England achieved a massive three points tonight with an emphatic 4-1 away win against Croatia in their second match of 2010 World Cup qualifying.
It was far from an ordinary night for England in Zagreb. Wayne Rooney scored his first goal for England since October 2007. Theo Walcott, who started on the right wing in place of David Beckham, not only scored his goal for England tonight but grabbed a hat-trick.
Overall, the performance tonight by England was superb. The team played with an energy and confidence that has been missing for far too long. Walcott added a lot of pace to the side and troubled Croatia time after time. Frank Lampard, who was probably grateful that Steven Gerrard was injured, shone in midfield and was able to make his mark on the game.
Such was Walcott’s dominance in this game down the right wing that you have to wonder whether David Beckham’s career as an England starter is over. For all the ways that Walcott has teased England and Arsenal fans in the past with glimmers of brilliance followed by simple mistakes, tonight everything came together beautifully for the former Southampton player.
It’s amazing what winning can do. The England fans were jubilant. The English footballers played with a swagger, and this brilliant win will undoubtedly silence the critics.
This was a wonderful display from Fabio Capello’s England tonight. It was a good thing the Italian manager led England to victory. Otherwise, the title of a new book being published next week in England would have been a bit embarrassing. Instead, it’s the perfect title for a perfect night of English football: “Fabio Capello: Portrait Of A Winner.”
O<G What a performance from the lads, Walcott and Lampard were great tonight! Lets hope Walcott dont have those perfomance in the league!
I think Croatia lost for the very same reason England lost during the Euro..
Overconfidence and media hype..
Congrats!! I knew England would be the first to beat Croatia at home..
But Bilic will learn quickly from this.. Besides Eduardo and Kranjcar will be back for the London game..
haha what did i tell you guys last moth- walcott is the answer to england's wide problems and he can also play as striker. he's quality and as an arsenal fan im very proud right now,
theo theo theo theo theo theo theo theo theo theo theo theo theo.
arsene knows best.
also look for 16 year old jack wilshere to come through the england squad within the next 3-4 years. walcott and wilshere to dominate the england squad for euor 2012. and if all goes right maybe even mark randall, gavin hoyte, kieran gibbs, henri lansbury, kerrea gilbert, and even almunia at goal keeper all come through the sqaud. lets have arsenal dominate the england squad like they always used to.
Where the hell did that come from ??? I am really surprised by the result. Good on Walcott though, glad Capello stuck with him. I was totally wrong about this match.
This should make the England fans happy for a while, however they might not want to get to over confident, its a long campaign to qualify and anything can happen.