Former England and Arsenal captain Tony Adams has been giving his verdict on World Cup at a restaurant in Brent Cross.

Speaking at Gourmet Burger Kitchen, in Brent Cross, with fans and members of the media, Adams spoke to the Times-Series about the tactics England could play in their crucial group game against Uruguay tomorrow.

He said: “I don’t think we should limit ourselves to this system, we have some fantastic options, something we haven’t had in the past.

“The likes of Jack Wilshere, Ross Barkley and maybe Rickie Lambert as a strike partner can all make a difference.”

England must get a result against the South American side to have a chance of getting through their group following a 2-1 defeat to Italy.

Speaking on the pressures of a ‘must win’ game, Adams said: “It will be interesting to see how the Italy game goes because if it’s a draw then they must not lose and that will play on some of the player’s minds. I think I was the only person in the country hoping for a 0-0.

“However, I think Roy should be commended for having a go in the last match and in England, too many managers are sacked because they don’t have a go so it might not have paid off this time but I think we can get a result against Uruguay.

Captaining the squad at France 1998, Adams revealed that you are ‘in a bubble’ during the tournament.

He said: “You are in a bubble where you train and then sit in the hotel and watch a lot of football. It’s not until you come home and it hits you about the euphoria that surrounds the tournament and the passion.”

Manchester United striker Wayne Rooney has come under significant pressure following the Italy defeat. Yet Adam believes he must play tomorrow against Uruguay.

He said: “This has been nothing but a media storm and Rooney deserves to be in the number 10 role.”

A defensive rock in his time, Adams believes that England’s current backline is “disjointed.”
He said: “Our backline has not played a lot of football together; you can see that, they look very disjointed.

“They are all good players but they must play as a good unit and team; the two midfielders need to make sure they shield the defence better.”

Despite Brazil’s disappointing draw against Mexico in their second group match, the former England captain still believes they are the team to beat.

He said: “I cannot look past the hosts, I was very impressed with Thiago Silva and I think they will only get better.

“Germany and The Netherlands were very impressive as well. It would be great to see one unexpected team come from nowhere but I don’t think you will see that this time.”