By Hariharan
South Africa, Friday, June 18, 2010 — England failed to impress once again as they were held 0-0 by minnows Algeria in their second Group C match. It would be unjust to say that it was a fair result as Algeria seemed to be asking all the questions in a match that England were expected to win comfortably.
Gareth Barry and David James were called into the starting line-up by Fabio Capello after Barry had recovered from an injury and Robert Green’s mistake had shaken Capello’s trust in him.
Algeria looked sharper of the two teams in the first half. They attacked with great pace and one-touch passing. England’s defense found it extremely difficult to cope with Algeria’s quick passing movement.
England, on the other hand, were unimaginative and slow on the ball. There was a lack of chemistry among the players. Steven Gerrard in particular turned out a lacklustre performance.
Wayne Rooney and Emile Heskey had to drop deep to receive the ball as the midfielders failed to provide them with good service. Heskey in particular was impressive with his excellent work ethic and commitment.
England started the second half with more energy. Although they had more time on the ball and went on the offense, their attacks were still ineffective.
James was hardly tested in goal. He was called to action in the 63rd minute when John Terry scuffed a pass back to him. He did very well to run out and make a clearance before Rafik Halliche could reach the ball.
The introduction of Shaun Wright-Phillips for Aaron Lennon in the 62nd minute added more pace and trickery to the game, which aided in winning free kicks and corner kicks.
England had longer spells of possession, but Algeria’s attacks on the break looked more lethal if not for poor final touches or misplaced passes in the build-up.
Rooney was clearly frustrated as he lost the will to chase the half chances like he usually does. The same frustration was seen on the faces of the English supporters who booed their national team off the pitch at the end of the match.
It’s back to the drawing board for Fabio Capello as he looks to redeem himself with a victory over Slovenia in the next match.
Our pundit Cheah Wen Bin was left disappointed at the result. He is a fervent England supporter.
Cheah Wen Bin (with armband) of SRJC. (Photo © Les Tan/Red Sports)
Wen Bin Says:
It was another disastrous performance by England. In fact, given that I’m an ardent England fan, I’ve got to say Algeria should have won yesterday.
They dominated the match from start to finish which came as a complete surprise to me. England’s midfield was completely out-muscled by their hardworking and tenacious midfield. Even though Gareth Barry returned, there were no signs of any improvement in England’s performance.
Hassan Yebda and Ryad Boudebouz were fantastic, shutting down Lampard, Gerrard and Rooney very quickly. Aaron Lennon had an average game as he used his speed efficiently but there was no end result. Rooney had a quiet game by his standards but his shots were limited from outside the box and failed to hit the back of the net.
In my opinion, England are as much a flop as France have been. Anything but 3 points against Slovenia and we can say “Au Revoir” to England.
Kudos to Algeria for putting up a wonderful performance and they could have capped it off with a memorable victory.
Man of the Match: Nadir Belhadj
He showed plenty of acceleration throughout on the left flank and was always looking to get the cross in, causing Glen Johnson plenty of problems.
More News and Reactions
Steven Gerrard not making excuses
Furious England fan breaches dressing room
Few crumbs of comfort from England
Algeria stand tall as England wilt
Pictures from Day Eight
England fans vent frustration over poor performance
Wayne Rooney attacks booing fans
Video highlights of the game
| GROUP C | P | W | D | L | F | A | GD | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
USA  | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 3 | +1 | 5 |
ENGLAND  | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 1 | +1 | 5 |
SLOVENIA  | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 4 |
ALGERIA  | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 2 | -2 | 1 |
For the World Cup fixtures list with Singapore broadcast timings as well as group tables and the list of CCs with free screenings, go to: http://redsports.sg/2010-world-cup-fixtures-groups/
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