By Myles Palmer
Last night’s hat-trick at the Riverside gives Francis Jeffers seven goals in nine games for England’s Under-21s.
It was only Albania, sure, but he looked deadly as he scored the first after 17 minutes, the second after 59 from Jermain Defoe’s pass, set up Defoe for the third after 71, and, after Greening scored with a murderous shot into the bottom corner in 89, and produced his piece de resistance, a near- post shot of sublime precison when he was one-one-one with the keeper in the final minute.
I think Arsene always saw Jeffers as the Michael Owen he might be able to buy.
The demolition of Albania showed that such comparisons might not be far-fetched, even though the match was a walkover.
However,I see Owen as more of a power player and more of a self-made player.
Jeffers looks more instinctive. I don’t think you can coach the kind of runs he makes.
In other words Jeffers is more like Ian Rush, and Owen is more like Lineker.
Rush could not explain how he got into a scoring position, while Lineker had planned his run three days before the game.
Having said all that, Jeffers looked like a good lightweight champion when he scored his first and third goals. A boxer has a certain number of effective shrugs, feints and moves before he delivers the knock-out punch, and so does a prolific finisher before he scores his goals.
Jeffers had a quality which I’m finding it very hard to describe. He played and scored with a sense of familiarity.
The runs were instinctive but the finishes were slick, conventional, practiced, rehearsed, routine shots from narrow angles into tiny spaces, expertly done by a practioner of that particular art.
It looked as if Jeffers had scored the same goals when he was 15 and 16 and 17 and last week in one of Arsene’s fast, intense six-a-side games that only last 14 minutes.
One other thing : he stays onside. I would rather see Jeffers make a run and be onside and miscontrol the ball than see Anelka or Henry make a run and be offside and control it perfectly. Because his control will improve
Will we ever see Jeffers supplied by Bergkamp and Pires?
I’m sure Arsene has plans for Jeffers. But as far as I’m aware he hasn’t said what those plans are. And of course he is never gonna say : I’m gonna play Francis in a game where I think he will score two goals and get his confidence going. He would not put pressure on a kid in that way.
The manager will probably keep his ideas on this to himself.
Arsenal have about 50 more games coming up, so there will be plenty of opportunities for Jeffers to score the goals I have always felt sure he would score.
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ENGLAND(4-4-2): Taylor; Wright, King, Barry, Bridge; Greening, Davis (Wilson, 75min, Parker (Pennant, 73), Chadwick (Johnson, 62); Jeffers, Defoe.
Albania (3-5-2): Mustafa; Sheta, Beqiri, Ahmeti; Demiraj, Merxha,Bulku, Shkembi, Belisha (Kotja, 80); Muka, Memelli (Bespallov, 62).
September 5th 2001.