England maintained their 100 per cent start to the 2010 World Cup qualifiers, but were given a stiff test before beating Kazakhstan 5-1.
Rooney strikes twice as England overcome stubborn opposition
England maintained their 100 per cent start to the 2010 World Cup qualifiers, but were given a stiff test before beating Kazakhstan 5-1 at Wembley.
A spirited display from the visitors saw England jeered off at half-time with the game scoreless, but a change in system from coach Fabio Capello provoked an improved showing in the second 45 minutes.
Stand-in skipper Rio Ferdinand broke the deadlock on 52 minutes before Kazakhstan defender Aleksandr Kuchma headed into his own net on 64 minutes.
Sloppy play from Ashley Cole enabled Kazakhstan to pull a goal back through Zhambyl Kukeyev, only for Wayne Rooney's header on 77 minutes to finally extinguish the away side's threat.
Rooney added another on 86 minutes before his replacement Jermain Defoe rolled home a fifth goal to give the scoreline a lopsided look that disguises the overall quality of England's performance, which was not a patch on the 4-1 victory in Croatia a month ago.
An inexperienced Kazakhstan side were not overawed at stepping out at Wembley, but it was the hosts who created the first chance after three minutes.
Heskey drought
Theo Walcott found space on the right flank and played a teasing ball across the face of goal which Emile Heskey was unable to poke home as the striker sought to end his five-and-a-half year international scoring drought.
Matthew Upson was selected in place of injured skipper John Terry, but the centre-half proved a threat at the opposite end as he headed Steven Gerrard's free-kick over the bar.
Kazakhstan were not without a threat, however, as Tanat Nusserbayev drove wide before Ruslan Baltiev was unable to react quickly enough after Upson had played his keeper David James into trouble.
England controlled possession and, at times, kept the ball well only to be found wanting where it mattered most, with Frank Lampard's delivery, in particular, disappointing.
Walcott was looking to build on his stunning hat-trick against Croatia last month and he cut smartly infield on 17 minutes, with his left-foot attempt curling fractionally over the angle of post and bar.
Gareth Barry and Heskey linked smartly to tee up Lampard and the Chelsea midfielder was unfortunate to see his well-struck shot deflect wide of the target.
Upson headed another set-piece wide before Gerrard and Lampard combined for the latter to hit a swerving shot which came back off the stanchion and briefly caused a ripple of excitement in the crowd.
Half-time boos
However, with England having failed to test Kazakhstan keeper Alexander Mokin, the home side were booed off at the sound of the half-time whistle.
Capello introduced Shaun Wright-Phillips for Barry at half-time in a bid to inject some more dynamism into his team, yet it was Kazakhstan who should have taken the lead two minutes after the restart.
Sergey Ostapenko failed to connect cleanly with a cross from the right by-line, but his header dropped invitingly for Nusserbayev, who could only prod over the bar under pressure.
But Wright-Phillips' introduction was a factor in England making the breakthrough on 52 minutes when his low shot was deflected wide for a corner.
From the set-piece, Lampard played in a decent ball to the far post where Ferdinand had the simplest of tasks to head home after Mokin flapped at the cross.
Kazakhstan did not buckle, though, and responded through Nusserbayev, whose shot from 25 yards forced James into a somewhat clumsy save.
Lampard's quality from set-plays was a marked improvement on the first half and his 64th minute free-kick from the left was glanced past his own keeper by Kuchma to provide England with a cushion.
Yet within four minutes, England gifted Kazakhstan a route back into the match after a casual pass from Cole across the edge of his own area played in Kukeyev, who steadied himself before volleying beyond an exposed James.
Beckham landmark
England restored the two-goal advantage on 77 minutes when Wes Brown received the ball back from Walcott and whipped in a cross for his unmarked Manchester United team-mate Rooney to guide inside the far post.
David Beckham replaced Walcott with 12 minutes to give the former skipper his 106th cap, allowing the midfielder to draw level with Sir Bobby Charlton in third spot on England's all-time list of appearances.
Heskey's header from Gerrard's deep cross prompted a routine save from Mokin before Rooney squeezed home his second of the night on 86 minutes when Kazakhstan failed to deal with Beckham's free-kick.
Wigan striker Heskey had two late bites at the cherry as his frustration in front of goal continued, although he did play in substitute Defoe for a composed finish a minute from time.
| England |
Team Statistics |
Kazakhstan |
| 5 |
Goals |
1 |
| 0 |
1st Half Goals |
0 |
| 10 |
Shots on Target |
3 |
| 10 |
Shots off Target |
2 |
| 8 |
Blocked Shots |
2 |
| 9 |
Corners |
1 |
| 13 |
Fouls |
19 |
| 4 |
Offsides |
0 |
| 0 |
Yellow Cards |
0 |
| 0 |
Red Cards |
0 |
| 81.4 |
Passing Success |
71.4 |
| 25 |
Tackles |
21 |
| 68 |
Tackles Success |
66.7 |
| 65.9 |
Possession |
34.1 |
| 61.3 |
Territorial Advantage |
38.7 |
|
