Third best of the three?
I don’t know whether to be optimistic or totally depressed after England’s 1-1 draw with the USA yesterday.
The fact is that England didn’t play too badly but a 1-1 draw is hardly likely to frighten the other teams at the tournament. After such a great start when Steve Gerrard put us ahead in the first few minutes it could have gone a whole lot better, but we didn’t lose and Algeria and Slovenia surely can’t prove too much of an obstacle.
Whilst I was very disappointed with the result and a little bit disappointed with the performance, if Rob Green hadn’t made an absolute howler and Heskey and Wright-Phillips had finished their chances, England would have won 3-0 and I would be celebrating the fact that World Cup glory was almost guaranteed!
Error
I suppose we need to look at the negatives first. I have long felt that Rob Green is the third best of the three England goalkeepers. He doesn’t have a presence and he simply doesn’t have the shot stopping ability of the other two. I hate to say ‘I told you so’ but that error was one that shouldn’t be made in the park on a Sunday morning, let alone in a World Cup.
Ledley King lasted just forty-five minutes and his fitness, which has always been a concern looks to have let him down. OK, this is a groin injury and not his knees, but even so, the man is simply not fit. He was replaced by Jamie Carragher who has just had his worst season for many years and was absolutely roasted by Jose Altidore on the one occasion he was tested.
Confidence
Aaron Lennon looked short of confidence and failed to be direct in the way that he can be so effective. On the other flank we had James Milner who was clearly not fit and shouldn’t have started. He lasted just thirty minutes and picked up a yellow card. It was a mistake to start him. He was replaced by Shaun Wright-Phillips who has a remarkable knack of running down blind alleys.
Up front we had Emile Heskey, who was excellent, but still couldn’t score in a brothel if he had a hundred pounds in his pocket, and Wayne Rooney who only touched the ball about half a dozen times.
Solid
On the positive side, we were pretty solid defensively and Glen Johnson, John Terry and Ashley Cole all looked comfortable.
Steve Gerrard and Frank Lampard played OK together, perhaps as well as they have done, and we created a few chances. Gerrard took his goal well and when we played through the middle rather than going wide we looked quite dangerous.
Stubborn
We have to keep things in perspective and a draw against the USA is not a disaster. We should win the other two group matches and progress to the knockout stages. The only thing that worries me slightly is that Fabio Capello, who is a great manager and is doing a wonderful job as England boss, has a stubborn streak and may stick by his guns.
David James must come in to replace Green and we have to get Lennon playing in a more direct way. Well as Emile Heskey did, we need to play Rooney as a striker with Steve Gerrard operating in free role just behind him. Joe Cole must come in to play on the left and Gareth Barry should partner Lampard in the middle.
Fear
I fear that come next Friday evening we will see Rob Green, Emile Heskey and Shaun Wright-Phillips in the starting line-up and Joe Cole left in the cold. I hope that isn’t the case.
Overall I am disappointed with the result but I am no less confident about England’s chances of success than I was before the game. The problem is that I’m not sure how confident I was.
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