England 1 Ghana 1

A new-look England team took the field yesterday including Ashley Young and Andy Carroll up front, with Wilshere sitting in front of the back four. Phil Jagielka and Leighton Baines were introduced along with Cahill at the back, Jolien Lescott joined them (for Johnson) at half-time.

Barry played in the middle with Wilshere, Downing took the right wing, Hart in goal.

The game started well with a lot of pressure coming from England, countered with a few good moves coming from Ghana, the crowd were vocal in support of Ghana especially when Asamoah Gyan was on the ball. After 30 mins Ashley Young slides in on a Milner cross and hits the bar when it would surely have been easier to score, Carroll is narrowly beaten to the rebound.

First senior international goal for Andy Caroll with after about forty minutes, Ashley Young finds Downing on the edge of the box - fails to gather it but instead leaves the ball for Carroll to strike sweetly into the back of the net on his favoured left foot. At this point England look good for the win and look likely to add to the tally.

The second half started with another good attempt from Young, slightly off-target with this one as it swings over the bar. Increasingly England look the more likely to score and eventually Welbeck and Defoe are brought on for Young and Carroll, Jarvis comes on for Wilshire. However it is inevitably Asamoah Gyan who scores the only other goal of the night to level things for Ghana.

A well-fought draw - fantastic 'visiting' crowd, exciting football, which is not always the case in internationals - and rarely in friendlies... Some things for Capello to consider - he has to be pleased with contributions from Young and Wilshere who have surely secured their places in the next squad. Carroll has his goal, but is not really contributing as much as he should, Lescott is a doubt for the future in my book - one silly foul he gave away could easily have been a penalty on close examination of the replay - also Baines went into too many challenges recklessly in my opinion.

England 0 Montenegro 0

England start bright enough, Crouch is through after 2 mins but fails to get a toe to the ball, spurns the chance to open the scoring. After 8 mins a hopeful shot from Ashley Young flies over the top of the bar. On 15 mins, Gerrard takes a free-kick to G Johnson who sets up Crouch, Crouch heads a little high and wide. A strike by Ashley Cole is flapped at by the keeper who manages to keep it out of the goal. Several more chances come England's way, but on the whole England look a bit ponderous and slow despite their superior possession.

In the closing minute, G Johnson is put through, takes a bad decision, declining the shot - instead his pass is woeful, Rooney gathers the ball but cannot find the net through a sea of bodies. England are looking comfortable in the middle of the park, but Montenegro are not too bothered by English attacking moves which are plodding and uncertain.

The second half begins brightly like the first, Rooney shooting over from distance in the first few minutes. More swift moves follow, Gerrard passes straight through everyone from the right hand side, more pinpoint passes from Gerrard go begging. More free-kicks are earned and wasted (missing Beckham now...), but the only player really looking worth his salt for England is Gerrard. Unfortunately England are so ponderous, Gerrard is spending too much time in his own half.

69 mins, Crouch off for Kevin Davies who gets an early chance to cross from the right, corner won. Shortly after that Davies and Rooney combine, ball falls to Rooney, stunning save from the keeper denies him.

73 mins, Wright-Phillips on for Ashley Young, Wright Philips exercises the Montenegro defence on the left--hand side. On 83 mins a dipping Montenegro chance shot out of the blue beats Joe Hart (only time he has had to even move...) but thankfully hits the bar to avoid a disaster. More chances fall to England as the clock ticks away, more free-kicks wasted, Barry has a chance on his wrong (left) foot saved by the diving keeper - time finally runs out on a disappointing draw.

Nevertheless, you have to say, had this been a boxing match, England got a convincing points win... Sadly this is not how qualifiers work, and England have squandered a chance to establish themselves as Group leaders. The positives were that Montenegro had not one shot on target, at least England drew about four or five decent saves.

The bad news is that England look ponderous, Rooney looks bemused - the play was not incisive enough, there were plenty of chances but no joy.

Euro-qualifiers next week

England squad to face Montenegro on 12 October 8pm

Ben Foster, Robert Green, Joe Hart

Ashley Cole , Phil Jagielka, Glen Johnson, Rio Ferdinand, Joleon Lescott, John Terry, Stephen Warnock

Gareth Barry, Joe Cole, Steven Gerrard, Tom Huddlestone, Adam Johnson, Aaron Lennon, Jack Wilshere, Shaun Wright-Phillips, Ashley Young

Darren Bent, Peter Crouch, Kevin Davies, Wayne Rooney

Some surprises in there, not least of which is the inclusion of Kevin Davies who will be hoping to pick up his first cap at the age of 33 - not a bad choice, but again this makes a nonsense of Capellos's declaration that he would be opening the door for younger players. I wonder how Michael Owen has taken the news?? a proven striker at the highest level performing well for his club, scoring goals and three years younger than Davies but seemingly not even on Capello's radar...!!

Beckham plots return

Bruce Arena has said that David Beckham could be back in training at the end of August. Los Angeles Galaxy are expected to take part in the play-offs again this November, but it is not yet known whether Beckham will be match-fit before the end of the season.

No doubt, he will figure on the bench and will be keen to get onto the pitch again as soon as possible.

In other news, England will be gearing up (without Beckham) for a return to Wembley to face Hungary in a friendly on Wednesday August 11th. This will form part of the build-up to the first of the European qualifiers against Bulgaria on 3rd September (also at Wembley). This will be quickly followed by an away match in Switzerland just 4 days later. There will be one more match this year (Montenegro at Wembley 12th October), and then the qualifiers resume in March 2011 against Wales (away).

England fail to qualify

Despite the best efforts of Beckham who joined the game for the second half when England were already 2 - 0 down, England fail to make two additional goals count as Croatia knock them out with a third. Final score England 2 Croatia 3 - the side were blatantly missing that vital spark when a Scott Carson error allowed Croatia to go ahead in the seventh minute.

Still reeling from the shock, the defence step out, but not sufficiently to stop Croatia popping a second past a stranded Carson in the 14th minute. From then on England had all the possession but very few creative ideas.

A dejected team left the field at half time to be bolstered by Defoe and Beckham in the second half. A penalty got England back into the game, well taken by Lampard. The inevitable Beckham cross and Crouch finish took England to 2 - 2 with all to play for. Agonisingly the third wouldn't come until the Croatia substitute striker scored a wonder goal burying England hopes in the mud of Wembley.Will we see more of Beckham in an England shirt now he has reached 99 caps? On tonight's performance I have to say Yes... His impact on the second half was undeniable, he gives hope to the team every time there is a free kick and corner. Hope and positivity which was sadly missing when he was not on the pitch in the first half.

Beckham won't start at Wembley

Tonight's vital Euro 2008 qualifier against Croatia will start without David Beckham according to the latest rumours. Shaun Wright-Phillips is tipped to replace Beckham in the starting line-up. Steve McClarens bold decision will hopefully pay off otherwise it may be one of the last bold decisions he will be making as the England Manager. Already the stories are emerging of who is likely the replace him, and these aren't just idle speculation.
Wright-Phillips on the one side with Joe Cole on the other may just provide an injection of pace to catch out Croatia, but unless either player can get some telling crosses in, England may not be making the best use of the ultra-tall Peter Crouch.

England v Croatia

This is the big one then, the last chance for England to qualify for Euro 2008. Croatia are certain of a place, but the pressure is now on Russia who need England to fail in order to qualify, assuming they can overcome Andorra.
A minimum of a point is required for tomorrow's game at Wembley, and this time Steve McClaren is not giving any clues as to who will be in the starting eleven.
I am fairly certain that Beckham will play at least a hour, with the possibility of Wright-Phillips replacing him in the latter stages if things are comfortable or if Beckham is tiring. I would hope to see Gerrard and Barry start the game with Lampard kept in reserve in case of early injury. It looks like big Peter Crouch in the lone-role up front which should give the Croatia defenders something to think about, complemented with the pace and skills of Joe Cole and the whipped crosses from Beckham. McClaren will be hoping that this is enough to keep the lid on a Croatia team that have the potential to burst the England bubble...
At the back will be an admittedly make-shift combination built around Micah Richards, Sol Campbell and maybe Wes Brown.
The good news is that Croatia are not under pressure to win, the bad news is that Croatia are not under pressure to win!
C'mon Andorra!!!

Israel 2 Russia 1

Hope springs eternal for England's chances of qualifying for Euro 2008 and Beckham's chances of reaching the target of 100 England caps. Israel go ahead as Russia start nervously, Russia pull themselves together, score the equaliser and begin to stamp their authority on the game, only to lose out to a second Israeli goal leaving them 2 points behind England in the group. With one more match to play, assuming Russia will beat Andorra, England need 1 point minimum from Wednesdays game against Croatia. England's fate is firmly back in their own hands - remember Beckham's last gasp goal against Greece which qualified us for the European Championships? Something along those lines is definitely on the cards.... Many thanks to the Israeli team for their efforts!

Austria 0 England 1

Well, the plan didn't really go according to script tonight, England win but were far from convincing against fairly ineffective opposition.
Beckham played his part by providing the cross from a corner for a Peter Crouch headed goal (I predicted something along those lines at least), but the team as a whole did not really get their teeth into the game and stamp their authority. Worse, Michael Owen is injured and will not play on Wednesday. McClaren will be heavily criticised for the injury to Owen, but his future (if it is not already decided) hangs on how the Israel v Russia and Croatia v Macedonia games go tomorrow.
As predicted, Barry got a run-out in the second half, leading to speculation that he and Gerard (also played 45mins) will start on Wednesday. Defoe looked sharp as a replacement for Owen and may start up front with Crouch. We saw Ashley Young make a good start with Alan Smith coming off the bench and Bentley joining him.
Beckham played about an hour, which was expected in light of the game on Wednesday, everything points to Beckham starting on Wednesday, with the possibility of Wright-Phillips replacing him later in the game.

England v Austria

England manager Steve McClaren is set to start both David Beckham and Ashley Cole in the match against Austria this coming weekend. Both players have had recent ankle injuries and need some top class football before the vital clash against Croatia.

McClaren has defended the decision to play Austria, despite rumblings that the match is pointless. There will be opportunities for Cole and Beckham to play a competitive match which will form part of the preparation for 21st, and a chance to try Scott Carson in goal as a replacement for Paul Robinson.

England supporters will be hoping for a convincing performance, some goals (in the right net) and a distinct lack of injuries....

Back in the England squad

Beckham currently has 97 caps and is chasing a century at least before retirement. Time will tell whether this will be possible, but not qualifying for the Euro2008 championships could strike a fatal blow to that ambition.

Steve McClaren as expected, at noon today named Beckham in his squad for the friendly against Austria (16th Nov) and the qualifier against Croatia (21st Nov). Of course, it could all be over if Israel succumb to Russia at home on 17th November. In which case, it will be interesting to see how the politics plays out. Beckham will undoubtedly want to play, whether the Galaxy will want him to play may be a different story, especially with some lucrative exhibition matches on the horizon.

It will be best all round of course if there is something to play for on the 21st, the atmosphere is going to be a bit flat otherwise, and it will probably be the last time that McClaren will take charge of the England squad. If courage and determination are required, the England squad only need to look to the England Rugby team for inspiration, a team who managed to reach the World Cup Final against all the odds earlier this year.

In other squad news, Rooney, Ferdinand and John Terry are all out with injuries.

England squad: Robinson, Carson, James, P Neville, Campbell, Richards, Brown, Lescott, Shorey, Bridge, A Cole, Beckham, Wright-Phillips, Bentley, Gerrard, Lampard, Hargreaves, Barry, J Cole, Downing, Young, Smith, Crouch, Defoe, Owen.

Back in the England squad

Steve McClaren the under-pressure England manager, is expected to include Beckham in the England squad for the friendly against Austria, and the Euro 2008 qualifier against Croatia. The friendly takes place on 16th November, the qualifier on th 21st. England's fate may already be sealed if Israel succumb to Russia at home on November 17th. This also means that Becks will not play in the charity match organised by former Real Madrid team-mate Zinadene Zidane on 17th November in Malaga.

McClaren does not officially announce his squad until Friday

Becks waits for England call...

David Beckham has been invited by Zinedine Zidane and Ronaldo to take part in the'Match against Poverty' at Malaga's Roseleda Stadium on November 19th. His decision to take part will depend on whether there is likely to be an England call-up for the game on 21st against Croatia

There is no clear indication as yet from under-pressure England manager Steve McClaren as to whether Beckham figures in his plans for the vital European Championship qualifier. An official of the charity said that players must indicate a confirmation of their participation two or three weeks before the game - I am sure they will see sense and make an exception in this case....

There appears to be no shortage of charity and exhibition matches to take part in, by all accounts Beckham will probably play twice as much off-season than he was able to play on-season for the Galaxy...

Beckham and Owen return

England beat Estonia by an emphatic 3 goals to none, Beckham in his usual style set up two of the goals (one for Crouch and one for Owen) with his world famous deadly crosses. Injury continues to be a worry as there is still concern over the ankle that has been bothering him for some weeks. The night could not have been more perfect for England with the triumphant return of Beckham and the first England goal for Michael Owen since long-term injury took him right out of the game for so long (some thought too long - thankfully they were wrong).

England draw with Brazil

England have victory against Brazil snatched away in the dying seconds at Wembley.
McLaren brings Beckham back into the squad for the first time since Beckham stepped down as England captain after the disappointing World Cup performance last summer.
"I brought Beckham back because he was playing well," said McClaren.
His return to form continued, setting up John Terry for a headed goal from a free kick. This paves the way for the next crucial European qualifier against Estonia on Wednesday.