England Vs Russia – Euro 2008 Qualifier – 17th October 2007 – How the players rated…
Having led and looked comfortable for over an hour of the game in the chilly Russian capital, England’s five minutes of madness cost them the three points and now the Three Lions must rely on Israel or Andorra to do them a favour by giving them a helping hand to reach next Summer’s European Championship.
The players performed admirably for over an hour but as it turned out their efforts were not enough to achieve victory, here’s exactly how the squad performed on the artificial turf of Moscow.
The players performed admirably for over an hour but as it turned out their efforts were not enough to achieve victory, here’s exactly how the squad performed on the artificial turf of Moscow.
Paul Robinson
For the first time since his apparent lack of confidence started on a game by game basis, Steve Mcclaren effectively admitted that his goalkeeper could have done better. The second Russian goal cannot be entirely blamed on the Spurs goalkeeper but his usual stop stopping qualities were not in evidence as he pushed the ball straight back into the danger area during the second period of the game. In the first forty-five minutes, Robinson was however faultless, tipping a ferocious shot onto the post and looking as comfortable as he ever has in an England shirt.
Joleon Lescott
Much has been made of the Everton’s debutants exposure, but whether it was the tactical nous of Guus Hiddink spotting the weakness of playing the central defender out of place or whether his inexperience led to both of the Russian goals coming down the left hand side, Maclaren has learnt a lesson that for balance it is always better to player a left back in his correct position. Lescott was a threat at set pieces and helped England weather the storm during the first half, abilities which should be commended for and not taken away from because of his exposure during the second half.
Sol Campbell
The veteran Portsmouth defender was thought to be by many a potential weak link, due to both his age and the speedy surface which may have exposed his lack of space. As it turned out, the presence of John Terry was not missed at the back once during the game as Campbell seemingly spurred on by a recent International recall and the absence of his captain was one of England’s star performers. He headed away everything and was extremely, and correctly, no nonsense in his approach during the periods when England were under pressure. With Ferdinand set to miss the qualifier with Croatia, Campbell may once again be called in to deputize.
Rio Ferdinand
Alongside Campbell, Ferdinand once again looked as though he had stumbled upon the form which earnt him so much acclaim during the 2002 World Cup. His booking somewhat soured his performance and although he bravely headed away all threats which entered the England box he was outfoxed on several occasions by the clever movement of (Russian striker) who came on in the second half and took the game away from England. His booking only compounded his misery as he looks set to miss out on yet another European Championship with his country.
Micah Richards
The Manchester City defender was presumably told before the game by his manager to curb his attacking tendencies as until the final ten minutes the full back rarely made forays into the opposition half and instead formed ‘a back four of centre backs’ across England’s defense. Weather the decision to restrict his attacking was a managerial decision or a personal one, it was probably the wrong approach as England looked much less threatening than in previous fixtures and failed to cause problems down the flank as they had done in recent performances.
Joe Cole
England’s most creative player clearly found the artificial surface tough to master as he was rarely capable of getting on the ball and causing problems in an attacking area and was often guilty of taking too many touches in the wrong areas of the pitch due to his uncertainties. In the opening period of the game Cole looked bright and interested but as he was forced to do more defending his impetus waned and he became a peripheral figure. With Lescott being tucked in to prevent the threat of the home side, Cole became to sole defender down the left hand side and due to his attacking intents it was hardly surprising that was the position the Russian goals came from.
Steven Gerrard
An unusually miserable night for the England captain and once which will sadly be remembered for his missed chance just after half time. Having proudly led his nation out, Gerrard tackled tirelessly when England lost the ball and looked to drive the team forward even when they were 1-0 up. In the second period, the missed chance seemed to zap his confidence and he influence on the game dwindled the more time went on.
Gareth Barry
Having stepped into the shoes of the now fully fit Frank Lampard, the Aston Villa man again showed that working alongside Gerrard in midfield the partnership creates a perfect balance which suits England far better than the long time failings of Lampard and Gerrard. His ball in for the Gerrard chance proved that he is capable of providing dangerous balls in with deadly accuracy on his left foot and with the way he has played ever since replacing Lampard and Owen Hargreaves, Maclaren should consider continuing with the current partnership even when both of his other central midfielders return to full fitness.
Shaun Wright-Phillips
Despite excellent performances against Russia, Israel and Estonia at Wembley, Shaun Wright-Phillips' inept performance in Moscow highlighted that the Chelsea man may not be the player for such difficult occasions, particularly when he is required to do a lot of defending. With Richards not progressing forward or offering the overlaps he had done in the previous three qualifiers, Wright-Phillips lacked support whenever he was in possession and due to the surface was denied the ability to use his strengths when going forward.
Michael Owen
Though there had been serious fitness doubts over the forward, it will have been a relief he came through the game unscathed but a disappointment that the danger which he provided against Russia in September was not recreated. Owen spent much of the game isolated up front due to Rooney’s defensive requirements and poor service up to the forward meant that he was unable to ever really make a mark on the game. Unlike in the previous matches Owen was not even presented with a goal scoring chance and not being the kind of player to create them for himself he was always going to struggle. Despite all that he was however excellent in the build up to his strike partners goal and if the combination had worked the other way round once during the game then the result may have been different.
Wayne Rooney
Returning to the team with a goal at the weekend, Wayne Rooney demonstrated once again why he is such a major player in England’s team. His powerful finish in the first half was well as his excellent harassing of the Russian playmakers in midfield showed his desire and his link up for the goal with Owen quashed doubters thoughts that the two do not play well as a pairing. An unfortunate blemish on a good performance for the Manchester United man will be the penalty decision which showed the rawness of youth and also his inexperience at International level. Rooney should possibly not even have been on the left side of the pitch and therefore should not have been exposed by the pass which led to the foul but like in the World Cup, Rooney will learn from his errors once again proving his worth to the national side.
Peter Crouch
As part of a rather desperate substitution trio in the final fifteen minutes, Crouch did exactly what he does whenever he plays and caused problems in the Russian defense, although usually he was not able to link up with either Owen or Rooney at any point which may have shown his lack of sharpness and match practice. Had he been allowed longer than the final fifth of the game Crouch may have been able to present the Russian defense with even more problems than he did in the short space of time he played.
Frank Lampard
Once more being forced to settle for a place on the bench, Lampard’s final five minutes demonstrated that he is still struggling for fitness and form at International level. Thrust into the action during the final part of the game the Chelsea man tried to get forward as far as possible but never found the ball falling at his feet in the right place as he so often does for his club. Having not had much time to impress, Lampard should expect himself to once again be watching from the sidelines against Croatia.
Stuart Downing
Coming into the action as a makeshift left back the hope was that Downing would be able to provide accurate crosses to feed Crouch with the hope that through in England might be able to pull something back. With the difficult surface however the ‘Boro man struggled to find the pace of the game and also found himself playing balls from increasingly longer and longer range as the game became stretched. With the Russian’s sitting back Downing did not use his opportunity to attack with the ball on very many occasions and was often caught in possession which was the last thing that England needed when trying to pull the game back.
For the first time since his apparent lack of confidence started on a game by game basis, Steve Mcclaren effectively admitted that his goalkeeper could have done better. The second Russian goal cannot be entirely blamed on the Spurs goalkeeper but his usual stop stopping qualities were not in evidence as he pushed the ball straight back into the danger area during the second period of the game. In the first forty-five minutes, Robinson was however faultless, tipping a ferocious shot onto the post and looking as comfortable as he ever has in an England shirt.
Joleon Lescott
Much has been made of the Everton’s debutants exposure, but whether it was the tactical nous of Guus Hiddink spotting the weakness of playing the central defender out of place or whether his inexperience led to both of the Russian goals coming down the left hand side, Maclaren has learnt a lesson that for balance it is always better to player a left back in his correct position. Lescott was a threat at set pieces and helped England weather the storm during the first half, abilities which should be commended for and not taken away from because of his exposure during the second half.
Sol Campbell
The veteran Portsmouth defender was thought to be by many a potential weak link, due to both his age and the speedy surface which may have exposed his lack of space. As it turned out, the presence of John Terry was not missed at the back once during the game as Campbell seemingly spurred on by a recent International recall and the absence of his captain was one of England’s star performers. He headed away everything and was extremely, and correctly, no nonsense in his approach during the periods when England were under pressure. With Ferdinand set to miss the qualifier with Croatia, Campbell may once again be called in to deputize.
Rio Ferdinand
Alongside Campbell, Ferdinand once again looked as though he had stumbled upon the form which earnt him so much acclaim during the 2002 World Cup. His booking somewhat soured his performance and although he bravely headed away all threats which entered the England box he was outfoxed on several occasions by the clever movement of (Russian striker) who came on in the second half and took the game away from England. His booking only compounded his misery as he looks set to miss out on yet another European Championship with his country.
Micah Richards
The Manchester City defender was presumably told before the game by his manager to curb his attacking tendencies as until the final ten minutes the full back rarely made forays into the opposition half and instead formed ‘a back four of centre backs’ across England’s defense. Weather the decision to restrict his attacking was a managerial decision or a personal one, it was probably the wrong approach as England looked much less threatening than in previous fixtures and failed to cause problems down the flank as they had done in recent performances.
Joe Cole
England’s most creative player clearly found the artificial surface tough to master as he was rarely capable of getting on the ball and causing problems in an attacking area and was often guilty of taking too many touches in the wrong areas of the pitch due to his uncertainties. In the opening period of the game Cole looked bright and interested but as he was forced to do more defending his impetus waned and he became a peripheral figure. With Lescott being tucked in to prevent the threat of the home side, Cole became to sole defender down the left hand side and due to his attacking intents it was hardly surprising that was the position the Russian goals came from.
Steven Gerrard
An unusually miserable night for the England captain and once which will sadly be remembered for his missed chance just after half time. Having proudly led his nation out, Gerrard tackled tirelessly when England lost the ball and looked to drive the team forward even when they were 1-0 up. In the second period, the missed chance seemed to zap his confidence and he influence on the game dwindled the more time went on.
Gareth Barry
Having stepped into the shoes of the now fully fit Frank Lampard, the Aston Villa man again showed that working alongside Gerrard in midfield the partnership creates a perfect balance which suits England far better than the long time failings of Lampard and Gerrard. His ball in for the Gerrard chance proved that he is capable of providing dangerous balls in with deadly accuracy on his left foot and with the way he has played ever since replacing Lampard and Owen Hargreaves, Maclaren should consider continuing with the current partnership even when both of his other central midfielders return to full fitness.
Shaun Wright-Phillips
Despite excellent performances against Russia, Israel and Estonia at Wembley, Shaun Wright-Phillips' inept performance in Moscow highlighted that the Chelsea man may not be the player for such difficult occasions, particularly when he is required to do a lot of defending. With Richards not progressing forward or offering the overlaps he had done in the previous three qualifiers, Wright-Phillips lacked support whenever he was in possession and due to the surface was denied the ability to use his strengths when going forward.
Michael Owen
Though there had been serious fitness doubts over the forward, it will have been a relief he came through the game unscathed but a disappointment that the danger which he provided against Russia in September was not recreated. Owen spent much of the game isolated up front due to Rooney’s defensive requirements and poor service up to the forward meant that he was unable to ever really make a mark on the game. Unlike in the previous matches Owen was not even presented with a goal scoring chance and not being the kind of player to create them for himself he was always going to struggle. Despite all that he was however excellent in the build up to his strike partners goal and if the combination had worked the other way round once during the game then the result may have been different.
Wayne Rooney
Returning to the team with a goal at the weekend, Wayne Rooney demonstrated once again why he is such a major player in England’s team. His powerful finish in the first half was well as his excellent harassing of the Russian playmakers in midfield showed his desire and his link up for the goal with Owen quashed doubters thoughts that the two do not play well as a pairing. An unfortunate blemish on a good performance for the Manchester United man will be the penalty decision which showed the rawness of youth and also his inexperience at International level. Rooney should possibly not even have been on the left side of the pitch and therefore should not have been exposed by the pass which led to the foul but like in the World Cup, Rooney will learn from his errors once again proving his worth to the national side.
Peter Crouch
As part of a rather desperate substitution trio in the final fifteen minutes, Crouch did exactly what he does whenever he plays and caused problems in the Russian defense, although usually he was not able to link up with either Owen or Rooney at any point which may have shown his lack of sharpness and match practice. Had he been allowed longer than the final fifth of the game Crouch may have been able to present the Russian defense with even more problems than he did in the short space of time he played.
Frank Lampard
Once more being forced to settle for a place on the bench, Lampard’s final five minutes demonstrated that he is still struggling for fitness and form at International level. Thrust into the action during the final part of the game the Chelsea man tried to get forward as far as possible but never found the ball falling at his feet in the right place as he so often does for his club. Having not had much time to impress, Lampard should expect himself to once again be watching from the sidelines against Croatia.
Stuart Downing
Coming into the action as a makeshift left back the hope was that Downing would be able to provide accurate crosses to feed Crouch with the hope that through in England might be able to pull something back. With the difficult surface however the ‘Boro man struggled to find the pace of the game and also found himself playing balls from increasingly longer and longer range as the game became stretched. With the Russian’s sitting back Downing did not use his opportunity to attack with the ball on very many occasions and was often caught in possession which was the last thing that England needed when trying to pull the game back.