38 years and still waiting

England 2 – Joe Cole (34) Steven Gerrard (85)
Sweden 2 – Marcus Allback (51) Henrik Larsson (90)

It has been 38 years since England last beat Sweden in any competition. Today they came mighty close but a surprisingly leaky defence meant a 2-2 draw and the wait to beat Sweden continues.

Apparently England has been training all week long to play a passing game to suit Michael Owen. With Wayne Rooney starting in front with him, the idea was to play through the younger striker for the veteran to start scoring goals. Thus in this new scheme of things Peter Crouch was dispensed.

However all the well laid plans came to a naught in the opening 60 seconds when Owen came crushing down holding his knee in agony. In came Crouch and in all credit, England stuck to their training ground routine in playing short, neat passes.

I saw England at its best in this tournament in the first 45 minutes and to stamp their new mentality, they went in front through a beautiful goal from Joe Cole in the 34th minute. They ended the half time in a high.

I watched this game in a cinema with some mates and about 15 England fans. Everyone in the cinema thought England will come back in the second half to play more decent football and finally beat that unwanted record.

But the team that came out firing in all cylinders was Sweden. They pushed England defenders into making silly errors. Their dead balls caused major problems for the England back four. And they finally drew level through a neat flick by Marcus Allback in the 51st minute.

Then a sustained pressure by the Swedes saw England keeper Paul Robinson beaten three times, but he was saved by the cross bar twice and once by Steven Gerrard, who had come in as a substitute, on the line.

Gerrard then went on to put England in front again in the 85th minute. Again, the England players thought they had wrapped up the game after all the pressure from Sweden.

However the last word went to the Swedes who again scored in the midst of a static England defence in the 90th minute.

At the end it was a good game – with four goals - for the neutrals. England top their group and now will meet Ecuador in the second round stage on Sunday while Sweden will play Germany on Saturday.

England will be happy to play the South Americans but they better not underestimate them. Ecuador lost to Germany 3-0 earlier today but they played without five regular players.

There are still some tweaks to be made for England before that Sunday meeting. Today, most of their play came in the left through Ashley Cole and Joe Cole. David Beckham on the right was a forlorn figure. I think they will have to mix and match their passing through both flanks.

But more importantly, the defenders will have to stay awake throughout the game.

• Memorable moment in the match: A very petulant Rooney raving and ranting after he was substituted.
• Passing of the game: Halfway in the second half, England players tried to play possessive football. They kept a string of some 20-odd passes, reminding everyone that they too can do what the Argentinians did. However unlike the Argentinians, England lost possession in their 21st pass and nearly resulted in Sweden scoring.

In the other meaningless Group B match, Paraguay defeated Trinidad and Tobago 2-0.

German machine keeps rolling

Germany 3 – Miroslav Klose (4), (44), Lukas Podolski (57)
Ecuador 0

I am impressed with Germany. They are playing well. Their strikers are on fire. And their under-fire defence is showing some stability.

Today they ended their group matches with an easy 3-0 win over Ecuador. And along the way, Miroslav Klose becomes the leading goal-scorer with four goals.

Their performances in the three games so far have heightened the hopes of their fans who want their team to win the trophy in their home soil.

In the other Group A match today, Poland beat Costa Rica 2-1, but this result means nothing to either of the team.