England humbled in Croatia
Robinson made the mistake for the second goal
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Wednesday, 11, Oct 2006 11:52
England slumped to a 2-0 defeat in Croatia after a poor second-half display which included a calamitous own goal from Gary Neville.
The key moments in the Euro 2008 qualifier came at the start of the second half. First, Brazilian-born Eduardo da Silva broke the deadlock in the 59th minute with a header which left keeper Paul Robinson stranded.
The cross from the left from Nico Kovac was too high for John Terry and the injured Ashley Cole was unable to help his captain as Da Silva's header looped agonisingly over Robinson.
Worse was to come for the England camp on 68 minutes. A routine back pass from Neville bobbled on its way to the England number one who missed his kick, turning in horror to find the ball trickle into the net.
The home side were always on top while England toiled to gain a foothold in the game. Portsmouth's Niko Kranjcar had the best of the opportunities in the first half as Robinson saved from eight and 25 yards respectively.
England's best chance fell to Wayne Rooney when, with the score still at 1-0, he raced on to a through ball but his thunderous shot from the edge of the box flew over the bar by a yard.
Steve McClaren's side never capitalised on what possession they had and lacked a cutting edge in the final third. The players also seemed unsure in the 3-5-2 formation which highlighted their defensive frailties.
A yellow card in this game means that Cole will miss England's next tie in the group which is away to Israel on March 24th.