England Defeat Brazil 2-1 on FA’s 150th Anniversary

England’s iconic Wembley Stadium was quite a unique scene as both Ronaldinho of Brazil and Ashley Cole of England were honored for their 100th international caps. For what could not have come on a better day than the FA’s 150th Anniversary, a victory at Wembley lifted the English squad and fan spirits as World Cup Qualifying resumes for the Three Lions on March 22nd against San Marino.

From the starting whistle, England pushed Brazil onto the back foot in the opening ten minutes forcing a few brilliant saves out of in-form keeper Julio Cesar.  As the Three Lions continued to press forward both Neymar and Oscar of Brazil were allotted plenty of room to work and create numerous counterattacks, however, Gary Cahill and Chris Smalling were up to the task.

Arsenal’s Jack Wilshere created some excellent chances for Roy Hodgson’s side early on with constant link-up play with Glen Johnson.  Yet despite England’s pressure, the old-guard and new-guard of Ronaldinho and Neymar brought a free-flowing attitude towards the match, which subsequently allowed Luis Fabiano to get behind the back-four.

Although England continuously tracked back on defense, the 18th minute saw Jack Wilshere called for a hand-ball inside the box in which Ronaldinho stepped up to the spot-kick.  Much to the dismay of the Brazilians, Joe Hart made a real heart-stopping save to initially stop his shot but when made a sprawling one-handed save to once again keep the score deadlocked.

A positive to draw away from the match was Danny Welbeck, Wayne Rooney and Jack Wilshere’s combinations.  Jack Wilshere continued to play perfect through balls to his Arsenal teammate Theo Walcott.  Courtesy of a series of quick passes, a darting run from Walcott, and a perfectly timed through ball from Wilshere, Rooney was able to pick up the pieces and put the home side ahead 1-0 after 26 minutes.

An area of concern for Hodgson’s side was that of Brazil’s counter.  Luckily for England, Brazil’s new look squad under former World Cup winning manager’s Luis Felipe Scolari’s debut seemed to not gel as a collective unit. The apparent disconnect between the defense and the attack saw Neymar, Fabiano and Ronaldinho all failed to track back in defense leaving English fullbacks Cole and Johnson acres of space.

The second half had a more intense atmosphere surrounding the match as Brazil immediately threw themselves into crunching tackles and were able to level the score from a goal courtesy of the second half sub Fred.  Yet, shortly after, Frank Lampard was able to bag a goal of his own after a stellar curving shot past the outstretched arms of Julio Cesar.

The Chelsea man continues to provide ammunition for both club and country that he can still perform at the very highest level, and could have proved to Hodgson that he may have the ability to continue up until the World Cup 2014 in Brazil.  The midfielder’s goal came as his 27th goal for England in his 94 caps.

Steven Gerrard and Frank Lampard may be believed to be past their prime, but both contribute to the veteran leadership for England as qualifying is right around the corner.  With youngsters like Aaron Lennon, Walcott and Wilshere in the squad there seems to be a healthy mix of veteran and new players in the England side.

For Brazil, Scolari’s side also have plenty of positives to draw from the match.  Although a disappointing defeat, Neymar and Ronaldinho combined well together while Ramires was quite sound in his defensive duties.  David Luiz was also fairly reliable and did not venture too far forward, but was guilty of a few rash challenges on Walcott and Welbeck.

Overall, a quite impressive performance for England.  Hodgson should be pleased with the way Rooney controlled the attack and was able to hold up the ball while also keeping the Brazilian defense honest with cracking, long-range shots.  Rooney’s effectiveness did not stop on the attacking-end of the match as he also successfully shut down Ramires and Paulinho in the middle of the park.

Credit should also be given to Steve Gerrard as he played the holding midfielder role well and was able to spring Lennon and Walcott down the wings with what looked to be absolute ease.