Fabio Capello wants more aggression and better ball retention from England (13/5 with totesport to be Europe’s top team at the World Cup), after seeing his team stutter to a 3-1 victory over Mexico at Wembley.
A much-changed England line-up, with the three Chelsea players given the night off, struggled for much of the first half but did take a 2-1 lead into the half-time break.
Ledley King gave the home side the lead and Peter Crouch doubled the advantage, before West Ham’s Guillermo Franco deservedly pulled a goal back for Mexico before half-time.
Liverpool defender Glen Johnson fired home a stunning long-range strike early in the second half, which proved enough to earn England the victory.
Capello insisted there were plenty of positives to take from the game, but also expected that they are several things still to work on between now and the start of the World Cup.
The Italian said: “I learned a lot about some situations on the pitch. Not only me but also the players – we have to press more to win back the ball quickly.”
Steven Gerrard (8/1 to be England’s leading scorer at the tournament) admitted that the coach had called for more combativeness at half time, after being forced to chase Mexico for long periods in the first half.
The midfielder stated: “They had too much possession in the first half, we stood off them and let them play. In the second half we got in their faces and stopped them playing. We need to be more aggressive.
Gerrard admits England need to be “able to adapt to different formations” in South Africa but insists there is still time to ’sharpen up’ before the tournament begins.
More importantly, England reported no fresh injury worries at the end of the game despite some concerns over Wayne Rooney late in the game.
The Manchester United striker, who played the full 90 minutes, hurt his neck towards the end of the friendly win but had to continue as England had made their six changes.
Capello described the knock as a “small problem” but insists he is not concerned and says Rooney “will be okay”.
Meanwhile, Ledley King insists his long-standing knee injury is not a problem after also completing the match in the heart of the England defence.
The squad will now return to Austria on Wednesday to resume their high-altitude training, and will take on Japan on Sunday in their final warm-up match.
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