By Dan Smith.
Hangover and headache cleared, all that’s left of last night’s opener is to evaluate how the players rated. England kicked off their World Cup campaign last night with a 1-1 draw against the USA. The match will be remembered for one mistake by keeper Rob Green which led to the equaliser for the Americans.
Follow me along England’s campaign for a look at their ratings after every match.
Rob Green – 5
After starting brightly he made a catastrophic mistake to let the Americans back in the game. Made a quality save from Altidore in the second half which would have spared Carragher’s blushes.
Glen Johnson – 6
Glen did little wrong last night, supported attacks when Lennon was in a tight spot and has the pace to recover on a counter. Showed great urgency after the equaliser and burst into the American box but his shot was tame from the left foot.
Ledley King – 6
King played well in the first half, was beaten a couple of times in the air but made some important clearances when we were under pressure. Unfortunate to come off injured, he will want to play in the next game against Algeria to stamp his place.
John Terry – 7
Terry had a solid performance at the back, seemed unfazed by the change of partner in the second half. His experience showed last night and rarely put a foot wrong.
Ashley Cole – 6
Ashley Cole made a good start last night, was made to look slow at times when Cherundolo bombed forward. Got forward whenever he had the opportunity and supported Milner and Wright-Phillips both defensively and attacking.
Aaron Lennon – 7
Aaron Lennon was brilliant last night, when he had the ball. For me, we did not use Lennon to his potential last night, he showed that when he had the ball he had the pace to really threaten the American defence. His attacking runs were quick enough to frighten any defence this World Cup has to offer, we need to utilise that more.
Frank Lampard – 6
Lampard put in his usual good performance last night, I still felt that with England, there’s always more in the tank that he needs to give. Needs to work on his free kicks if we are going to make use of the Jubulani’s flight and Franks style of set pieces.
Steven Gerrard – 8
The new captain made a brilliant start to his tenure. Rounded off a great move with a quality finish to settle the English nerves. Showed the English grit and determination we would expect from a captain. If there were one negative, he needed to do more to stop Dempsey getting his shot off, he twisted and turned Gerrard inside out and finally got his shot away and the rest as they say, is history.
James Milner – 4
Milner didn’t have a great start to his first major tournament. Gave away some silly fouls and looked unusually out of his depth. Maybe his illness in the week had something to do with it but not the start he’d have wanted. Picked up a silly Yellow card and may have lost his place.
Emile Heskey – 9* Football Talk Star Man
Heskey showed his worth last night, he proved to every Englishman, including me I might add, that he has the quality to play up front with Rooney. He doesn’t have pace, we all know that, his one on one with Howard was our best chance to go ahead, had it been Rooney we may have 3 points today but his hold up play is just what Capello picked him for. Brilliant display.
Wayne Rooney – 7
Rooney had a frustrating night last night, although we’re happy to say he didn’t lose his cool. Would have liked the hold up play Heskey provided him with but would feel he needed better service from the wings. Had a thunderous shot from nothing, saved by Howard.
Substitutes
Shaun Wright-Phillips – 6
Didn’t have a great night, was introduced after 30 minutes. Lost possession a lot and found it difficult skipping past defenders. Proved it was difficult to play a right footer on the left after cutting in time after time and losing out.
Jamie Carragher – 6
Did OK, showed he was vulnerable to the counter as his pace was flawed. Was saved his blushes by a great save from Green after Altidore turned him and beat him for pace. Substitute only we would hope.
Peter Crouch – 6
Not given much time to impress, gave the performance we would expect from him, winning headers and holding up well. ‘Good touch for a big man’ rang true last night!
Fabio Capello
Fabio showed last night he is never happy, which I have to think is a good thing. We made a great start with the goal but he wasn’t happy with something in the build up and he made his presence felt, keeping their feet on the ground. Showed great support for Green after by not placing the blame which I felt was a great move.
Overall I don’t think we should be disappointed with our performance, the result we will be but we showed a lot of positives last night. We see year after year in these tournaments that teams grow the further they go. France did it in 2006 so no need to throw the towel in just yet, after all we drew our first games in 1966 and 1990….
COME ON ENGLAND!
