Defensive worries for England

Well i had said that i thought the first game against the US would show us how England would fare in the tounament. It certainly gave us more than a clue or two. I've written that the reason i couldn't see England getting to the final was because the defence wasn't good enough. And i saw more than enough from last night's game to think that i was spot on there. Of course the US goal came from a dreadful mistake from the goalie, not a defensive blunder, but there were enough worrying signs that better teams than the yanks will severley punish England's defensive deficencies.
In my first choice England side i had picked Hart because he has been the best goalie this season and more importantly in his short career so far, he has shown no tendency to gift the opposition soft goals, enough said. Last night's mistake has been described by Bob Wilson as a schoolboy howler and i can't think of a better way to describe it. It wasn't as if you could say you couldn't see it coming as just like David James he has been known to make the odd holwer. Add to that he has never played on the really big stage playing Hart was no more risky a choice because of his age and lack of experience than the two supposedly in front of him.
I wasn't impressed with anything last night and thought Capello had as big a shocker as any of the players on the pitch. The choice of goalie has to go down as bad mistake, the inclusion of Milner on the left and then his substitution was a big blunder and the tactics and shape of the team was all wrong.
I don't know what the truth of the Milner substitution is, whether it was due to the illness or the early yellow card, but it lessened his options to change personnel and tactics in the latter stages of the game when England finally got a semblence of a grip on the game. Bringing on Shaun Wright Phillips to replace him was truly unbelievable and the performance he gave confirmed my view that there was no luckier player to have made the final twenty two, he was truly abysmal. Of course picking King at centre half confounded that mistake when he had to go off at half time. Even though i think Ferdinand is becoming a shadow of the player he was, the lack of cover for him shows what problems England now have at the back. Carragher looked like a sending off waiting to happen in the second half and i really can't see how they can continue with him on Friday.
As predicted the shape of the team meant that England's most dangerous players couldn't get into or affect the game as England would have wished. It's not just than Gerrard and Lampard can't play together, the way football has evolved since the last world cup, most top teams and both of those player play a 4-3-3 with one or even two holding players. When you look at England's squad, it's dodgy defence and where its best attacking players play, that is the only chance of England getting anywhere in this world cup.
Commentators were effusive in their praise of Heskey's performance last night and i won't sit here and write that he had a bad game. But his inclusion in a 4-4-2 had the knock on effect of almost entirely making Rooney a peripheral figure on the pitch, and just as bad encouraged the usual English disease of htiing the aimless long ball from the back, hence people watching asking whether Lampard was on the pitch.
It's a good job it's such a easy group because i could see England being on their way home before the knockout stages if they had been handed a tougher draw.
One last thing, for all the praise of Capello since he took over, now we have entered the serious stuff after the cakewalk of the knockout stages, i haven't been impressed by what i have seen so far. Last night was so bad it was almost Sven like.

My main concern from this world cup is to get Wayne Rooney through this competition in one piece back ready for the new season. I would like him to have a good world cup to confirm his place as one of the best players inthe world, but my main concern is always United. After watching last night, if England don't change tactics he isn't going to get the chance to show the world much as he isn't going to see much of the ball.

Two of the better reviews of England's disappointing opening game against the USA. First Kevin McCarra aks if we are going to see the same old England. On that performance the answer would seem to be yes.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/2010/jun/13/world-cup-2010-fabio-capello-england

And James Lawton argues that if last night is anything to go by, England are asking too much of Rooney.
http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/news-and-comment/james-lawton-england-ask-too-much-from-rooney-bursts-of-brilliance-1999228.html

Will Hutton uses his Observer column to describe how the banks have won the post credit crunch debate and the dangers that presents. There will be a dispatches version on channel 4, that is the biggest indictment of the last government.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2010/jun/13/will-hutton-banks-crash-refuse-reform

James Graham is worried about the coalitions economic poilicies and the lib dems part in them.
http://socialliberal.net/2010/06/10/will-we-get-fairer-taxes-under-the-coalition/

Frank Black with Los Angeles from his first solo album that i love