da lvbet： Few words can describe the emotions of England fans right now. A deserved win, for sure, was snatched away from the Three Lions in the most horrific of circumstances, an injury time equaliser after all the hard work that Roy Hodgson’s men had put in.
da 888： England’s line up was pretty much the expected XI. There had been reports that Jamie Vardy would be left out of the side so it was no surprise to see him dropped to the bench. England, as per usual, started with Joe Hart in goal and the solid back four of Walker, Cahill, Smalling and Rose.
Eric Dier started in defensive midfield alongside Dele Alli and captain Wayne Rooney, while Raheem Sterling, Adam Lallana and Harry Kane started as a forward three.
It was a strange game to say the least, as have all the games at EURO 2016 been so far. Roy Hodgson seems to have completely lost the plot with some of his decisions.
[ffc-gal cat=”euro-2016″ no=”5″]
Firstly, it is utterly ridiculous for a striker of Kane’s quality, a striker who won the Premier League Golden Boot, a striker who stands at 6ft 2inches, to take corners. Kane should be in the box on the receiving end of corners, not taking them!
Kane, however, did not exactly have a great game himself. He received little service from his team-mates but never really looked like a threat to the Russian goal. In fact, the Spurs striker did not have a single touch of the ball inside the Russia box.
Another bizarre decision that Hodgson made was the decision to substitute Wayne Rooney. The England captain has come under lots of criticism for his performances in recent years but he really showed his class tonight, perhaps the best player on the pitch. It is always a luxury to have an exciting, attacking player such as Jack Wilshere on the bench, but Rooney was playing far too well to be subbed off.
England couldn’t have been more England. The Three Lions looked so exciting as the match began, testing Russian goalkeeper Igor Akinfeev on numerous occasions. But England were simply not clinical enough throughout, as Adam Lallana and Wayne Rooney missed some glorious chances, whilst Akinfeev kept England at bay too.
England had complete control throughout the match. In the first half England had nine shots at goal, and they bossed the midfield and possession throughout – so they thoroughly deserved to take the lead in the 73rd minute through Eric Dier’s surprise free kick.
But as per usual, England failed to keep their heads and let in a sloppy goal in the dying moments of the game through a header from Berezutski, Russia’s first shot on target since the 17th minute.
The defence was all over the place. England could have dealt with the ball but it was a fantastic header that beat Joe Hart, who could get nowhere near it, but there will be question marks over Danny Rose and Chris Smalling.
This is what happens when you don’t take your chances and England fans should be very fearful for Thursday when they face a jubilant Wales side, led by the world’s most expensive player Gareth Bale.
England have made it very difficult for themselves and have it all to do over the course of the next two matches, and if they fail to beat Wales, Roy’s boys could be on the plane home in no time at all.
[ad_pod id=’greatest-players’ align=’center’]
[ad_pod id=’writeforus’ align=’center’]
[ad_pod id=’plane-editorial’ align=’center’]