Beckham free kick sends England into last eight

The Editor — Sun, June 25th 2006

England 1 - Ecuador 0

England continued to do the minimum necesary to qualify for the quarter finals. A David Beckham free kick providing the only goal of the game.

Sven Goran Eriksson’s change of tactics provided an improved England performance, but again failed to convince that his team represent a serious contender to win the trophy.

Carrick was brought into the team as a fifth, holding midfielder, leaving Rooney up front on his own and freeing the remaining 4 midfielders to support the lone striker.

Indeed, England did finally manage to string a few passes together, but where Carrick’s role allowed Gerrard and Lampard to have one of their best games together, the wide players Beckham and Cole found themselves having poor games.

England’s best player was Ashley Cole who made a goal saving challenge after Terry’s mis-header and has a good game both defensively and going forward.

Rooney was initially unimpressive alone in attack, but improved as the game went on, belying any suggestion of being unfit.

England were still too sloppy, and are unlikely to worry any future opponents with their current level of performance. The 5 man midfield looked better, but you feel that four men should be able to do the job.

So far, all of England’s performace have looked poor. Is it coincidence, or are we not giving England enough credit?

Player ratings

Robinson: Still looked unconfident. 6
Hargreaves: Good game out of position. 7
Cole (A): Match saving tackle in first half capped great all round performance. 9
Terry: Mistake nearly let Ecuador in, but improvement on Sweden. 7
Ferdinand: Defence still looked a little shakey. 7
Carrick: Did little wrong, protected defence and kept ball moving through midfield. May need to step up against better opposition. 8
Lampard: Still wastful infront of goal, but had his best game of the tournament. 7
Gerrard: Looked to support Rooney as much as possible and a possible source of goals. 7
Rooney: Worked hard and seemed to get hang of the lone striker role as game progressed. Not fully sharp, but still England’s most likely to create. 7
Cole (J): Unusually poor game. 6
Beckham: Also struggled to get involved until terrific free kick.

Subs:

Carragher: Allowed Hargreaves to return to midfield. 6
Lennon: Only played last few minutes but often ran the ball to safety, relieving pressure.
Dowining

England still not convincing. Poor games from Beckham (apart from the goal) and Joe Cole. Worries that Rooney will be ‘swallowed-up’ by a better defence.

The Fan