England had just clawed their way back into the match on Matthew Upson’s tremendous header, and the Three Lions were showing their teeth. It was obvious to everyone watching on television that Frank Lampard had evened the score a mere minute later, and this match was shaping up to become an instant classic. However, the referee, nor his linemen, were in a position to clearly see the ball cross the line, and Germany were allowed to maintain their 2-1 advantage.
An arguement can be made that the blown call completely changed the outcome of this match. England would have tied the score in a matter of two minutes, and could have carried the momentum into the second half. Of course if FIFA had implemented instant replay before the tournament everyone would know how the match would have played out. At some point the world of football will have to realize that instituting replay for the purpose of determining a goal has to be done for the sheer integrity of the sport, but anyone who argues that England’s only problem is with the officials after Sunday’s contest is sadly mistaken.
England’s performance on Sunday was simply not deserving of a victory. Germany were by far the superior side on the pitch Sunday, and it showed in the 4-1 scoreline. Sure, it should have read 4-2, but England’s faults were easily exposed by the Germans on numerous occasions, and Germany could have easily put up more than four.
England’s defense, led by John Terry, was an absolute disgrace on Sunday. Germany’s first goal came from a goal kick, which John Terry misread, and Upson allowed Miroslav Klose to out-muscle him to the ball, and slip it past David James who was slow off the line probably due to his own disbelief in what he was witnessing in front of him. The second, third, and fourth German goals came as a result of the fact that England had no response for Germany’s speed, pinpoint passing and ability to finish. England’s defense simply could not keep up with the younger, more talented German’s, and that had nothing to do with poor refereeing.
Poor play at the back was not the only problem plaguing Capello’s side. England has suffered from lackluster play in goal in recent years, and South Africa was another fine example. Robert Green’s gaffe in the opening match will be shown for years to come, but David James’ play against Germany was far from exemplary. While all four of Germany’s goals came as a result of poor play in front of James, the English squad would have definitely benefited from some timely saves. If Capello is still around in four years, he would be wise to speed some quality time searching for a top notch keeper, but he also has plenty of holes to fill in other places.
It has to be noted that potential troubles at the back and in goal were supposed to be less of an issue in South Africa due to England’s potent attack. That attack was to be led by Wayne Rooney, who was coming off the best goal scoring campaign of his career with Manchester United, but his struggles at the international level continued. Rooney failed to score a single goal in England’s four matches, and the longer Rooney went scoreless, the shorter England’s stay would last. One could make the argument that Rooney was held back in part because most of England’s starting XI had to play so deep to support the defense, but he is on this team to score goals, and when he fails to do so, he has to accept some of the responsibility when the team is eliminated.
Some people will blame poor officiating, others will blame Capello’s tactics, but the lion’s share of the blame belongs with the players. This was supposed to be England’s golden age with the likes of Terry, Lampard, Gerrard and Rooney leading the way; but these men have failed to deliver on numerous occasions. Given the ages of Terry, Lampard and Gerrard; one has to wonder if South Africa was their last kick at World Cup glory.