Buzzin Football

What a change a few days makes; a change in the attitude, the personnel, Fabio Capello’s mentality and the result. Four more performances like this and England could well end up winning the 2010 South Africa World Cup.

There wasn’t one specific reason for the change in attitude, but it was a culmination of many reasons. James Milner was included at the expense of the ineffective Aaron Lennon which showed that just having pace isn’t enough to succeed at this level.

Milner provided an outstanding assist for Jermain Defoe’s goal which was followed by another sumptuous cross which was inches away from going in. Milner persevered by giving 100% through tracking back and producing a series of outstanding long passes to provide Defoe and co the opportunities to attack. Despite Milner not being the most technically gifted in our squad, he is vital to our chance of winning.

Jermain Defoe’s inclusion over Emille Heskey was the correct decision without a doubt. He provided a different outlet for Wayne Rooney and most significantly injected some needed pace. It was well noted throughout the BBC’s commentary that Defoe didn’t have any touches of the ball before the goal.

However as proven with Heskey, it’s not about how many touches you have, it’s what you do with it which matters. Sadly for Heskey, he hasn’t brought the best out of Rooney in this World Cup and Defoe has justified a starting place for the 2nd round tie. The 2nd round match wouldn’t be possible if it wouldn’t have been for the lion hearts who graced our defence.

David James wasn’t required to make any outstanding but kept his concentration with an album of routine saves which Robert Green may have let through. James has shown that it doesn’t matter how old you are, it’s the ability and the capabilities which you should be picked on and not their age. He should and will remain our number one for the continuation of our reign in this competition.

John Terry proved that even though you have indiscretions in your personal life, you can still perform to your top potential. He did this through placing his body, quite literally, on the line when needed.

Despite his controversial press conference on Sunday, he marshalled the defence brilliantly. He said what he said, Capello criticised him for it and you know what, he played like he does for Chelsea whilst posing a potent threat from set pieces. This was the theme throughout the game.

Every single player who is usually outstanding for their club, were outstanding for England. Players like John Terry, Ashley Cole, Steven Gerrard, Frank Lampard, James Milner and Jermain Defoe all lived up to their potential.

The argument may rage on about John Terry being unfairly stripped of the captaincy but he is still our captain on the pitch, the difference is he isn’t wearing an armband.

The replacement for the suspended Jamie Carragher was a topic which wasn’t really discussed in much detail. Fabio Capello chose Matthew Upson over Michael Dawson which was a bold decision as Upson has no pace and is prone to a regular mistake. This was proven when he gave away a few sloppy passes in the first half. On the other hand, he justified his inclusion with a match saving tackle in the penalty area when Slovenia barricaded our penalty area with consecutive shots.

The midfield seemed to have a better balance to it thanks to the selection of the industrious and outstanding crosser of the ball, James Milner. This helped Wayne Rooney despite him still not being at his best.

There were glimpses of the Rooney that we have become used to with him running at defences but he still seemed reluctant to shoot from distance.

This should be put down to him not being match fit and not being outlandishly confident. Ironically this was his best performance and Capello took him off when he remained with him in the two previous dire showings.

The difference today was we were winning and he could take a risk. This showed Capello’s courage in taking one of our marquee players, the best is yet to come from him.

Capello silenced his critics and showed something more than passion on the sidelines. He showed his undeniable love for football and passion for our cause. His tactics were spot on in every department. He picked the correct players and let them express themselves. This is why the FA pay him £6million a year, to guide us through difficult stages of tournaments and to put some of the egos in the side in their place. I was wrong about what I said about him not being up to it. Four more gritty performances presided over by Capello would see him become a national treasure.

We’re through to the 2nd round, that’s good. We need to build on this now. Who cares whether we play Germany or not. We don’t fear them, we don’t fear anyone. We only beat them a year ago which shows our confidence against them. This is a different England.

We’ve struggled through the group stage, but the best teams usually start slowly. Under the passive Sven Goran Erikkson we always cruised through the group stages but that got us nowhere. Under Capello we’re different and we’ll grind out results if we have to.