The Three Lions take on the Celeste in a decisive Group D clash at the Arena Corinthians, Sao Paulo that will either make or break their tournament. If England should somehow lose this game, their World Cup dreams are over for another four years, with survival a mathematical impossibility. In a tournament that has already seen reigning champions Spain bow out with barely a whimper after a 5-1 hammering by the Netherlands and a convincing 2-0 defeat at the hands of Chile, will we be saying “Adios” to England this evening?
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They have it all to do, with the goal-scoring scourge of the Premier League, Luis Suarez ready for selection for the Celeste. Even with his presence however, England are still, strangely enough, favourites to win this game. With a strong and youthful side full of pace and trickery, in direct counterpoint to the Celeste’s ageing squad, England could perhaps be accused of having made a meal of it in their opener against Italy, where they displayed lots and lots of bark, but no final bite.
With so many England fans questioning Rooney’s involvement in the tournament and more specifically his role in the squad, attention has shifted away from other inadequacies on the pitch, such as Jordan Henderson’s worrying tendency to shoot in situations where much more experienced shooting boots are available to take on the shot, or Ross Barkley’s tendency to try and do way too much on his own, no matter how clearly talented and special he is. It all comes down to decision-making and teamwork. On the other hand, one clear, shining example of a good team ethic clearly shows in Danny Welbeck’s performances, who is one of the finest ball-winners in the world. He will harry, chase and nip at anyone in his patrol, worrying them like a terrier before retrieving his prize and passing it directly to a teammate in a better position than himself.
Other star performers against Italy were Raheem Sterling, who danced around Italian defenders like they weren’t there, showing off ridiculous amounts of pace and trickery as well as the ever impressive Steven Gerrard, an old head fully deserving of the armband he proudly wears. Uruguay won’t have Maxi Pereira to call on this evening, after having been dismissed for kicking Costa Rica’s Joel Campbell in their opening match. Diego Lugano is also out after picking up an injury in the same game. Jorge Fucile is likely to make an appearance alongside the giant centre back Sebastian Coates.
Tonight’s showpiece encounter will definitely be one full of nailbiting, nervous moments for England and Uruguay fans and managers alike, however Roy Hodgson has indicated that his team will not come to Sao Paulo to defend, insisting that he has enough a ttacking power in his squad to see the task through, as well as having enough in defence to nullify Suarez, Forlan and Co. Whatever the outcome of tonight’s game, one of these teams will be going home.
