BORN-AGAIN EMILE READY TO RUMBLE
RARING TO GO: Heskey's hoping for the call from Fabio
By John Richardson
EMILE HESKEY answered England’s call with dramatic effect 12 months ago – now Barcelona’s Olympic Stadium is likely to witness the latest coming of the Wigan striker.
Cue groans among some England supporters who have never totally accepted the former Leicester City, Liverpool and Birmingham forward, who made his senior international debut against Hungary way back in April 1999.
But Heskey enjoys greater backing these days thanks to a brief international renaissance over the past 12 months.
Outstanding displays, when summoned by Steve McClaren to face Israel and Russia in the space of four days last September in the European Championship qualifiers, were followed by a decent showing amid the confusion of the 2-2 friendly draw against the Czech Republic earlier this month under Fabio Capello.
There will certainly be no complaints either from Heskey’s telepathic twin Michael Owen, who will also be hoping to be involved in the opening World Cup qualifying double-header against Andorra in Barcelona on Saturday followed by the daunting trip to Croatia the following Wednesday.
It was a tortuous goalless first-half against the part timers from the Pyrenees in England’s last European Championship qualifying competition which began McClaren’s downfall.
So is it the occasion to send for England’s version of Ant and Dec – Heskey and Newcastle United’s Owen?
Heskey, now 30 and back in demand after rejecting transfer window approaches from Spurs, certainly hopes so.
“I don’t know why myself and Michael have this understanding. It’s almost telepathic, even a bit spooky,” he admitted. “Michael has proved over the years that he’s a goalscorer. He is brilliant on the big occasions.
“He is a proven international player so I can’t see why he can’t come back into the England squad.”
Capello aides suggest that the Italian has yet to be smitten with Owen despite an impressive record of having scored 40 goals in 89 games for his country.
But Capello is not exactly spoiled for options up front.
“We’re all being watched and it’s whoever is doing well at the time,” said Heskey. “The England representatives are going to be watching Dean Ashton, Peter Crouch, Darren Bent. It’s about picking the right ones at the right time.
“We can’t forget that it’s Andorra first before Croatia. It’s not just one big game, it’s two. We’ve got to be strong mentally and physically.”
No one can question Heskey’s mental strength. After all, there have been few more ridiculed players over the years than Emile William Ivanhoe Heskey.
He remains unbroken. “It’s part and parcel of being an international player,” he said. “You have to shut out the criticism. You can’t take it to heart, you have to expect it.
“You know when you’ve done well and when you haven’t. As players we know that it’s hard out there. There are not many bad international teams now.
“I’m going to enjoy it no matter what happens because for me it’s like a second coming at international level. However long it lasts, I’m going to take it all in and make sure it’s enjoyable.
“You’re always going to get stick and people writing you off no matter who you are. It’s how you bounce back. It’s how you react to it all.”
Evidently restoring his game at Birmingham City and Wigan after the limelight of Liverpool has impressed ambitious clubs like Tottenham, who have tried to lure Heskey away in the past few weeks.
Heskey revealed: “The chairman spoke to me recently about my future and he said that until I came up to him and told him I wanted to go then he wouldn’t entertain any bids. I think that’s fair enough.
“I’m not going to do that because I don’t want to leave. I’m doing well at Wigan.”
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