英格兰队在10月12日主场2：1战胜小组最强劲对手波兰队后，以小组第一名的身份顺利进军2006年德国世界杯。实际上在此之前，在世界杯预选赛欧洲区小组赛倒数第2轮之后，英格兰队就已经铁定至少可以凭借小组第2进军德国世界杯。尽管如此，英格兰队在其他比赛中所表现出来的低迷状态，仍然让主教练埃里克森饱受媒体和球迷的批评。

    据英国《卫报》10月16日报道，面对来自各方面的批评，主教练埃里克森非常坦率地承认，本赛季英格兰队的成绩确不太令人满意，其部分责任在他个人。然而，考虑到英格兰队在小组赛最后一轮主场迎战波兰之前就已经确定的出线事实，埃里克森多多少少还是有些沾沾自喜，同时也让这位瑞典人为自己的用人策略找到了很好的辩护理由。

    “本赛季我们的球员斗志不是很旺盛，在比赛中球队的运气有时也不太好。但归根结底，本赛季我们没有打好的原因是我自己的过错。”埃里克森在接受采访时表示：“我看重的一些球员，他们的状态有时不是非常好，但我依然坚持使用他们。其实，本赛季状态不好的球员不是一两个，有3到4名主力球员的状态都不是太好。我当然可以做些调整。在对阵北爱尔兰队时，我完全可以派另外11名球员出场，这样我们就兴许能够拿下那场比赛。但是，当我把这些最好的球员放在一边的时候，他们也会因此对他们自己还有我丧失信心。”

    从埃里克森的话中不难看出，所谓在别人眼中英格兰队的弱点，在他看来正是英格兰队的强项。一个性格软弱的教练在这样的时候通常都会在队内做些调整，从而也就引发了球队内部的不确定性。然而一名铁腕教练会认清谁才是他最好的球员，并给这些球员机会，让他们逐步找回状态。

    “我相信现在的这支队伍，他们是我正确的选择，”埃里克森解释说：“如果我挑中的这些主力球员中的某些人不在状态，只要还有时间，那么我必须仍然使用他们，除非他们受伤了或者生病了。这样的做法是对还是错，大家可以一直争论下去，但这就是我的所作所为。每次当你弃用一名主力球员的时候，他就会丧失一点信心，而这种信心的恢复需要更长一段时间。因此，要想使一名主力球员恢复最佳状态，最好的办法就是使用他。”

    埃里克森承认他的这种用人哲学并不适用于明年的德国世界杯决赛阶段，但就本赛季初发现的问题，这一方法还是行之有效的。“以兰帕德为例，一个半月前他绝对不是今天这样的神勇状态，”埃里克森解释说：“他有了很大的改进，这我早就知道，而且他的状态还会继续改进，只要不受伤，他会一直以一种上升的势头进入明年世界杯决赛阶段比赛的。”

    谈起兰帕德，埃里克森似乎言犹未尽。“他对英格兰队而言是一名非常重要的球员，”埃里克森表示：“当然我们还有很多其他重要的球员。在上一届世界杯上，我们队中有三四名非常重要的球员，而今天我们队中这样的球员有10名，也正因如此我才相信英格兰队在明年世界杯上会有一个美好的前景。我不能保证我们一定会拿到冠军，虽然这是我们的目标，但失败对我来说则意味着没能在所有的比赛中发挥出最好的水平。”

    谈到人们对他的批评和不信任，埃里克森显得非常的气愤。他说：“我们拥有一支很好的球队，而且还以小组第1的身份出线了。这个时候我为什么要不干呢？如果我选择这个时候辞职，那我就是一个十足的坏教练，一个非职业的教练。我现在丝毫也没有这样的做的想法。目前的英格兰队，是我来到这个国度后最强的一支英格兰队。”

    埃里克森还许诺说，将于下个月在日内瓦同阿根廷队的友谊赛上继续使用他所认为的最棒的球员。虽然伤病会影响到埃里克森对这场比赛甚至8个月后的世界杯时的排兵布阵，但瑞典人显然已经下定决心派出英格兰队的最强阵容来迎接阿根廷队的挑战。在同阿根廷队的比赛中，英格兰队的“最新发现”莱德利·金将仍然在中场扮演后卫球员而不是进攻球员的角色。显然，埃里克森认为在同阿根廷队和巴西队这样善于进攻的球队对垒时，防守是必须加以谨慎对待的一个问题。

    报道说，对于在上届世界杯决赛中输给巴西而屈居亚军的德国队，埃里克森也表示了敬意。他说：“德国人的意志品质非常好，在他们所参加的差不多90％的比赛中，德国人都能做得很好，原因是什么我也不知道。有时德国队并不是最强的，甚至不是人们看好的球队，但他们总是能进决赛或者半决赛，而这一次他们又是在家门口作战。”

    Sven-Goran Eriksson has accepted some of the responsibility for England's poor performances this season and, provoked by savage criticism, has defended his laissez-faire style of management.

    The England manager is incensed by the general view that he sits on the sidelines not doing anything. He not only feels that World Cup qualification with a match to spare has vindicated his quiet approach, but argues that England will be the better for it in the finals in Germany.

    'We lost a bit of spirit and sometimes things go badly for you in football, but one reason we have not played so well this season is my fault,' he admitted.

    'I insist on playing my important players even when they are not in 100 per cent form. We haven't had just one player below his best form this season, we have had three or four. Of course I could have made changes. I could have played 11 other players in Northern Ireland. Maybe we would have won the game, but I would have been leaving out my best players and they would lose confidence in themselves and in me.'

    Eriksson's suggestion is that what looks like weakness is, in fact, strength. A weak manager might chop and change, creating uncertainty within the squad, whereas a strong one recognises his best team and trusts the players to overcome fluctuations in form.

    'I believe in this squad, I think it is the right one,' he explained. 'If some of my very important players are not in form at the beginning of the season I still must use them, unless they are injured or unfit. We can discuss whether that's right or not until we die, but it is what I believe. Every time you take out an important player he loses a little confidence, and it takes longer for him to come back. To get important players back into form, you have to play them.'

    Eriksson recognises that this philosophy will not serve if players are jaded or off-form in the finals next summer, but he believes it is the right way to address early-season problems. 'If you look at Frank Lampard a month and a half ago, he is not the same player he is today,' Eriksson said. 'He has improved, as I knew he would, and he will go on improving - as long as we have luck with injuries - all the way to finals.

    'He is a very important player to us, but we have many others now. We had three or four important players in the last World Cup. Today we have 10, and that's why I believe we will have a very good tournament. I cannot guarantee we will win, though that is our ambition, but failure for me would be not playing good football against all our opponents in Germany.

    'Why should I kill myself when we won the group with a good team? I would be an extremely bad manager, and an unprofessional one, if I resigned now, and I have absolutely no intention to do it. Since I came to this country this is the best squad we have ever had.'

    Eriksson has promised to use the best of the players at his disposal in next month's friendly against Argentina in Geneva. Although injuries may disrupt his preparations for that game and for the World Cup eight months down the line he intends to field his strongest possible side. That could involve Ledley King keeping his place as a holding midfielder, though Eriksson is also keen to see more of Alan Smith playing for Manchester United in that position.

    While Eriksson does not see the need for a designated defensive midfielder all the time, he considers it a prudent option against teams with the strongest attacks. Argentina are in that category, though Eriksson regards Brazil as favourites in Germany.

    'We might need two or three holding midfielders against them,' he joked. 'The quality Brazil have in midfield and up front is very good. Whether they can defend as well as they attack I don't know, we'll have to see.'

    Eriksson also has a suspicion that the team Brazil beat in the last World Cup final might also do well.

    'The mentality of the Germans is very good,' he said. 'They do well in about 90 per cent of tournaments and I don't really know why. Sometimes they don't have the best team, not even the second or third best team, but they always seem to reach the final or semi-final. And this time they are at home.'