Yes, i have to agree with you, Paella D. now, that this team ought to be ashamed of their performances so far.

 

What a fantastic goal Joe Cole scored in first half---indeed the whole team played well in that period, though shadowed by Owen's self injury. He may have to miss the rest of the games however far his team will go---poor Michael, i really pity him. What a stark contrast between 1998 and 2006! What a significant difference eight years can make! Well, compared to Rooney, who is now well on way of full fitness, Owen's injury seems prolonged and more destructive. To be fair, this boy hasnt played properly for quite a while due to a foot injury he acquired on New Year's Eve. Now that he's injured again, England have to rely on Crouch and Rooney for the remaining of their days in Deustchland. Everybody was encouraged by 1-0 score at 45 mins. We could see that Sweden was much stronger an opponent than the previous two. And it was not long before they leveled by Allback shortly into second half. My heart sank...The whole pub went into a depressive mood for about 20min. Rooney was replaced just before 70min, a decision rightly justified, because it was the substitute Gerrard who scored a second goal at 85min. But i remembered that Eriksson did say he would only allow the striker to play for an hour. This had been an extension, but i noticed Roo was quite dissatisfied with the decision. Calm down, Roo, England need you for more important games.

 

The english defense system was fading rapidly in the second half. So vulnerable that Larsson could claim a goal from the corner at the very last minute!! A truly disappointing moment for the nation. Yes, we all knew England only needed a draw to top the group, but not like this! Twice lead, twice leveled?? It has become a mystery that they havent managed to beat the Swedes since 1968. Now the nightmare continues...Eriksson the swede is leaving after this tournament. I think it must be one of the greatest regrets for him as the English manager. The fortunate thing for England is that after all, they did not LOSE the game, and so successfully avoided Germany in the first knockout game, leaving the headache to Sweden. In fact, Sweden's efforts to level in the last minutes were essentially wasted as Trinidad & Tobago were beaten by Paraguay. The Swedes were through anyway even if they had lost their last game. They could only top the group by a win over England.

 

Wonder what would be in tomorrow's papers---pathetic is the only word i could think of for the English. I truly wonder now how far they can go, after avoiding the Germans. Maybe the Swedish coach Lagerback was right in asking: is Erikssson, his fellow countryman, really worth 5 million quid a year? Well, the English Football Association only need to pay Steve McClaren 2 million as the  successor to Eriksson---thank God! But on the other hand, i appreciated Eriksson's decisions made in this game, wouldn't you? Okay, after all, he does have something to sell.