5 Things We’ve Learnt From England vs. Algeria

As you know Nicole writes for Joys and Sorrows from time to time. She has got her own blog too, and she has written this article on last nights game. I have her permission to re-publish it here. Enjoy.

1.) If someone finds Wayne Rooney, could you return him to the England camp?

Where has the Wayne Rooney gone that we all know and need? Until his injury, Rooney was on fire for United and scoring seemed to be as a natural as breathing. He’s now struggling to score the goals for England, and perhaps is bowing to the pressure which is placed upon his shoulders. During the domestic season, it would have been conceivable that Rooney could have taken the top scorer accolade during this tournament, now he looks like he’ll struggle to score one.

2.) The more fearful we look, the more they’ll come at us

This is the second match of the group stages. Yes, there is a pressure to win so we can win this group. However, playing with this much fear and apprehension is ridiculous. Every match from the group onwards is important and nerve racking. We need to hold our heads up, mask anything we feel, and play the football we saw in the qualifiers. Any team that smells the fear of the English players are going to go full throttle and scare them into gifting a goal. “Play with no regrets” as Southgate quite simply put it on the so-so coverage tonight.

We’re playing Algeria, they haven’t won in their last 5 matches. We should realistically be more than a match for them, yet we’ve made them look good at times.

3.) If the formation isn’t working, you have to be brave enough to admit it

It was a generally mediocre first half for England, heads were dropping and players weren’t responding to the formation they were playing in. Even the Ferguson hairdryer treatment isn’t going to work when something simply isn’t working. Bring off players such as Heskey, bring Cole on so you can leave Gerrard to support Rooney. Anything to liven the team and bring the much needed creativity to the side. A system that isn’t working won’t magically change during a 15 minute break.

4.) Playing like this? We don’t deserve to get out of the group

Yes, I’m English and yes, there’s not much more I’d rather see than England raising that World Cup (well other than Blues winning the league and FA Cup but that’s another story). However, we cannot go on this way. We need to play with conviction. We need to show the spirit and character that makes us English. If we want to be mentioned alongside the upper echelons of World football, we need to play like the top clubs. Tonight, we’ve made Algeria look like Brazil. It is just not acceptable. If we claim to have some of the best players in the world, players who would supposedly walk into any other top class team, then why can’t we play as a team who shows this ability. Why can’t we translate league form into international class?

Winning the World Cup playing like this would be an absolutely farce, and would make me disappointed to be an English football fan (not like we’ll get near any sort of final in this state!). Sort it out Capello, I was just starting to enjoy the tournament.

5.) The media will eat us alive in the morning

I almost dread to think how negative the press will be in the morning. This blog post is negative enough but it’s not seen on a national scale.

There is no doubting that the tabloid press have played a massive part in whipping this country into a jingoistic frenzy, but the come down from this will truly be spectacular. Expect days of in depth analysis of how England have gone so wrong, and the early rumblings of a Capello out campaign. The papers will be mourning our World Cup campaign before our fate is even decided in the match next Wednesday night.

Nicole