England v Russia (12.09)

[Mighty T.A.L.]

England meet Russia for the first time as an independent country in a Euro 2008 qualifier at Wembley; a game that will go a long way in deciding whether Steve McClaren's side book their passage to Austria and Switzerland.

Guus Hiddink comes from Russia with if not love then certainly respect, but McClaren will be acutely aware that in the tactical battle on the touchline his Dutch counterpart will be as ruthless as any Bond villain.

The column inches at the rear of any newspaper in an international week are almost always blanketed by sound bites from the England coach but this time has seen Hiddink, who many feel should have been Sven Goran Eriksson's successor, given ample coverage from a hack fraternity still sceptical over McClaren's capabilities.

In the pre-match press conferences McClaren has, though, been given a relatively easy ride in light of Saturday's much improved display against Israel, a beacon of hope that has allowed him to answer questions with breezy good cheer; the consummate politician.

Same side?

The temptation will be for McClaren to embrace the old adage 'if it ain't broke don't fix it' and stick to the side which was ruthlessly efficient on Saturday but as he rightly pointed out, his selection choices will be either brave or foolish, depending on the result.

It is at the business end of the field that McClaren is posed with the biggest conundrum, as he weighs up whether to employ Peter Crouch - back from suspension - or stick with a rejuvenate Emile Heskey, who could afford a wry smile in the direction of his critics following what was a powerful and astute performance at the weekend.

Although McClaren has intimated that he is ready to tinker, given a congested treatment room, it seems likely he will keep faith with those that impressed against Israel.

In midfield he is spared the decision of whether to axe Gareth Barry, assured and polished against Israel, as Frank Lampard and Owen Hargreaves are both unavailable.

Steven Gerrard waxed lyrical over the Aston Villa schemer post-match on Saturday and freed from the shackles of having to rotate forward forays with Lampard, it could be the Liverpool man that proves the key at Wembley. Shaun Wright-Phillips, in tandem with the buccaneering Micah Richards will hope to build on another strong display, while Joe Cole's return to the left side adds balance and experience.

Paul Robinson will be thankful Israel's attacking prowess was thoroughly derelict, but Russia are likely to pose more questions for a goalkeeper who McClaren has backed, despite widespread criticism from elsewhere, with David James championed for promotion from the bench.

Key to England's success, at least from a defensive perspective, will be nullifying the impact of Russia playmaker Andrei Arshavin, a player that will be looking to expose the absence of a recognised holding midfielder in the home side's line-up. Barry will be charged with the task of keeping a watchful eye.

Hiddink likes to employ a three-man backline and a solid bank of four in front, which allows Arshavin, of Zenit St Petersburg, licence to roam in the final third.

Third-choice keeper Vyacheslav Malafeev will line up between the posts, as regular No.1 Igor Akinfeev is injured and his deputy, Vladimir Gabulov, suspended after being sent off at the weekend against Macedonia.

Third-choice keeper

However, before England begin to think of targeting a potential weak link, it is worth noting Malafeev saved a penalty immediately after coming on to the field.

Hiddink's major decision in attack will be whether to go with Roman Pavlyuchenko or Sevilla favourite Alexander Kerzhakov, who has impressed in the qualifying campaign in scoring five times.

Defensively sound and technically impressive, Russia will be a more taxing proposition than Israel, with Hiddink likely to set out his stall to frustrate, well aware a point from a tough away day would be more than adequate.

England's coach and captain John Terry have been united in their optimism this week but on Wednesday the talking ceases, as a watching nation learns whether the win against Israel is the start of a brighter future, or merely another false dawn of McClaren's unpredictable tenure.

Skysports

[footballguy08]

Russia are a better side than you think bewareeee england!!!!!!!!

[Mighty T.A.L.]

I think they know what.They got Guus Hiddink who always makes the best of the team.

[Lazarus]

malafeev is all over the place...the goal was sloppy...the defence needs to improve soon...

[Jager]

need more game updates....what is the score?

[Olzy]

2-0

Owen x 2


Barry > Lampard

[lionel]

HT: 2-0 England.

I didn't watch it, how was it?
the result is surprising, I didn't expect it to be easy for england...
owen scored 2 goals?! what were the goals like?

[Doc-Bhoy]

Disallowed goal was a joke should be 2-1

[Podolski]

england has been very good could have been 3-0 or 3-1 considering the russian goal should have been allowed. england have been the better side and owen is looking great

[Lazarus]

not the result i expected or hoped for...england to be honest have been slightly lucky to get the win...

they scored a good first goal but i feel that if akinfeev was in goal he would have claimed the cross or at least attempted to punch it away...malafeev started off nervously although he did improve slightly as the game continued...russia started off too slow in my opinion...

russia did well and the goal should have stood...it angers me even more considering the ref's position...if it was 1-1, i am sure that the game would have been much different...

the last goal was not good and it shows why malafeev is russia's 3rd choice..he should have done far better to stop ferdinand's shot...

hiddink made a few key mistakes...firstly, bystrov should have started from the beginning..semshov offered nothing and there were enough am's playing...zhirkov was asked to play far too deep...kerzahkov should have started instead of sychev...the team also started off too slowly also...

the hyping up by the english media is just that, hyping up...england have played average considering the players in the squad...israel offered nothing in terms of attack and so the team had it easy and the scoreline of this game does not reflect the game...

i suppose at the end of the day england needed to win this game more than russia...england have ambitions of getting to euro 2008 but the ultimate aim for hiddink is to get russia to the 2010 world cup...

[Mighty T.A.L.]

Very professional job by England.Russia had no chance to pick up a point today. Heskey did once again a splendid job up front for England.

[Vargas_4]

Really good win over Russia. 3-0. With some pretty good goals, especially Owen's second

Robinson didn't seem too shaky. That's good i guess.

Pretty good performance too...

[kyan]

3-0 FT

Owen (2), Rio Ferdinand ()

f**king quality performance.

Dominated the vast majority of the game, except a 15mins spell just after HT were Russia were applying a lot of pressure.

But it was a well deserved win, and 6 goals against 2 teams who 5 days ago were ahead of us in the group is fantastic especially since none were conceded, my match ratings for tonight:

Robinson - 8, he made a few really good saves, and caught all crosses that came in, no mistakes and he even saved the defence a few times when poor passes were fed backwards.

Richards - 7.5, another good performance, pace, dribbling abilities, strength and good on the ball, a real hot prospect.

Rio Ferdinand - 7.5, a bit lax at points, but generally solid, made a few important tackles and the goal (his 2nd for England) was the cherry on the cake. Nice dummy before he shot (although the keeper should have saved it).

Terry - 7.5, nothing wrong, good performance.

Ashley Cole - 6, looked a bit dodgy at the back tonight, wasn't too involved going forward but most of our attacks came through the middle and the right.

SWP - 8, really staking his claim for a regular place, the SWP of old. Great dribbling, great passing, great link-up play with Richards and very responsible defensively.

Gerrard - 7, wasn't overly involved, had a few wild shots, a few poor touches, but overall it was a solid performance.

Barry - 8.5 MOTM, VERY rarely lost the ball, great passing, gives great balance to the team, he's seized his chance with both hands, his legs, and his teeth. It would be a travesty if he were dropped...

Joe Cole - 7.5, a few good crosses and a few good shots, was a threat to the Russian defence. Ridiculously unlucky to get booked, won the ball in 2 tackles but the ref acted up...

Owen - 8, not only did he score 2 goals, he scored 2 fantastic goals, the first was beautifully placed and he was amazingly calm, the 2nd was just an incredible volley, official MOTM although I'd put Barry ahead of him.

Heskey - 7.5, should at least be included in squads in future, held up the ball fantastcially and was great in winning headers which is what he was brought in for.

All in all England are in top form going into the final stretch, and were second now

[kyan]

Originally Posted by Lazarus

the hyping up by the english media is just that, hyping up...england have played average considering the players in the squad...israel offered nothing in terms of attack and so the team had it easy and the scoreline of this game does not reflect the game...

Surely considering the players in the squad England have outdone themselves?!

No Rooney, Lampard, Gary Neville, Beckham, Hargreaves...

Anyway, 12 goals in 4 games and 0 conceded in 4 is very good form, so if it's hyping up then o well.

an average of 3-0 over 4 matches isn't too bad.

[Lazarus]

Originally Posted by Mighty T.A.L.

Very professional job by England.Russia had no chance to pick up a point today. Heskey did once again a splendid job up front for England.

russia had no chance...if the zryanov goal was given i am sure russia would gotten a draw...if akinfee vwas playing today, england would not have got the first or the 3rd goal....but good luck to england anyway, they won and that's all that matters...however, i don't think they are good enough to reach the final of euro 2008 if they do get there...i still only see them as a quater/semi-final team...