Former Toon Star Says Backing England Is 'Madness'!

Last updated : 10 February 2009 By Footy Mad - Editor

The former Toon full-back, who is the current under-21 coach and also part of Fabio Capello's senior management team, is surprised to hear the squad being touted for glory in 2010 after their failure to even qualify for Euro 2008.

He played 52 games for Newcastle between 1997/9.

Pearce: "If you're backing a horse that hasn't won a competition in 40 years and suggest he will win the Grand National, you'll be called a madman.

"I don't believe anyone in the squad thinks what we have at the moment is good enough to win the World Cup.

"We've won in Croatia and Germany, but you had a feeling within the group there's a realisation our work wasn't done. One odd result is helpful, but the main drive is to make it to South Africa.

"If we build on the confidence the players have got over the last year and get out of this group, we've still got a year-and-a-half to improve.

"With the confidence from the results over that period, we could have a good go at it."