26 March 2008
France 1 - 0 England; Ratings
Second match and first test for Fabio Capello as England travelled to Paris (and the French President making the opposite journey) to take on the French.
As stated on more than one occasion, Capello will try several players as captain before settling on a permanent choice for the World Cup qualification campaign and Rio Ferdinand got his long deserved chance to lead out his country.
Equally as lucky was Steve McClaren’s captain, Jon Terry a man both short on form and up until now, international class. The same could not be said for Frank Lampard’s luck which finally ran out as he started on the bench.
A man short of neither luck nor international pedigree and one who never took any of his previous 99 caps for granted earned his 100th and only the cynically sensationalist and poor of judgement could offer David Beckham anything other than congratulations for becoming England’s fifth football centurion.
David James - 5/10
Badly misjudged Anelka’s run for the penalty when he was late and looked to pick the ball up rather than smother it. Surprisingly stayed on the pitch but it was his mistake and lack of judgement having been exposed by Terry that lost the match.
Ashley Cole - 6.5/10
Got through a mountain of work especially in attack as he was an always available, lively and stable outlet on the left. Combined well with Downing in the second half but could not make anything of the positions he was put in.
Wes Brown - 5/10
Mis-timed tackles and misplaced the ball much as he did against Switzerland and never settled. Was replaced on 63 minutes by Johnson and is quickly playing himself out of the international arena.
Rio Ferdinand - 7/10
The captain started like he always does in big matches - a regal presence and captain by example if not name. What little actual threat the French had, he dealt with. It seems clear that teams will attack the left side of the central partnership which puts more onus the quality of his partner than it does Ferdinand.
Jon Terry - 5/10
Was marking Anelka when the ball was played through for the penalty but appeared to stall his run in anticipation of an offside decision that was not his to make. Given his lack of pace it would surely have been remain goal-side than risk being exposed so badly.
Barely touched the ball before the penalty, was nowhere near it for the penalty and barely touched the ball after.
Off at half time due to an alleged injury. Replaced by a far superior Lescott.
Owen Hargreaves - 6/10
Tackled gamely but inconsistency. Often stood off to the edge of his box and encouraged the French to shoot. Never a wise tactic against the best international opposition.
Gareth Barry - 6.5/10
Two holding midfielders? With one world class striker (unless Owen rediscovers his finishing) and no world class wingers it makes sense. Remember, having two holding players does not necessarily mean that the team will be defensive, it should also mean that the team has a lot of the ball.
Barry got forward frequently in the first half however it was normally to receive balls from Gerrard or Rooney and so had little support when he did.
Having Hargreaves next to him meant there was less pressure on him defensively and he passed short and made some intelligent if limited runs.
Joe Cole - 5/10
When not being crowded out quickly he was shepherded inside and lost the ball. With the game being so tight it demanded a more patient approach that the rest of the team adopted willingly.
Replaced at half time by Downing.
Steven Gerrard - 6/10
It is hard to say whether anyone knows what Gerrard’s best position is. Gerrard certainly does not as he has variously claimed right midfield, holding midfield, attacking midfield and support striker as his favourite positions. Tonight he played a liberated role behind Rooney - the kind of role that Frank Lampard would crawl on his hands and knees through glass for the chance to play - and contributed much as he has done for the past few years in an England shirt. The best midfielders of recent times in an England shirt have been Barry and Jenas but will Gerrard ever be made to pay for his poor performances?
At the very least it is time to give Lampard the chances that everyone seems to think are Gerrard’s birth right.
Replaced at half time by Crouch.
David Beckham - 6.5/10
Here is something to point out about the criticism of the level of club football that Beckham will now be playing; it is assumed that playing at such a low level will leave him underprepared for the pace and intensity of the international game. After 100 games and at 32 years of age is probably fair to say that if anyone knows how to prepare themselves for playing for their country it is David Beckham. Add to that, he will be physically fresher from the lower intensity of MLS and mentally fresher from being focused more on his remaining England games than he will ever be for his club. There is no reason why the move to the United States should not extend Beckham’s international career.
Spent much of the match dropping deep in order to affect the game as Brown took his position higher up the pitch. Unfortunately, Brown’s lack of quality did not facilitate Beckham receiving the ball in an advanced position and it was Beckham who created the space for the fullback which was promptly spurned on all but one occasion.
His passing had mixed success but he made several piercing medium range balls and one or two cross field passes.
After a day of mutual cordiality between these nations in the English parliament, one of England’s favourite sons on one of the biggest days of his life was cheered off the field by all.
Wayne Rooney - 5.5/10
The lone striker would probably have benefitted more from playing in Gerrard’s position. Ran with the ball once but did more to prove what he cannot do than what he can. So far his best international partner has been Emile Heskey.
Replaced at half time by Owen.
The Substitutes:
Joleon Lescott - 7/10
Positionally good and made an important block early on in the second half and a strong block of Anelka later on. Looked suspect in his last match but extremely solid in this. It remains to be seen whether he can stake a claim ahead of Jonathan Woodgate and of course, the appropriately left-central Ledley King but if he keeps playing like this, he should be the man in possession ahead of the former England captain at least.
Stuart Downing - 6.5/10
Looked sharp and seemed to benefit from the patient Capello approach. Looked for once like he might have something to add at this level. However as a winger he highlighted one vital missing ingredient that is so fundamental to the English approach; pace. One other thing to note, while his positioning and passing were, if not a relevation, then much improved, his touch was poor and two chances in particular were lost through his poor control.
Combined well with Ashley Cole who never managed to take advantage of the positions Downing put him in.
Peter Crouch - 6.5/10
With the world’s best crosser in the team it was no surprise that Crouch got involved in the play straight away and less surprise when his influence waned when Beckham was replaced by Bentley.
Michael Owen - 5.5/10
Did nothing with no service. Eventually took to picking the ball up in the centre circle. Much like Shearer’s last days at England, Owen’s international career is dying through starvation.
David Bentley - 5/10
Gave the ball away in possession and when trying to pass. Spurned his chances to cross and like Downing, accentuated the team’s lack of pace.
Glen Johnson - 5.5/10
Looked less suspect than Wes Brown. An absence of incompetence.
England held the ball superbly in the first half. When a penetrative ball was not on they played it short and patiently however there were two vital, English elements missing from the English team; a target man and pace. When Crouch came on the team had the former but the lack of pace meant that should England break quickly they would not be able to exploit the space thery made. As it happened they never did break with any pace and played at the same tempo for most of the match.
Playing a slow tempo is not a bad thing; it gives the players time on the ball, frustrates the opposition and gives a strong platform for a team to build on. However, no team can be great playing only at a slow tempo. If anything, this match showed three things; first, the team severely lacked pace. Any of Jenas, Agbonlahor, Walcott, Lennon or Defoe might have provided a speedy thrust but without any pace at all in the side, only one question of France was ever posed.
Second, the squad needs and lacks a genuinely physical presence in attack. Crouch is for some reason considered a limited player despite his success with the team and could be that Heskey never plays well enough in the league to merit inclusion. Both players prove unique outlets and pose different problems enough to merit inclusion in the team from the start. The latter particularly plays well with Rooney and although his abilities may not be conducive to playing the sort of football the English crave, he provides that valuable commodity in attack; variety.
Finally, two of the worst players today were two of the usual suspects; Terry and Gerrard. Still they play when one cannot remember the last good game he had for his country and the other has never had a good game for his country. No matter how good a player is in the Premiership or Champions League, there is no pressure like playing for your country. These games have to be used to establish who can and who cannot perform on the biggest and most stressful stage of all.
I hope and assume that a world class manager like Capello cannot fail to notice that some of these ‘great’ club players simply do not merit inclusion any more. They have had unearned chance after unearned chance and have conclusively proven that Champions League quality does not necessarily equal international quality.
