England 1-1 USA
Wayne Rooney and Frank Lampard trudge off after final whistle
Saturday, 12, Jun 2010 09:25
By James Christie.
A howler from England goalkeeper Robert Green helped the US cancel out an early Steven Gerrard goal as Fabio Capello's men made a faltering start to their World Cup campaign.
In a week when the US expressed anger at a British-related oil spillage it was somehow appropriate that an English goalkeeping spillage proved vital in a match between the two nations.
Robert Green won the battle to claim the England goalkeeper's jersey but it will be interesting to see if he is picked for the next game after he fumbled the ball into the net after a 40th-minute shot from Clint Dempsey.
Fabio Capello decoded to go with James Milner in midfield and Emile Heskey partnering Wayne Rooney up front.
Captain Gerrard scored in only the third minute, latching on to a pass-on-the-turn from Heskey to toe-poke home when two steps away from the penalty spot.
The strike seemed to enrage rather than delight manager Capello; who mysteriously launched a tirade of abuse at the team, his neck veins bulging with anger.
Perhaps he is psychic; in the 18th minute the Americans carved out a superb chance when Landon Donovan's cross deserved better than a feeble header from Jozy Altidore.
Milner, whose participation in this game was in doubt earlier in the week due to a high temperature, picked up a 25th minute yellow card for a foul which resulted in a free-kick which caused more jitters in the England penalty area.
At the other end a fine pass from Glen Johnson put Heskey on collision course with US goalkeeper Tim Howard, with the Everton player requiring treatment. A substitution seemed inevitable but it was Milner, not Howard, who went off; Shaun Wright-Phillips coming on with only half an hour on the clock.
The lively Donovan seemed the most likely American player to score but it was Fulham player Dempsey who found the net in the 40th minute, wriggling this way and that until he was facing goal 25 yards out. His left-footed shot seemed to heading into the cupped hands of Green but instead it grazed the West Ham man's wrists before hitting the back of the net.
Green immediately held his fumbling hands up in contrition - perhaps acknowledging that he should have got his body behind the bouncing ball.
A slaloming Ricky Villa-style dribble from the impressive Glen Johnson in the US penalty area almost brought an instant equaliser to spare Green's blushes.
Ledley King made way for Jamie Carragher at half-time, watching from the bench as Aaron Lennon's pass from the halfway-line released Heskey who caused more pain for Howard by shooting straight at his middle-regions.
England suffered a kick in the teeth on the hour mark when Gerrard picked up a yellow card.
Midfield colleague Frank Lampard tested the trajectory of the new Adidas ball with a fine left-footed shot but the US came closer to scoring when Green had to push a shot from Altidore on to the woodwork.
Rooney later hit a venomous shot from a standing start but England's shots were mostly too polite; a Wright-Phillips effort when cutting in from the byline being a typical example.
Peter Crouch made his inevitable substitute's appearance in the 79th minute, replacing Heskey whose performance was either admirably unselfish or individually ineffective depending on whether you like strikers who score goals or not.
Lampard could not quite slide into the path of an Lennon cross with six minutes left; England's last decent chance of the match.
Dempsey said before this match that the US are the international equivalent of Fulham - pluckily punching above their weight.
On this showing, England must hope that they are not the international equivalent of Liverpool - underachieving yet again.