Filed under: Euro 2012, Football, England Football
A September qualifier played away from home and against inferior opposition; of course England were going to beat Bulgaria.Fabio Capello has now won seven of the eight qualifying games he has overseen away from Wembley and as we have seen so many times before, England are at their best when the evenings are still warm and the demands of Premier League season have not sapped the spark and invention from mind and body.
The result in Sofia, no matter how convincing, must therefore be treated with caution and Capello struck the right note when he tempered his satisfaction at the performance in the convincing 3-0 victory that, when combined with Montenegro's defeat in Wales, restored England as odds on favourites to win qualifying group G.
"We have players with a,lot of quality, very good technically," said the manager. "But they can improve. We can press more further up the pitch. Some of these players are very fast and when they are close to the box they are really dangerous because of their quality. But when we have not got the ball, we need to improve."
England played well and delivered a professional display that could have produced a much more emphatic scoreline. There were many positives including Gary Cahill's confident appearamce alongside John Terry in central defence and the invention and flexibility of a front four of Wayne Rooney, Ashley Young, Theo Walcott and Stewart Downing.
The decision to play two holding midfielders in Scott Parker and Gareth Barry gave England a sound platform although things may well have been different had Parker not escaped a second yellow card for a blatant handball and then deliberate trip.
Above all, England resembled a decent side, confidently operating with a formation that was a million miles from the strait-jacket 4-4-2 employed in South Arica last summer. Nobody could ever accuse Capello of being a quick learner, but he is catching on slowly.
He has also overseen a significant reduction in the average age of the side. For once, England look fresh.
But. And with England there is always a but.
Bulgaria were poor and the true test will come against better opposition, the kind of opposition that has traditionally triggered a crippling wave of self-doubt within an England side.
Little wonder then that Capello warns there is work to be done starting against Wales on Tuesday. Gary Speed's side should be beaten easily but despite their woeful performance in Cardiff last March, they are capable of frustrating Capello's side. If England are to develop a confidence and swagger to take into the finals, they must start developing that now.
To that end, Capello's insistence he will be selecting players on the basis of their current form is positive. Gareth Barry was the beneficiary on this occasion at the expense of Frank Lampard, but with a clutch of young players pressing to be involved, no one should feel complacent about keeping their place.
"It was difficult this choice but I decided on Barry because I saw the last game he played and he is in a good moment," said Capello. "Frank is always a really important player for the national team. His moment is getting better but he is not in his top form. I will choose the players who are in the best moment of form. I choose these players. It's very important."
The other side of that coin is Capello must also ensure his players do not become gripped by the kind of fear that has inhibited England too often in the past.
At least the win in Sofia means he is now making such judgements from a position of strength.
No comments:
Post a Comment