Bradley impressed by England

USA coach praises Capello's men

By Lewis Rutledge   Last updated: 29th May 2008

Bob Bradley America

Bradley: Praise for England

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USA coach Bob Bradley admitted that England had 'raised the bar' following his side's 2-0 defeat at Wembley.

USA headed into Wednesday's friendly full of confidence following recent victories over Sweden and Poland but they were outplayed by Fabio Capello's men.

John Terry and Steven Gerrard found the target for the home team and Bradley concedes that it seems bizarre that England have failed to qualify for Euro 2008.

"Sometimes football can be crazy," he said.

"Poland had a very good run through qualifying but I think everyone recognises the talent the England team possesses.

"The performances of the individuals within the England team raised the bar for us."

Rooney assessment

Bradley was impressed by the performance of Wayne Rooney but chose his words carefully when assessing the striker's tackling.

"Wayne Rooney stays on the field in most games, we will leave it at that," he said.

"The fact is he is a leader. He fights for every ball and he is a winner. In that way, he earns his respect.

"As a general rule, players like Wayne Rooney and Steven Gerrard are good examples of what we are shooting for.

"We have some players in Europe but not seven who started in the Champions League final.

"We are hoping for more players to move up the ladder and play for better clubs."

Happy for Beckham

Los Angeles Galaxy midfielder David Beckham set up Terry's goal with an excellent free-kick and Bradley was pleased to see him turn in a good display.

He explained: "It is important for the MLS that David Beckham continues to play well enough to get included in squads and then can still produce for England.

"His play for the LA Galaxy this season has been better than it was last year.

"He had a few injuries and while maybe it is not La Liga or the Premier League, it is still different.

"This year he has played well and he certainly brings quality to the England side."

Bradley also confirmed that Beckham's club colleague Landon Donovan had missed out on a 100th cap due to a tight hamstring.