about any squabbles over salaries, bonuses
or any other issues and get to know each other. Look at Brazil:
they get their squad together far more regularly than we do
and you see the effect that has on their results.
Soccerphile: You went on a recce out in Portugal with
England back in February, in the name of the firm you've set
up putting football mini-breaks together, right?
Warren Barton: Yes, I have a travel business now, based
in the northeast, as well as being player coach at Wimbledon.
Soccerphile: Hasn't the whole La Manga style break
sustained a serious blow with the fall-out and the spotlight
on players' lifestyles that Leicester's last visit led to?
Warren Barton: I've been many a time to La Manga and
one thing's for sure, clubs will always need to get away and
the facilities there will always be attractive. But even if
it represents a tiny minority, there has been an effect from
the Leicester controversy and something I've been looking
at is offering pre-season and mid-season alternatives in France,
Germany, Holland, and also Portugal, which is on such a high
with Euro 2004 and the fact that Porto are now Champions of
Europe.
Soccerphile: It was one big excuse to play golf, just
admit it!
Warren Barton: Well in February I didn't play a single
round, honest! But clubs will always want a sunshine break
and having been a player I can bring that experience to it,
whether that means specialist equipment in the gyms, organising
the golf or just silly stuff like making sure the rooms have
the right Sky package so players can keep up with games from
home. It can make a big difference.
Soccerphile: What about picking a winner come July
4 for us?
Warren Barton: I'm not a betting man but after the
obvious candidates my wild card is Holland. Just look at the
quality in their squad, it really is about time they made
the most of their experience and potential. As for England,
don't expect a former team-mate of Alan Shearer's to agree
with his decision to retire from international football! He
would still be such a bonus out there, but I do think David
Beckham will come good and show the same kind of attitude
and leadership as Alan. He never shirks and he relishes the
responsibility at its most extreme - in fact, I'm really looking
forward to seeing his effect on the rest of the players. Michael
Owen will hopefully prove he is world-class, too, though I'd
have taken Tottenham's Jermain Defoe as a possible partner
because he is bang in form.
Soccerphile: You also played with Kieron Dyer at Newcastle.
Now he's safely made the England squad, can he go on and scotch
that "enigma" tag this summer?
Warren Barton: I'd love to see him take a leaf out
of Frank Lampard's book, who had the same question marks over
him around 18 months ago but has turned out to be such a consistently
dangerous player in the Premiership and at a higher level,
too. Kieron has all the ability, it's time he stood up to
be counted - there is no reason why he shouldn't if he stays
injury-free.
Soccerphile: What about the hosts?
Warren Barton: I talk a lot to Newcastle fans and Hugo
Viana has been a disappointment, having brought such high
expectations with him. When it came to the crunch against
Marseille I think he was found wanting, but then he's still
only a young lad. I can't see Portugal having that problem
of stage-fright with Luiz Filipe Scolari, who won the last
World Cup with Brazil in charge, but defensively they will
struggle. They have all the flair in the world with Figo,
Rui Costa and even Ronaldo, but compared to some of the other
defensive units that will be on show I reckon they'll come
up short.
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