JERMAIN MAN ... England striker Defoe celebrates scoring to make it 3-0 againt Moldova
Last Updated: 08th September 2012
Q — WELL, Wrighty, before the game Steven Gerrard said England need a miracle to win the World Cup. After last night, do you agree with him?
A — Yes. It was a good win and we played some nice stuff at times, but let’s keep our feet on the ground. It was only Moldova.
They had not scored in seven of their eight previous games and the only nations they have beaten in recent years are San Marino and Andorra. So we can’t get carried away.
All last night showed is that we might not need a miracle to QUALIFY for the World Cup in 2014 — but I agree with Stevie G in that we will probably need a miracle to win it.
He and Frank Lampard played very well together.
But you have to worry a little that we don’t have many youngsters coming through to challenge them for a place.
Q — Did you worry when you saw Gerrard and Lampard lining up alongside each other?
A — No, not at all. We could have played any central midfield pairing last night and won.
Gerrard and Lampard were always going to be far too good for Moldova.
The pair are often criticised but they are top players and in that kind of company they will terrorise anyone.
Moldova gave them so much time and space on the ball that they probably could not believe their luck — and they made the most of that.
The stiffer test will obviously come against better opposition who will always close down that space and not give them time to play.
But Gerrard and Lampard are no mugs, they can hold their own in that type of company as well — and you can only beat the players in front of you.
They showed they were far too good for Moldova.
Let’s hope they can do the same against Ukraine on Tuesday.
Q — But isn’t picking them a backward step for England when we’re supposedly heading into a brave new era under Roy Hodgson?
A — No. Just like England could only beat the players in front of them, Hodgson can only pick the best players available to him.
Now, Lampard may not have got a look in last night had Jack Wilshere or Scott Parker been fit. But they are not, so Hodgson rightly went for Lampard.
It is a shame we do not have the young talent peering over their shoulders trying to stake a claim for a place in the Three Lions squad for Brazil in two years’ time.
But you can’t blame Hodgson for picking Lampard again.
Name another available English midfielder who could have scored the header he did last night.
Who else could have made the runs he did into the box? Who else would have got behind the Moldovan defence time and time again to support attacks?
Lampard was picked because we did not have anybody better than him available to do his job. In fact, there are very few English players around who can score from midfield like he can.
It is all very well people turning up their noses and accusing Hodgson of standing still. But, in truth, he does not seem to have a lot of options coming through.
Q — One of the youngsters coming through, though, is Tom Cleverley, who made his first competitive start for England. How did you rate his performance?
A — I thought he did very well. But again look at the opposition.
Cleverley plays for Manchester United and has faced tougher opponents already in his career.
He was deployed in the hole behind the striker and started well. He looked very sharp and enthusiastic and linked up nicely with Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, Jermain Defoe and the others around him.
Q — Defoe was handed his first England start for exactly two years and responded with his second international goal in two matches. Should he play against Ukraine?
A — That is up to the manager, but I was not surprised he scored last night, given the opposition and the way England started.
He scored one and could — and probably should — have scored more. But he has rarely let his country down and did not again last night.
Jermain is an excellent finisher and though last night was his 50th cap, he is still trying to nail down a regular place in the team.
Whenever England make changes, he has always seemed to be one of the players to make way. That has not helped him.
When you are a striker you want and need to play in every game to maintain your sharpness and confidence. Having been a regular starter for Tottenham this season, Jermain looked up for the game.
He worked hard and always looked to bring others into play.
He could have been more clinical but he got his goal and will be hoping that is enough to retain his place in the team against Ukraine.
Q — So what about that Ukraine game on Tuesday?
A — I would keep the same team and look to start in the same way.
Some will criticise our second-half display, but the job was already done.
It is very hard to maintain the type of tempo we displayed in the first half, especially the first 20 minutes.
The Moldovans could not live with us.
Ukraine are a better team but they will still come to Wembley to defend and put men behind the ball.
We have to seize the initiative from the start in the same way we did last night.
We have struggled to break down teams at Wembley on occasions in the past.
We have seen fear creep into our players as fans have got restless.
But Hodgson’s men must be brave against Ukraine — after all, we beat them 1-0 on their patch in the summer — and go out there and express themselves.
There is nothing to fear.
They need to come haring out of the traps as they did last night.
This win will give us confidence that hopefully we can take into Tuesday and all the way to Rio.
That’s because — as ever with England — we never seem to have any problems with qualifying.
No, our troubles only start when we get to the finals.
Q — Did we see glimpses of the attacking football the nation called for Roy Hodgson to play after his defensive approach at the Euros?
A — Yes we did.
At times our movement in and around the box was excellent and we pinged the ball about quickly.
We managed to get our full-backs — Glen Johnson and Leighton Baines — forward and got in behind their back four on several occasions.
We created plenty of chances, particularly in the first half, and should really have had more goals in the end.
Yes, it was only Moldova and we can't get carried away, but it is a good platform on which to build for the future.
Read more: http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/sport/football/4527027/Ian-Wright-thinks-Jermain-Defoe-has-done-enough-to-start-against-Ukraine.html#ixzz25uDuDPsN
