Wayne Rooney fires a blast at boo-boys

Saturday, 19 June 2010


Wayne Rooney blasted England fans for booing the team last night — even though they were woeful in a 0-0 draw with Algeria.

As he trudged off the pitch at the end of the shocking performance, the Manchester United striker turned to a television camera and said: “Nice to see your home fans booing you, you football supporters.”

The supporters’ frustration was hardly surprising given that the uninspiring show from the players leaves England’s World Cup dream hanging by a thread.

Thousands of fans vented their fury at the players at the final whistle after the jaded display — and to make matters worse one managed to enter the England dressing room and walk straight up to David Beckham.

It’s an alarming security breach which will worry the England camp and the Football Association last night lodged a formal complaint with FIFA.

Skipper Steven Gerrard admitted the performance was “not good enough” and there is now the very real danger of England not progressing to the knockout stage.

The shocker in Cape Town means that Fabio Capello's side now need to beat Slovenia on Wednesday to stay in the tournament.

Goalkeeper Robert Green paid the price for his blunder against the United States as he was replaced by David James, but it was the outfield players who failed to shine.

Capello made no excuses, saying: “It was not a good game. We lost too many passes and I think this was not the team that I know, the team that I have known (in qualifying). But we have another game to play.

“When we give other teams the ball we do not win the ball back quickly and we play under pressure.”

Read more: http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/sport/football/world-cup/wayne-rooney-fires-a-blast-at-booboys-14849376.html#ixzz0rIohjtrf

Frustrated Ashley Cole left isolated by Steven Gerrard

By continually cutting inside, the England captain prevented the normally adventurous full-back from advancing against Algeria

Ashley Cole, left, battles for possession with Algeria's Ryad Boudebouz Ashley Cole, left, tangles with Algeria's Ryad Boudebouz on a frustrating night for the England full-back Photograph: Oliver Weiken/EPA

On a hugely disappointing night England were their own worst enemies. They were generally outmanoeuvred by a tidy but toothless Algerian side and cluttered the midfield in an anaemic display which did no credit to anyone who featured in a white shirt.

Fabio Capello once against opted for the power of Emile Heskey to complement Wayne Rooney in attack, with Steven Gerrard returning to semi left-side duties. This meant England had only one natural winger, Aaron Lennon, to penetrate the opposition defence from wide midfield. But he struggled to do that almost from the outset after England started nervously and Algeria, with Karim Ziani and Ryad Boudebouz playing off the lone striker Karim Matmour, won possession and showed early confidence. This provided the platform for their wing-backs, Foued Kadir and Hassan Yebda, to get forward and force an already stuttering and less than fluid England side to retreat further and further back.

There was a particular lack of penetration from the left-hand side, due to Gerrard repeatedly coming inside. This allowed England to match Algeria in terms of numbers in central midfield but it squeezed the space from where Frank Lampard could express himself and meant that every time Ashley Cole was in possession, he saw only the green shirt of Kadir in front of him. Cole never had a player outside him to whom he could pass the ball.

Cole can be a vibrant attacker from deep but in this match was a near non-contributor to England's possession. This was also partly down to the side's fractured passing, which gave the full-back little confidence that he could venture forward without being caught out of position on the counter-attack. In contrast Glen Johnson, the right full-back, constantly had an outlet in Aaron Lennon and, while both put in below-par performances, they were more effective than Cole and the inward-wandering Gerrard.

It is absolutely essential that against Slovenia England use the whole width of the pitch. Stretching the opposition will also be easier if Wayne Rooney does not get swamped in the midfield minefield, as he did against Algeria. We need Rooney to be nearer the goal and that means sacrificing Heskey, who last night was regularly and too easily forced away from goal by Algeria's three centre-backs, in particular Antar Yahia. Heskey seemed to be playing with lead in his boots. The time has surely now come for Capello to move Rooney up and play Gerrard just behind him. That is a partnership that has the potential to cause Slovenia real problems next week. With Gerrard in attack, Capello must thenplay someone on the left who can support Cole and give him a target to pass to. He was one of the very few England players who had a genuine excuse for looking and playing in such a frustrating manner last night.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/blog/2010/jun/19/england-algeria-world-cup

World Cup 2010: Wayne Rooney voices England's anger and frustration

England's World Cup descended into frustration last night as a furious supporter confronted David Beckham in the dressing room, moments after a sarcastic Wayne Rooney had questioned the loyalty of the travelling fans as he left the pitch.

A goalless draw against Algeria, ranked 30th in the world and in their first finals for 24 years, prompted boos on the final whistle from the England contingent in the crowd. Rooney, whose performance had spluttered uncharacteristically, reacted by shouting into a television camera: "Nice to see your own fans booing you. If that's what loyal support is ... for fuck's sake."

The mood turned poisonous moments later when a fan wearing an England replica kit barged his way through the security around the changing rooms and shouted abuse at Beckham, who is a non‑playing member of Fabio Capello's staff. The supporter was eventually pulled away by stewards. Prince William and Prince Harry had been due in the dressing room moments later.

The Football Association was outraged – there is no suggestion that its own security protocol had failed – and submitted a formal complaint to Fifa . "It is unacceptable," said an FA spokesman. "Thankfully there was no serious harm done, but we will be complaining to Fifa."

England must now beat Slovenia, who are top of Group C after drawing with the USA yesterday, in Port Elizabeth on Wednesday if they are to reach the knock-out phase. This performance did little to suggest they are a side capable of making a lasting impression at the finals. Jamie Carragher will miss the Slovenia game through suspension, leaving Capello to reassemble his centre defence for a third successive game.

The Italian was at a loss to explain his team's display, rather half-heartedly blaming expectation for having disrupted his side's rhythm. The manager offered his crestfallen players a reminder that they can still progress, and even top the group, though his main task now appears to be repairing battered confidence.

"The pressure of the World Cup does not help, probably," said Capello. "These players train very well and at a fast speed but they were not the same team that I know in these two games. I told the players in the dressing room that they have another chance on Wednesday, and we are really lucky with that. We have a big chance because the USA drew. But I hope to see the England team on Wednesday. This is not the England team I know.

"I remember when I started as England manager, I saw the same things when we played at Wembley. I hope, when we play the next game, we forget this performance and we forget to play with fear and without confidence. It's incredible, the mistakes of the players. When they can't control the ball or miss easy passes ... we missed everything. This is incredible given the level of the England players. The pressure is so big because the performance of the players was not as I know."

First among his concerns will be Rooney. The striker was unrecognisable from the player who rampaged through the Premier League. "Rooney didn't play like Rooney," said Capello. "I can change the tactics, I will try to do something different. But we know what we have to do. Sometimes after one big performance, the minds of the players will be free and then we can play like England. Like the England that I know. This is really important."

The captain, Steven Gerrard, said: "We're not happy with the performance, we need more. We want to stay in this tournament until the final stages. We were not good enough to make the breakthrough in the final third. We were not aggressive enough and didn't have the cutting edge. Give [Algeria] credit but we have to look at ourselves. We've not got any excuses: we know what we have to do. We have to win the final game, which adds to the pressure, but at this level you have to handle that pressure."

http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/2010/jun/19/world-cup-2010-wayne-rooney-england-algeria