The Gown Student Newspaper at Queen's University Belfast

SPORT: “Average” Germans blitz “experienced” England

As the BBC punditry tore England’s performance to shreds in the immediate aftermath of the 4-1 defeat to Germany, a nation begins to look for a culprit. They need look no further than the men on the field.

BY DAMIEN EDGAR

A stunning display of attacking football from Germany saw Miroslav Kolse, Lukas Podolski and Thomas Muller (2), all find the England net. As stunning as Germany’s attacking array was, it was more shocking how poor England’s defence performed. Time and time again the central pairing of John Terry and Matthew Upson was pulled too far apart, as the Germans pass and move game took glorious effect.

This defensive frailty was perfectly illustrated by Germany’s first goal as a “Hail Mary” ball from Neuer managed to send the England duo into meltdown. Klose, helping the ball into the England net, simultaneously helped the German goalkeeper claim an assist to the goal. Again the defence was pulled all over the pitch for Germany’s second goal, allowing Muller to find Podolski in space, the German hitman smashing the ball through the legs of the advancing David James.

Terry, moved to the right side of central defence to accommodate Upson, seemed out of sorts and Upson himself seemed to be letting his nerves get the better of him, until he rose to thump in a header to make it 2-1 in the 37^th minute.

What followed was arguably the worst decision of the World Cup, a real contender with Kaka’s sending off in the group stages. Following good build up play from England in a rare ten-minute spell of dominance just before half time, Frank Lampard received the ball on the edge of the area. In the sort of position he excels in at club level, Lampard coolly lifted the ball over the despairing hands of Manuel Neuer, glancing the crossbar and finding the back of the German net. However, despite the ball being a clear foot over the line, Uruguayan referee Jorge Larrionda waved play on, much to the consternation of the England players and managerial team.

The England team emerged after the break with an air of defeatism, the wind clearly taken out of their sails by the disallowed goal. Capello’s words had failed to raise the spirits of the players and the Germans began to assert their authority once more,  with Ozil pulling all the strings.

England did their best to keep the game competitive, but it was no surprise when Germany broke in the 67^th minute, Muller ending a delightful move with a composed drive. England goalkeeper David James’ positioning and handling was, however, suspect for the goal, despite the excellent game he had enjoyed up until that point.

There was nothing David James could do three minutes later however, as England midfielder Gareth Barry’s complete lack of pace and belief was exposed by Mesut Ozil. Beating Barry to a long ball despite his opponent’s ten yard head start, Ozil showed shear composure in coolly outpacing Barry and slotting the ball through Ashley Cole’s legs for the advancing Muller to slot past the fruitless lunge of the England goalkeeper.

The game became a formality after that, with every England player playing for the final whistle, to release them from their misery. What has become apparent as a result of this game is that the so-called “golden generation” of England footballers lacked the big game mentality required to justify their nickname, and that this emerging generation of German talent has a much brighter future ahead of them, even if they should fail to make it past the quarter final stage.

Tags: Damien Edgar, England out of World Cup, Gown, newspaper, qub, Queen's, queen's university, student, students, The Gown

This entry was posted on Monday, June 28th, 2010 at 1:17 pm and is filed under Sport. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.