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Have your say on the game on the Message Board England 2 -v- 0 Ukraine
Andy Cole had probably not even arrived home when the reason he will not be part of Euro 2000 was demonstrated. Although Kevin Phillips was the one who survived Kevin Keegan's cruel cull, Cole would have been forgiven for wondering why the England boss had been so keen to give Robbie Fowler until the last minute of the 11th hour. Fowler's ankle problems mean he is still nowhere near fit and he could last only 45 minutes at Wembley, struggling to strike up any real cohesion with Alan Shearer, who appears far happier with Emile Heskey alongside him. But when Shearer's header was only parried by Viacheslav Kernozenko, Fowler did what every top-class forward does without fuss - he made the keeper pay the ultimate price for his error as he prodded into the roof of the net from a yard. It was nothing fancy, nothing special. But it was graphic proof of Fowler's ability to be in the right place at the right time. That is what Keegan has always seen in Fowler. Just like Terry Venables and Glenn Hoddle before him, when it came to the crunch the England coach decided Cole needed too many chances to score at the highest level. Particulary when he is not 100 per cent fit. It is why Fowler is going to the Low Countries next week, while Cole will be kicking his heels elsewhere, and with Tony Adams scoring his first England goal in 11 years, Keegan's mood after the most difficult day of his reign would have been upbeat. Of course, there were caveats. At times England were left watching as the ball zipped around in front of them with Ukraine showing that Brazil are not the only team in yellow and blue who can play keep-ball at Wembley. The sheer vibrancy of Andriy Shevchenko, Sergei Rebrov and the previously unheralded Sergei Kandaurov exploited defensive hesitancy as Gareth Southgate was left unprotected by David Beckham's wanderings from the flanks. Steve McManaman, not given the ball frequently enough in the positions where he could wreak the damage he has done for Real Madrid, was unable to take the game by the scruff of the neck. But Beckham's ability to unleash chaos with his dead-ball delivery brought the two goals, Steven Gerrard grew in maturity and influence on his debut, Sol Campbell rose to the task of locking horns with Shevchenko, Nigel Martyn proved his agility and there were encouraging cameos from substitutes Heskey and Nick Barmby. Most potently and memorably of all was the tackle by Adams on Shevchenko which altered the mood of the match. There were echoes of Bobby Moore and Jairzinho in 1970 as Shevchenko moved menacingly at Adams, who initially backed off. When Adams decided to strike, he had to get it right. If his timing was a fraction out, Shevchenko would have been clean away. But it was perfect, a juddering collision of muscle and grit that rocked Ukraine back on their collective heels and gave England the impetus they needed. The early enthusiasm of Keegan's side had seen Paul Scholes, at last breaking beyond the strikers, pick up Fowler's clever pass to poke against the woodwork from 14 yards, while a Beckham free-kick had bent just too much from 30 yards. Yet until Adams' thundering intervention on Shevchenko, England's defensive insecurities, as they reverted to three at the back, were evident. Campbell, however, stood firm, with vital blocks on Shevchenko and his new Tottenham team-mate Rebrov - Spurs fans will enjoy his movement and pace next season - even if Kandaurov was allowed to roam too freely for comfort. After that Adams tackle, however, the runs of the Ukrainians lost some of their brio, they began to play increasingly square, and England, helped by Gerrard coming to terms with his new obligations, gained parity and eventually ascendancy. Scholes' superb dummy saw Fowler's shot blocked, while he was off-balance when Beckham paraded down the right to cross, but when Shearer's determination forced a corner off Yuri Dmitrulin just before the interval, England gained the reward for their efforts. Beckham's corner found Shearer unmarked 12 yards out, and although he could not exact the fullest toll with his header, Fowler latched on to the rebound. That was Fowler's last act and the introduction of the purposeful Heskey, allied to Gerrard's growing assurance which saw him steal forward to fire in a shot from Beckham's astute pass, improved England's display after the break. They needed Martyn to preserve their lead, however, as he foiled Shevchenko three times. The first, relatively comfortable, came after Campbell slipped but the diving parry away to his right, after Shevchenko outjumped Adams to meet Oleg Luzhny's centre, was proof of his capacity to step in for David Seaman. Martyn also turned Shevchenko's free-kick over before Adams ensured England's victory. Again, Beckham's corner caused confusion, with Kernozenko, aware of Heskey's hot breath in his face, unable to deal with the in-swinger. The ball bounced off Shearer's chest, but fell to Adams and with a long, lazy swing of his right foot the Arsenal man bobbled his shot into the bottom corner. With the match won, Keegan could experiment further. Gareth Barry got his first cap and did not look out of place, while Barmby also justified his squad call-up. Two excellent passes from the Everton man should have been finished better by Heskey and McManaman respectively, and after Kieron Dyer was given consolation for his worst day in football by replacing Gerrard late on, Beckham drilled narrowly wide. |
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