England v Ecuador

and England have to step it up. Sven lost the plot several months ago, and it's up to the players to re-find it. They have looked woeful and out of sorts since the first kick-off of their first game. Today they have a chance to set all that to rest, but can they get past the massive injuries and bad coaching decisions? For reasons defying most coaching logic, they are starting in a 4-5-1 with Rooney up top i the lone striker role. It has been proven time and again that this formation does not work with the England squad, yet Sven insists on continuing with this. Rooney hasn't played a full 90 minutes since he broke his foot in May, and I don't expect him to today with all the running he'll have to do as the lone striker. The match is being played in Stuttgart where it is currently 92 degrees Farenheit which has to favour the Ecuadorians. We'll see. To the England squad, "Sven is leaving, boys. Win this one for your country. Ignore the madman at the helm." Prediction 1-0 England **UPDATE** Ecuador has the first real chance in the 12th minute. A rare mistake by John Terry gifts Tenorio with the ball with only Robinson between he and the net. Thank the gods for Ashely Cole, the best left back in the business. From out of nowhere, he comes streaking in to deflect Tenorio's on-target shot up and onto the bar. So, a corner kick instead of a goal. We'll take that...and thank you, Ashley Cole. **UPDATE** These two teams have only met once before, 26 years ago and at that time, England emerged the victors. I expect that that game was considerably more entertaining than this one. Neither team has managed to get anything going and the flow of the game is consistently being interrupted by bad passes and fouls. From both teams. Although England does seem to have the edge in shots, none of the shots have been very good and have not tested the Ecuadorian keeper at all. The thing that beggars belief in my mind is the size & experience of the Ecuadorian back line versus the size & experience of the potential England front line. Only one of the four Ecuador fullbacks even reaches 6' which would give a massive advantage to England if they had Crouch's 6'6" frame in the mix. It would also revert the lineup back to the "we know it works why don't we use it" 4-4-2 formation instead of this useless 4-5-1 that Sven insists on. **UPDATE** An absolutely tepid, tea-sipping affair here. Nothing exciting going on barring the golden opportunity that went begging for Tenorio. At this stage of the game, Terry's mistake and Cole's cover has been the most exciting aspect of the game. Once again, Sven proves he's not the manager he thinks he is. Let's hope for some changes in at least the tempo if not the England lineup. Otherwise it'll be England going home, rather than the underdogs, Ecuador. **UPDATE** The second half is underway and this troubling stat has just come to light. England's record when tied at half-time in World Cup play is 9-9-10. Since there cannot be a draw when this game concludes, we can only hope that the record will be 10-9-10 when it's all said and done. Alexi Lalas, the ex-US national and half-time commentator for ABC in these World Cup games believes that this game will go to penalty kicks. The way these two teams are playing, I can't really refute that. **UPDATE** The 60th minute and David Beckham converts. An absolutely stunningly, inch-perfect deadball into the lower corner gave the Ecuador keeper absolutely no chance. It seems to have sparked the English team, they're playing with more urgency and pace right now than I've seen in their 4 games thus far. Although David Beckham has his critics, me among them, this is why the man is in the squad. He's lethal in these situations, probably the very best in the world. If only the remainder of his skillset was up to the media-spin that is created around him. and now, only 5 minutes later, Beckham is heaving. The man is dehydrated and out-of-shape and throwing up on the pitch. I've watched a lot of football all over the world, and at the professional level, I've never watched a player throw up on the field. I hope he's well. The English goal has galvanized the Ecuadorians, too. They seem more full of life now as well. They know they have to score to escape the penalty of going home. But the England fans are doing every thing they can to suppress the Ecuador spirit. Every few moments, it seems God Save the Queen echoes through the stadium and rings the ears of all the players involved. The 12th man, in the form of the fans is alive and kicking in Stuttgart. **UPDATE** 87th minute and England replaces Beckham, who has continued to look ill, and ill-at-ease, with Lennon. Lennon will spark the team and bring some much needed urgency and skill to that right-halfback position. Beckham handed off the Captain's band to John Terry (I believe, although it could be Lampard). England will be content to just hang onto the ball and waste as much time as possible. But, like what happened in the England v Sweden game, it only takes one mistake to force a draw. And the three additional minutes can be an eternity. As the saying goes, it only takes a second to score a goal. With less than a minute left, Gerrard comes off to make way for Stuard Downing. And we still haven't seen Theo Walcott. What exactly was Sven thinking, including the boy in his squad and not blooding him at all. Some sort of weird fear vs. honour thing going on? And that's it. England move into the quarter finals while Ecuador go home. And the only goal of the very dull match coming from a spectacular free kick by David Beckham. They'll have to play much better than this in the Quarter Finals as they face either Portugal or the Netherlands (that game is coming up next) if they want to win that game. As a matter of record, England have made it to the Quarter Finals in 4 of the last 5 World Cups. But this year, I think it's more down to luck than skill or tenacity. That's it. I'll be watching the next game at my local, so might not get the report in. More to come, Until then, Wastrel On!