Buzzin Football

For anyone simply reading the result, 5-1 may sound better than another less than convincing England performance.

Once again England didn’t play with confidence or conviction.  Fabio Capello has still not been able to get the best out of certain players.  Until Rio Ferdinand scored in the 55 minute, neither Lampard, Gerrard or Rooney were playing anywhere like as fluently as they do for the respective clubs.

Yet another England international which will fuel the age-old debate of whether Lampard and Gerrard can play together.  Some critics miss the point here.  The question isn’t whether they can play together or not.  The question should be, is it in England’s best interest to have to great players attempting to play the same role?

Theo Walcott’s pace and enthusiasm and Emille Heskey’s tireless conviction caused Khazikstan problems in the first half.  But with no end product due to Rooney playing far too deep, left England with nothing to show as a left the pitch at half-time to a few choruses of booing.

Shaun Wright-Phillips offered some pace down the left side when he replaced Gareth Barry for the second half; and with the change in personal, England looked altogether more comfortable and forceful as they changed to a 4-4-2 formation with Rooney partnering Heskey upfront, and Lampard and Gerrard at least getting out from under each others boots!

It certainly seemed an overly cautious formation, all the while playing Gareth Barry was the holding midfielder.

In a game where Capello suggested he wanted England to ‘go out and enjoy themselves’ and build on the excellent performance against Croatia, I was sure he would start with an attacking 4-4-2 from the kick off.

If Capello wants England to lose their shackles and grow in confidence so certain players can perform as they do in the Premier League, then surely that will start by allowing players to attack lesser teams in a formation that has always brought England success in the past.

Capello is certainly a great manager but it appears leaving Michael Owen out of the squad is the only bold statement he is prepared to make; and falls short of sacrificing Gerrard or Lampard to the substitues bench.

David Beckham received the biggest cheer, as he replaced Theo Walcott for the last 20 minutes.  Beckham wins his 106th cap to equal Bobby Charlton’s record as the third most capped player ofr England of all-time.

Good points to be had from the game?  Well, as with other recent international matches, England began to play with some zest once they went 3-1 in front; but not before a scare or two, as Khazikstan pulled it back to 2-1 by way of an horrendous giveaway ball from Ashley Cole.  Cole received boos from a section of England fans from there on.

But for me, the highlight of the game was the excellent performances from substitutes Shaun Wright-Phillips and Jermain Defoe.  Both players show a level of confidence in their own ability that has been lacking from previous performances over the past year or two; and I believe that is because they are playing regular club football instead of bench-warming.

England win 5-1 but it took 55 minutes to breakdown Khazikstan.  How long would they have taken to score the first goal against a side placed above New Caledonia and Kuwait in the FIFA rankings?