Three Lions on the Shirt - Restoring Pride to the England Football Team

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The England National Football team is in disarray. Another disastrous World Cup campaign in South Africa meant that there had now been no trophy for 46 years, something the FA are very keen to change. Even worse than that, England have not reached so much as a semi-final of a major tournament since Euro '96, 16 years ago, and have not done so away from English soil since Italia '90, 22 years ago. This needed to change, and fast.

Upon taking control of the team in July 2011, Group G of Qualifying for Euro 2012 looked like this

               Pld   W   D   L   F   A   GD   Pts
1 England       5    3   2   0  11   3   +8   11
2 Montenegro    5    3   2   0   4   1   +3   11
3 Switzerland   5    1   2   2   7   7    0    5
4 Bulgaria      5    1   2   2   2   6   -4    5
5 Wales         4    0   0   4   1   8   -7    0

The Welsh are predictably bad, but a major concern for England is that we only head the group on Goal Difference from Montenegro with three games to play, and we still need to travel to Podgorica in November, by which time I would like the group to be won, as we don't play on the final matchday. First up however, is a friendly against Egypt in Cairo, which will not by any means be an easy start!

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Honours:

Year       Honours
----------------------------------------------------
2012       UEFA Euro 2012 Winners

European Championships:

Year       Performance
----------------------------------------------------
2012       Winners

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England Squad for Friendly v Egypt

Robert Green
Joe Hart
John Ruddy

Leighton Baines
Gary Cahill
Ashley Cole
Phil Jagielka
Joleon Lescott
Micah Richards
John Terry (c)
Kyle Walker

Michael Carrick
Tom Cleverley
Adam Johnson
Frank Lampard
James Milner
Scott Parker
Jack Rodwell
Theo Walcott
Ashley Young

Andy Carroll
Wayne Rooney
Danny Welbeck

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International Friendly - Egypt 1-4 England (Military Academy Stadium, Cairo)
Egypt: Mido (16)
England: Rooney (28), Milner (47), Young (51), Lampard (pen 65)
Ref: Badara Diatta (Senegal)

Teams:

Egypt                       England

1  Sherif Ekramy            1  Joe Hart
2  Ahmed Sedik              2  Micah Richards
3  Mohamed Abdel Shafy      3  Ashley Cole
4  Mohammed Shawky          4  Scott Parker
5  Hany Said                5  Phil Jagielka
6  Mahmoud Fathallah        6  John Terry (c)
7  Ahmed Fathi              7  Adam Johnson
8  Hossam Ghaly (c)         8  Frank Lampard
9  Amr Zaki                 9  Wayne Rooney
10 Mido                     10 Ashley Young
11 Hosni                    11 James Milner

The new era of English football got off to a bad start when after 16 minutes, former Wigan striker Amr Zaki turned John Terry on the half way line, Terry didn't have the pace to make up the ground, and from Zaki's cross, another former Premier League forward, Mido, couldn't fail to give the Egyptians the lead. England were able to get back into the game though, when a couple of minutes prior to the half-hour mark, Wayne Rooney was the beneficiary of a brilliant through ball by Frank Lampard, and the forward was able to keep his composure to slide the ball past keeper Ekramy to bring the scores level. It was 1-1 at half time, but it only took two minutes after the break for England to take the lead, the Egyptian back line was refusing to let England through, so James Milner decided to take a simpler route, and curled a shot from outside the penalty area straight into the top corner. Not long after, it was 3-1, Ashley Young executing an exquisite chip over the goalkeeper from well outside the area. The fourth came when substitute Andy Carroll was brought down by defender Hany Said, and Frank Lampard stepped up to convert the penalty, for a convincing victory despite the early setback.

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England Squad for Qualifiers against Bulgaria and Wales

Robert Green
Joe Hart
John Ruddy

Gary Cahill
Ashley Cole
Phil Jagielka
Joleon Lescott
Micah Richards
John Terry (c)
Kyle Walker

Michael Carrick
Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain
Tom Cleverley
Adam Johnson
Frank Lampard
James Milner
Scott Parker
Jack Rodwell
Theo Walcott
Ashley Young

Darren Bent
Andy Carroll
Danny Welbeck

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UEFA Euro 2012 Qualifying - Bulgaria 2-2 England (Vasil Levski, Sofia)
Bulgaria: Petrov (3), Genkov (90+4)
England: Lampard (28), Milner (32)
Ref: Viktor Kassai (Hungary)

Teams:

Bulgaria                   England

1  Nikolay Mihaylov        1  Joe Hart
2  Stanislav Manolev       2  Kyle Walker
3  Petar Zanev             3  Ashley Cole
4  Stanislav Angelov       4  Scott Parker
5  Ivan Ivanov             5  Phil Jagielka
6  Kiril Kotev             6  John Terry (c)
7  Velizar Dimitrov        7  Theo Walcott
8  Stiliyan Petrov         8  Frank Lampard
9  Valeri Bojinov          9  Andy Carroll
10 Blagoy Georgiev         10 Ashley Young
11 Martin Petrov           11 James Milner

England got off to a terrible start to this qualifier in Sofia, and it was all their own doing, as nobody bothered to pick up Blagoy Georgiev as he ran through the middle of the park, he was able to find Bolton winger Martin Petrov who turned away from Jagielka to beat Hart for 1-0. Again England were able to fight their way back though when Frank Lampard's snapshot from the edge of the box took a big deflection off Ivan Ivanov, giving keeper Mihaylov no chance. It was only four minutes before England were ahead, James Milner adding to his brilliant goal against Egypt with a shot from almost 25 yards, which somehow slipped underneath Bulgarian stopper Mihaylov. Just as England thought they had done enough though, in the fourth minute of stoppage time Stanislav Manolev's cross found the head of Tsvetan Genkov, Hart got a touch, but could only touch it onto the bar and into the net. Bulgaria celebrated, England felt extremely disappointed as they felt they had done enough for a win in Sofia, but the news from Cardiff that Wales had beaten Montenegro will certainly have brightened their spirits!

Other Result: Wales 2-1 Montenegro

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UEFA Euro 2012 Qualifying - England 1-0 Wales (Wembley Stadium, London)
England: Jagielka (90+4)
Ref: Olegário Benquerença (Portugal)

Teams:

England                  Wales
 
1  Joe Hart              1  Wayne Hennessey
2  Kyle Walker           2  Darcy Blake
3  Ashley Cole           3  Gareth Bale
4  Scott Parker          4  Andrew Crofts
5  Phil Jagielka         5  James Collins
6  John Terry (c)        6  Ashley Williams
7  Adam Johnson          7  Aaron Ramsey (c)
8  Frank Lampard         8  Joe Allen
9  Andy Carroll          9  Steve Morison
10 Ashley Young          10 Joe Ledley
11 James Milner          11 Craig Bellamy

Wales were still rock bottom of the group going into this game, but had at least picked up their first points a few days ago, beating Montenegro 2-1 in Cardiff. England really needed to win here to keep qualification in their own hands, but struggled from the off at Wembley, Wales having plenty of possession but creating no chances. As the game went on, it started to look more and more like a matter of time until England scored, Welsh keeper Wayne Hennessey single-handedly keeping England at bay numerous times. England began to get frustrated the further the game advanced still goalless, but attacking substitutes Cleverley, Walcott and Bent were just as ineffective as those who they had replaced. As the game entered stoppage time, Wales had recorded only two shots on goal compared to England's 26, and none at all on target compared to England's seven, but it was the eighth that made the difference at the death - Tom Cleverley's last-ditch corner was met by the head of Phil Jagielka, whose bullet header cannoned off the underside of the crossbar and into the net giving Hennessey no chance and cueing English delight and Welsh despair

Other Result: Switzerland 1-1 Bulgaria

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               Pld   W   D   L   F   A   GD   Pts
1 England       7    4   3   0  14   5   +9   15
2 Montenegro    6    3   2   1   5   3   +2   11
3 Bulgaria      7    1   4   2   5   9   -4    7
4 Switzerland   6    1   3   2   8   8    0    6
5 Wales         6    1   0   5   3  10   -7    3

England will qualify if they win their next and final game away to Montenegro, if Montenegro beat England in Podgorica they will need only a draw against Switzerland in St Gallen to top the group and consign England to the play-offs, so that will be one massive game in the Montenegran capital. Switzerland can still qualify if England beat Montenegro, they beat Wales, and then they beat Montenegro in the final game and qualify for the playoffs, so with three teams still able to qualify, Group G is one very open looking group!

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England Squad for Qualifier against Montenegro

Fraser Forster
Joe Hart
John Ruddy

Leighton Baines
Gary Cahill
Phil Jagielka
Joleon Lescott
Micah Richards
John Terry (c)
Kyle Walker

Michael Carrick
Tom Cleverley
Steven Gerrard
Tom Huddlestone
Adam Johnson
Frank Lampard
James Milner
Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain
Theo Walcott
Ashley Young

Andy Carroll
Wayne Rooney
Danny Welbeck

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UEFA Euro 2012 Qualifier - Montengro 0-4 England (Pod Goricom, Podgorica)
England: Rooney (6, 56), Cleverley (11), Oxlade-Chamberlain (85)
Ref: Wolfgang Stark (Germany)

Teams:

Montenegro                 England

1  Vlado Giljen            1  Joe Hart
2  Elsad Zverotic          2  Micah Richards
3  Vladimir Bozovic        3  Leighton Baines
4  Stefan Savic            4  Tom Huddlestone
5  Marko Basa              5  Phil Jagielka
6  Nikola Drincic          6  John Terry (c)
7  Simon Vukcevic          7  Ashley Young
8  Milorad Pekovic         8  Frank Lampard
9  Mirko Vucinic (c)       9  Wayne Rooney
10 Stevan Jovetic          10 Tom Cleverley
11 Andrija Delibasic       11 Adam Johnson

England went into this game knowing that victory would assure qualification but defeat would give Montenegro a chance to go above them in their final game. The returning Wayne Rooney started upfront for England, and Steven Gerrard was on the bench having returned from an injury that caused him to miss the first three months of Liverpool's season. England got off to a great start, taking the lead after just six minutes when a long clearance from Phil Jagielka was latched onto by Wayne Rooney, who carried the ball into the box, beating keeper Giljen with a left footed shot. The lead was doubled just five minutes later when Tom Huddlestone's free kick was knocked short to Ashley Young, who was tackled by Elsad Zverotic, but the ball fell perfectly for Tom Cleverley to smash home for 2-0. That remained the score until ten minutes after half time, when Wayne Rooney recieved the ball with his back to goal and did extremely well to beat the defender on his back and get a shot out. The shot was saved by the keeper, but Rooney smashed home the rebound to all but assure England's Euro 2012 presence. If it wasn't sure then, it certainly was with five minutes to go when Steven Gerrard's ball found Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, who took his first international goal extremely coolly, just dinking the ball over the advancing keeper. The hard work will start next June, but for now England can relax and celebrate as the job is done.

Other Result: Wales 1-2 Switzerland

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Final Round Results:

Bulgaria 0-1 Wales
Switzerland 2-1 Montenegro

Final Table:

                    Pld   W   D   L   F   A   GD   Pts
1 England (Q)        8    5   3   0  18   5   +13  18
2 Switzerland  (Pl)  8    3   3   2  12  10   +2   12
3 Montenegro         8    3   2   3   6   9   -3   11
4 Bulgaria           8    1   4   3   5  10   -5    7
5 Wales              8    2   0   6   5  12   -7    6

Montenegro somehow threw it all away and finish third allowing Switzerland to reach the playoffs, England winning the group fairly comfortably in the end.

Qualifiers for Euro 2012
Poland (Host Nation)
Ukraine (Host Nation)
Germany (Winner Group A)
Republic of Ireland (Winner Group B)
Italy (Winner Group C)
France (Winner Group D)
Netherlands (Winner Group E)
Greece (Winner Group F)
England (Winner Group G)
Portugal (Winner Group H)
Spain (Winner Group I)
Sweden (Best Runner-Up)

Play-Offs
Switzerland v Norway
Northern Ireland v Lithuania
Croatia v Turkey
Bosnia & Herzegovina v Slovakia

[ManUTactician247]

Deja vu for Croatia vs Turkey in the play-offs.

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England Squad for Friendlies against Spain and Sweden

Fraser Forster
Robert Green
Joe Hart

Leighton Baines
Gary Cahill
Ashley Cole
Phil Jagielka
Micah Richards
John Terry (c)
Kyle Walker

Joey Barton
Tom Cleverley
Matthew Etherington
Steven Gerrard
Adam Johnson
Frank Lampard
James Milner
Scott Parker
Jack Rodwell
Theo Walcott
Ashley Young

Andy Carroll
Wayne Rooney

A slightly surprising squad selection from England, including QPR's Joey Barton, selected for his outstanding season so far for QPR despite his questionable discipline record and Stoke winger Matthew Etherington, similarly having a great season and deserving his England call. Also, youngsters Jack Rodwell and Tom Cleverley continue their run of selections and both will consider themselves to have a great chance of making the Euro 2012 squad, although this squad shows more than any other that the manager is willing to experiment and if you play well for your club, you are always in with a shout.

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International Friendly - England 1-1 Spain (Wembley Stadium, London)
England: Rooney (1)
Spain: Torres (18)
Ref: Frank de Bleeckere (Belgium)

Teams:

England                    Spain

1  Joe Hart                1  Iker Casillas (c)          
2  Kyle Walker             2  Álvaro Arbeloa
3  Ashley Cole             3  José Enrique
4  Scott Parker            4  Sergio Ramos
5  Phil Jagielka           5  Gerard Pique
6  Gary Cahill             6  Sergio Busquets
7  Theo Walcott            7  David Villa
8  Steven Gerrard (c)      8  Xavi
9  Wayne Rooney            9  Fernando Torres
10 Ashley Young            10 Xabi Alonso
11 James Milner            11 Pedro

A visit from the World Champions to Wembley was perfect preparation for the upcoming major championships and was a test that England passed with flying colours, managing to share the possession 50-50 with the Spaniards, and dominate the goalmouth exchanges. Unfortunately, much of the pre-match media speculation seemed to surround Joey Barton's inclusion in the squad, despite his injury that would see him play no part in either of the two games, but Wayne Rooney changed that after just 24 seconds at Wembley after he latched onto a loose ball on the edge of the penalty area which he lashed into the net. It didn't last though, as a long ball forward by defender Sergio Ramos was flicked on by Fernando Torres and found Joe Hart stranded off his line for a fortunate Spanish equaliser. However, England never let their heads drop and whilst there were no further goals, England will take a lot of confidence from this game into next summer's European Championships.

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Euro 2012 Play-off First Leg Results:

Bosnia & Herzegovina 1-1 Slovakia
Croatia 0-1 Turkey
Northern Ireland 3-0 Lithuania
Switzerland 1-2 Norway

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International Friendly - England 1-0 Sweden (Wembley Stadium, London)
England: Johnson (88)
Ref: Pavel Kralovec (Czech Republic)

Teams:

England                      Sweden

1  Fraser Forster            1  Johan Wiland
2  Micah Richards            2  Mikael Lustig
3  Leighton Baines           3  Martin Olsson
4  Jack Rodwell              4  Rasmus Bengtsson
5  Gary Cahill               5  Jonas Olsson
6  John Terry (c)            6  Albin Ekdal
7  Matthew Etherington       7  Rasmus Elm
8  James Milner              8  Dusan Djuric
9  Andy Carroll              9  Zlatan Ibrahimovic (c)
10 Tom Cleverley             10 Johan Elmander
11 Adam Johnson              11 Ola Toivonen

England fielded a much changed team for this second Wembley friendly in four days, with a much more experimental side, with debuts for Celtic keeper Fraser Forster and Stoke winger Matty Etherington. It wasn't the greatest of games really, both big men up top, England's Andy Carroll and Sweden's Zlatan Ibrahimovic struggled to make any sort of impact and it looked like keeper Johan Wiland might have earned Sweden a draw, but England winger Adam Johnson had other ideas, timing his run to perfection to latch onto Steven Gerrard's through ball and win the game for England.

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Euro 2012 Play-off Second Leg Results:

Lithuania 1-2 Northern Ireland (1-5 agg)
Norway 1-1 Switzerland (3-2 agg)
Slovakia 1-4 Bosnia & Herzegovina (2-5 agg)
Turkey 1-2 Croatia (2-2 agg; Croatia win on away goals)

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UEFA Euro 2012

Group A
England
Northern Ireland
Sweden
Ukraine

Group B
Croatia
Poland
Portugal
Republic of Ireland

Group C
Italy
Greece
Netherlands
Norway

Group D
Bosnia & Herzegovina
France
Germany
Spain

Delighted with that, an extraordinarily easy group, especially when compared with the likes of Group D! We won't underestimate it though, Sweden won't be easy, Ukraine are hosts and that will be a very hostile atmosphere and Northern Ireland will be very keen to beat us! It does mean that we won't play any top teams until the semi finals though (not counting Portugal or Croatia as top teams!). We have also arranged pre-tournament friendlies at home to Portugal, away to Norway, home to Belgium and away to joint hosts Poland prior to the tournament.

England's Group Stage Games:
Mon 11th June - Sweden (Lviv, 7.45pm)
Sat 16th June - Ukraine (Kharkiv, 7.45pm)
Tue 19th June - Northern Ireland (Kiev, 7.45pm)

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England Squad for Friendly against the Netherlands

Fraser Forster
Joe Hart
John Ruddy

Leighton Baines
Ryan Bennett
Gary Cahill
Ashley Cole
Phil Jones
Chris Smalling
John Terry (c)
Kyle Walker

Joey Barton
Tom Cleverley
Adam Johnson
Frank Lampard
James Milner
Scott Parker
Theo Walcott
Jack Wilshere
Ashley Young

Darren Bent
Wayne Rooney
Danny Welbeck

A much changed England squad as Euro 2012 approaches. Out go a few familiar faces, in come the back to full fitness Jack Wilshere, Norwich defender Ryan Bennett, eleven-goal Aston Villa forward Darren Bent, and a Man Utd trio who have been impressing for the U21s - Phil Jones, Chris Smalling and Danny Welbeck. With this being the last friendly before the preliminary squad is announced, the visit of the Dutch side, who were World Cup finalists less than a year ago, could be their last chance to impress the boss.

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International Friendly - England 1-0 Netherlands (Wembley Stadium, London)
England: Bent (27)
Ref: Felix Brych (Germany)

Teams:

England                Netherlands

1  Joe Hart            1  Kenneth Vermeer
2  Chris Smalling      2  Gregory van der Wiel
3  Leighton Baines     3  Edson Braafheid
4  Tom Cleverley       4  Khalid Boulahrouz
5  Phil Jones          5  Joris Mathijsen
6  John Terry (c)      6  Mark van Bommel (c)
7  Joey Barton         7  Dirk Kuyt
8  Frank Lampard       8  Nigel de Jong
9  Darren Bent         9  Robin van Persie
10 Theo Walcott        10 Rafael van der Vaart
11 Adam Johnson        11 Arjen Robben

This was always going to be a tough game against the runners-up from last summer's World Cup, especially whilst trying out a few new names, and yet England will still manage to go an extra few months towards Euro 2012 undefeated since that awful afternoon in Bloemfontein nearly two years ago. It didn't start particularly well, the German referee giving the Dutch a very soft looking penalty after just 20 minutes, Tom Cleverley the man penalised, however Dirk Kuyt's kick was brilliantly saved by Joe Hart. The Oranje were made to pay for that just six minutes later when Theo Walcott's cross was met at the near post by a bullet header from Darren Bent, giving keeper Vermeer no chance. England had some defending to do towards the end of the second half, but very impressive performances from the likes of Frank Lampard, Darren Bent and Theo Walcott as well as newer internationals such as Leighton Baines and debutant Phil Jones will give England a feeling of real optimism heading into the tournament, tests against Portugal and current World number 6 Norway are still to come though.

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England Preliminary Squad for UEFA Euro 2012

Fraser Forster
Robert Green
Joe Hart
John Ruddy

Leighton Baines
Ryan Bennett
Gary Cahill
Ashley Cole
Phil Jagielka
Phil Jones
Micah Richards
Chris Smalling
John Terry
Kyle Walker

Joey Barton
Tom Cleverley
Steven Gerrard
Adam Johnson
Frank Lampard
James Milner
Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain
Scott Parker
Jack Rodwell
Theo Walcott
Jack Wilshere
Ashley Young

Darren Bent
Gary Hooper
Wayne Rooney
Danny Welbeck

Each player will play at least some part in the games against Portugal, Norway and Belgium before the squad is cut by 7 to the 23-man final squad which will travel to the Championships to face Poland in Krakow on 5th June and then open the tournament against Sweden in the Ukraine six days later.

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International Friendly - England 1-1 Portugal (Wembley Stadium, London)
England: Young (58)
Portugal: Moutinho (25)
Ref: Nicola Rizzoli (Italy)

Teams:

England                   Portugal
 
1  John Ruddy             1  Rui Patrício
2  Kyle Walker            2  José Bosingwa
3  Leighton Baines        3  Fábio Coentrão
4  Jack Rodwell           4  Bruno Alves
5  Ryan Bennett           5  Pepe
6  Phil Jagielka (c)      6  Miguel Veloso
7  Theo Walcott           7  Cristiano Ronaldo (c)
8  Tom Cleverley          8  João Moutinho
9  Darren Bent            9  Hugo Almeida
10 Ashley Young           10 Danny
11 Joey Barton            11 Raúl Meireles

England used their first warm up game for the European Championships as a chance to test a few fringe players against decent opposition. Baines, Rodwell, Bennett and Barton all started for the Three Lions at Wembley, and it seemed to pay off as England dominated the first half, testing Portuguese keeper Rui Patricio a number of times, and could consider themselves extremely fortunate to go in 1-0 down to a 25th minute Joao Moutinho strike. A well worked goal, with brilliant movement between scorer Moutinho and full back Fabio Coentrao, but one that in all honesty, keeper John Ruddy should have saved. However, England retained their unbeaten record when Ashley Young smashed a cracker of a strike from the corner of the penalty area into the top corner of Rui Patricio's goal, giving the Sporting keeper no chance whatsoever.

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International Friendly - Norway 0-2 England (Ulleval Stadion, Oslo)
England: Smalling (66), Gerrard (88)
Ref: Stanislav Sukhina (Russia)

Teams:

Norway                          England

1  Espen Bugge Pettersen        1  Robert Green
2  Espen Ruud                   2  Phil Jones
3  John Arne Riise              3  Ashley Cole
4  Brede Hangeland (c)          4  Scott Parker
5  Steffen Hagen                5  Chris Smalling
6  Ruben Yttergard Jenssen      6  Gary Cahill
7  Daniel Braaten               7  Adam Johnson
8  Christian Grindheim          8  Frank Lampard (c)
9  Mohammed Abdellaoue          9  Danny Welbeck
10 Markus Henriksen             10 Ashley Young
11 Morten Gamst Pedersen        11 James Milner

Norway were ranked 6th in the world, only one behind England coming into this game, but never showed it as they allowed England to comfortably dominate the game from start to finish, Lampard being particularly instrumental, but it still took until the 66th minute of the game for the breakthrough to come and when it did come, it came from a set piece, Chris Smalling ghosting in at the far post to head Adam Johnson's corner past Norwegian keeper Pettersen. England added to their solitary lead with two minutes to play with a quite brilliant individual goal, Steven Gerrard picking up the ball just inside the Norway half before running with it past two defenders to the edge of the box and smashing a trademark piledriver across the keeper and into the back of the net.

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International Friendly - England 4-1 Belgium (Wembley Stadium, London)
England: Lampard (18), Rooney (25), Gerrard (75), Jagielka (90)
Belgium: Lukaku (53)
Ref: Peter Rasmussen (Denmark)

Teams:

England                    Belgium

1  Joe Hart                  1  Jean-Francois Gillet
2  Kyle Walker               2  Anthony Vanden Borre
3  Ashley Cole               3  Sebastien Pocognoli
4  Scott Parker              4  Vincent Kompany (c)
5  Phil Jagielka             5  Thomas Vermaelen
6  John Terry (c)            6  Gaby Mudingayi
7  Ashley Young              7  Axel Witsel
8  Frank Lampard             8  Steven Defour
9  Wayne Rooney              9  Romelu Lukaku
10 Steven Gerrard            10 Marouane Fellaini
11 Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain   11 Eden Hazard

England were faced by a strong looking Belgian side in their final game before leaving for Poland, but one who had surprisingly failed to qualify for the Championships. A big test of this game was going to be the Gerrard-Lampard partnership in midfield, one lambasted in previous regimes for not working together but it did seem to work here, England taking the lead when the pair combined quite brilliantly, Gerrard finding Lampard who knocked the ball past Gillet for 1-0. It got better not long after when Lampard turned provider, finding Wayne Rooney completely unmarked, and he was never going to miss, hammering the ball across the keeper and into the net. It was total domination until the half, but when the player's re-emerged, it was the visitors who had found a bit of spark, benefiting from some questionable defending to allow Romelu Lukaku to poke one past Hart. England never allowed Belgium to get on top though and any thoughts of a comeback were dispelled with fifteen minutes to play, the quite brilliant Gerrard helping himself to a goal this time, quite uncharacteristically with his head, as he rose highest to knock Ashley Young's free kick past the woefully out of position Gillet. Phil Jagielka has well and truly established himself as John Terry's partner at centre-back going into this tournament and he showed he can do the business at both ends as he arrived to head Young's corner home in stoppage time for a fourth.

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Final England Squad for UEFA Euro 2012

Robert Green
Joe Hart
John Ruddy

Leighton Baines
Gary Cahill
Ashley Cole
Phil Jagielka
Phil Jones
Chris Smalling
John Terry (c)
Kyle Walker

Joey Barton
Tom Cleverley
Steven Gerrard
Frank Lampard
Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain
Scott Parker
Jack Rodwell
Theo Walcott
Ashley Young

Darren Bent
Wayne Rooney
Danny Welbeck

Dropped: Ryan Bennett, Fraser Forster, Gary Hooper, Adam Johnson, James Milner, Micah Richards, Jack Wilshere

The seven dropped threw quite a surprise in the end, Johnson, Milner and Richards in particular were three who many thought were already on the plane! Milner and Richards falling through just not having a good enough season, Johnson just didn't play enough games, and Oxlade-Chamberlain was preferred to him as he had spent a full season on loan at FC Lorient in France playing every game. Forster and Wilshere also fell into the not enough games category, both had spent a large part of the season out injured and just didn't have the match practice, although I would have thought that Wilshere will be a major part of the squad by the time the World Cup comes around, and Hooper was a direct choice between him and Danny Welbeck, both had similar seasons, but with Welbeck playing slightly more games at a higher level, he got the nod. Bennett just isn't quite ready although will be a big player in the future as seems to have all the attributes of a quality defender.

[cerud]

There's a few national side saves lately. Enjoying it! Best of luck.

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There's a few national side saves lately. Enjoying it! Best of luck.

Cheers, The Euros effect I would have thought!

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International Friendly - Poland 0-3 England (Stadion Miejski, Krakow)
England: Bent (14, 85), Barton (38)
Ref: Craig Thomson (Scotland)

Teams:

Poland                        England
 
1  Wojciech Szczesny          1  Joe Hart
2  Lukasz Piszczek            2  Kyle Walker
3  Sebastien Boenisch         3  Leighton Baines
4  Kamil Glik                 4  Jack Rodwell
5  Maciej Sadlok              5  Phil Jagielka
6  Rafal Murawski (c)         6  John Terry (c)
7  Eugen Polanski             7  Theo Walcott
8  Adrian Mierzejewski        8  Joey Barton
9  Robert Lewandowski         9  Darren Bent
10 Ludovic Obraniak           10 Tom Cleverley
11 Sebastien Mila             11 Ashley Young

England finished their preparation for the tournament in the best way possible, with a comfortable victory over the host nation in Krakow. England rested Rooney, Lampard and Gerrard who will surely start next week against Sweden in Lviv, but still romped to victory against the lacklustre hosts. England's first goal came on the counter after a Polish attack had broken down, Theo Walcott breaking down the right and being totally unselfish as he squared to Bent from a shooting position and the Aston Villa forward who has scored 15 Premier League goals this season, simply couldn't miss. It was 2-0 before half time, when the ball broke to Joey Barton on the edge of the area, and the QPR midfielder, a slightly unpopular choice in this England squad, stylishly curled the ball into the top corner of the net for his first England goal. England continued to dominate, but again the Poles were most vulnerable when on the attack, this time it was Obraniak who lost the ball on the half way line, Lampard was able to slide in Bent who was only too happy to oblige.

[ism-scfc]

UEFA Euro 2012 Group A - Sweden 2-3 England (Arena Lviv, Lviv)
Sweden: Toivonen (13), Mellberg (59)
England: Young (35), Rooney (45+2), Walcott (45+4)
Ref: Stephane Lannoy (France)

Teams:

Sweden                          England

1  Par Hansson                  1  Joe Hart
3  Martin Olsson                2  Kyle Walker
4  Jonas Olsson                 3  Ashley Cole
5  Olof Mellberg                4  Scott Parker
6  Kim Kallstrom                5  Phil Jagielka
8  Zlatan Ibrahimovic (c)       6  John Terry (c)
10 Ola Toivonen                 8  Steven Gerrard
12 Rasmus Elm                   10 Wayne Rooney
14 Albin Ekdal                  11 Ashley Young
22 Alexander Farnerud           14 Theo Walcott
23 Fredrik Stoor                18 Frank Lampard

England always score first in the opening game of major championships, but here they were on the back foot from the off, escaping after only eight minutes when Ola Toivonen beat Joe Hart, but had strayed marginally offside before recieving the ball from his skipper Ibrahimovic. Just 5 minutes later though, Toivonen struck again and this time there was no-one to bail England out; the Swedish striker running between the ballwatching Kyle Walker and his skipper John Terry to leave himself with an easy finish, keeper Hart was less than amused! It turned into a cracker of a first half though as England began to find their feet in Western Ukraine. Good work down the right from Steven Gerrard saw him flash a ball across the box, and Ashley Young reacted quicker than the Swedish defenders to bring England level. England's comeback continued as the half drew to a close, Jonas Olsson at fault this time for switching off from Gerrard's through ball, and you can't switch off when Wayne Rooney is around! The Man Utd striker pounced on the loose ball and fired home a piledriver that gave Sweden keeper Hansson no chance despite getting a strong hand to it. This had not been a great show of defending so far, and it didn't get much better as, still in the first half, England struck again. Sweden had piled far too far forwards and when the ball came back, Theo Walcott was given a clear route to goal and there was no way anyone was going to catch him! All he had to was finish, which he did, and England led 3-1 going into the break. The last think the Three Lions needed at this point was half time, but it had to come and Erik Hamren must have given his side a proper talking to at half time, as they came out firing. They didn't however provide any real attacking threat until Scott Parker and John Terry got in each other's way when trying to clear a corner, the ball fell for Ibrahimovic, whose shot was parried out by Hart, unfortunately though it struck the advancing Olof Mellberg and trickled into the back of the net. That stroke of luck seemed to boost the Swedes, but England were defensively solid and despite having a lot of the ball, Sweden were never really allowed to get into positions from which they could trouble Hart, and England held on comfortably in the end

Other Result: Ukraine 0-0 Northern Ireland

                       Pld   W   D   L   F   A   GD   Pts
1 England               1    1   0   0   3   2   +1    3
2 Northern Ireland      1    0   1   0   0   0    0    1
3 Ukraine               1    0   1   0   0   0    0    1
4 Sweden                1    0   0   1   2   3   -1    0

[ism-scfc]

UEFA Euro 2012 Group A - England 5-0 Ukraine (Metalist Stadium, Kharkiv)
England: Rooney (4, 14, pen 22, 45+1), Cleverley (87)
Ref: Viktor Kassai (Hungary)

Teams:

England                   Ukraine

1  Joe Hart               13 Andriy Pyatov
2  Kyle Walker             3 Igor Oschypko
3  Ashley Cole             4 Anatoliy Tymoschuk (c)
4  Scott Parker            5 Dymtro Chygrynskyi
5  Phil Jagielka           9 Andriy Yarmolenko
6  John Terry (c)         10 Eugene Konoplyanka
8  Steven Gerrard         11 Marko Devic
10 Wayne Rooney           15 Yaroslav Rakitskyi
11 Ashley Young           16 Taras Stepanenko
14 Theo Walcott           17 Andriy Voronin
23 Joey Barton            20 Artem Fedetskyi

You have to feel at least a little bit sorry for the hosts! Well and truly shocked into their own tournament by a rampant England side with one player in particular doing most of the damage in Kharkiv. England knew that the earlier 2-2 draw between Sweden and Northern Ireland meant that the group would be sewn up before the final game with any sort of victory here, and they got off to the perfect start, Steven Gerrard's cross found Wayne Rooney unmarked, unchallenged and onside just outside the six-yard-box, and there was only ever going to be one result. It got worse for the hosts just ten minutes later when they just couldn't deal with Theo Walcott's pace, and the Arsenal wideman's cross found Rooney in the box who headed his third goal of the tournament and the game was then all but over. Rooney completed his hat-trick after just 22 minutes, Ashley Young's pace saw him beat Artem Fedetskyi to a loose ball, only for the Ukrainian to clatter him to the floor, referee Kassai judging it to be inside the box, and there was only one man who was ever going to step up. Pyatov guessed right, but Rooney's penalty was just too good as the difference in class began to emerge. England weren't finished there and made it 4-0 on the stroke of half time, ingenious play by Steven Gerrard as he split the defence and keeper with a single ball, leaving Rooney with an open goal.

Unfortunately for England, the Rooney show took a different route after half-time, the Man Utd forward showing the other side of his game, crunching Chygrynskyi with a reckless tackle, leaving the Hungarian referee with no option but to show him a yellow card which as his second of the tournament would keep him out of the final group game. England did manage to add a fifth though, Joey Barton playing in Tom Cleverley who had timed his run to perfection and easily beat Pyatov with three minutes left on the clock. Embarrassing for the hosts, but regardless of the opposition, a 5-0 win in tournament football is no mean feat and one that England can be very proud of.

Other Result: Northern Ireland 2-2 Sweden

                       Pld   W   D   L   F   A   GD   Pts
1 England (Q)           2    2   0   0   8   2   +6    6
2 Northern Ireland      2    0   2   0   2   2    0    2
3 Sweden                2    0   1   1   4   5   -1    1
4 Ukraine               2    0   1   1   0   5   -5    1

[ism-scfc]

UEFA Euro 2012 Group A - Northern Ireland 0-1 England (Olympiyskyi, Kiev)
England: Jones (63)
Ref: Wolfgang Stark (Germany)

Teams:

Northern Ireland          England

13 Lee Camp               1  Joe Hart
3  David Buchanan         3  Ashley Cole
4  Jonny Evans            4  Scott Parker
5  Chris Baird            5  Phil Jagielka
6  Chris Brunt            6  John Terry (c)
7  Paddy McCourt          8  Steven Gerrard
8  Steven Davis           9  Darren Bent
9  Kyle Lafferty          14 Theo Walcott
12 Craig Cathcart         15 Phil Jones
15 Sammy Clingan (c)      17 Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain
17 Corry Evans            23 Joey Barton

England made several changes from the side that had won their first two games in the tournament. Out went the suspended Wayne Rooney, he was replaced by Darren Bent. The English coaching team were also very aware that Kyle Walker and Ashley Young were both carrying yellow cards into this game, so both went out and were replaced by Phil Jones at right-back and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain on the left wing. The loss of Rooney who had single-handedly won England the previous game seemed to hit England hard, as they struggled to make any real impact on a very poor game, despite having almost 60% of possession, although most of that was spent in the five man midfield. Even when the breakthrough did come, it was scrappy, Northern Ireland only half cleared a ball into the box, which fell to defender Phil Jones on the edge of the box, who fired a shot which really should have been saved by keeper Lee Camp. That was all England needed though, the only real chance for Northern Ireland had to wait until the 93rd minute, Kyle Lafferty breaking through but blazing over, the German referee taking exception to the Rangers strikers claims that he was pulled back by John Terry as he pulled the trigger, showing him a yellow card which would have kept him out of the quarter final had the impossible happened. However it didn't and those on the South side of the Irish border will now get their crack at the English in the quarter final in Donetsk.

Other Result: Ukraine 3-1 Sweden

                       Pld   W   D   L   F   A   GD   Pts
1 England (Q)           3    3   0   0   9   2   +7    9
2 Ukraine (Q)           3    1   1   1   3   6   -3    4
3 Northern Ireland      3    0   2   1   2   3   -1    2
4 Sweden                3    0   1   2   5   8   -3    1

[ism-scfc]

UEFA Euro 2012 Group Stage

Group A

                       Pld   W   D   L   F   A   GD   Pts
1 England (Q)           3    3   0   0   9   2   +7    9
2 Ukraine (Q)           3    1   1   1   3   6   -3    4
3 Northern Ireland      3    0   2   1   2   3   -1    2
4 Sweden                3    0   1   2   5   8   -3    1

Group B

                              Pld   W   D   L   F   A   GD   Pts
1 Portugal (Q)                 3    1   2   0   5   2   +3    5
2 Republic of Ireland (Q)      3    1   2   0   3   1   +2    5
3 Poland                       3    0   2   1   1   3   -2    2
4 Croatia                      3    0   2   1   2   5   -3    2

Group C

                     Pld   W   D   L   F   A   GD   Pts
1 Netherlands (Q)     3    2   1   0   7   2   +5    7
2 Italy (Q)           3    1   1   1   5   2   +3    4
3 Greece              3    0   3   0   1   1    0    3
4 Norway              3    0   1   2   2  10   -8    1

Group D

                           Pld   W   D   L   F   A   GD   Pts
1 Spain (Q)                 3    2   1   0   7   3   +4    7
2 Germany (Q)               3    1   2   0   5   4   +1    5
3 France                    3    1   0   2   7   7    0    3
4 Bosnia & Herzegovina      3    0   1   2   3   8   -5    1

Quarter Finals:
England v Republic of Ireland
Portugal v Ukraine
Netherlands v Germany
Spain v Italy

[ism-scfc]

UEFA Euro 2012 Quarter Final - England 4-2 Republic of Ireland (AET; Donbas Arena, Donetsk)
England: Bent (33), Rooney (75), Walcott (116, 120+2)
Republic of Ireland: Gibson (56), McGeady (87)
Ref: Carlos Velasco Carballo (Spain)

Teams:

England                 Republic of Ireland

1  Joe Hart             1  Shay Given
2  Kyle Walker          2  Seamus Coleman
3  Ashley Cole          4  John O'Shea
4  Scott Parker         6  Marc Wilson
5  Phil Jagielka        7  Darron Gibson
6  John Terry (c)       10 Aiden McGeady
8  Steven Gerrard       11 Robbie Keane (c)
9  Darren Bent          16 Stephen Hunt
10 Wayne Rooney         21 Paul McShane
11 Ashley Young         22 Richard Dunne
14 Theo Walcott         23 David Meyler

England went into the first quarter final of the European Championships as the only side with a 100% record but they knew that would be tested by a resilient Irish side who had finished above Croatia and hosts Poland to get this far. England made the surprising decision to go into this match with a 4-4-2 formation as opposed to the 4-5-1 we have been used to seeing, this meant that Darren Bent kept his place, but Joey Barton dropped to the bench to accommodate the returning Wayne Rooney. Also returning were Kyle Walker, in for Phil Jones, and Ashley Young, in for Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, neither in any danger any more as yellow cards are wiped after the group stages. It was a tentative start to the game, neither side really able to grab hold of the midfield, England did seem to miss the extra midfielder they had sacrificed for the extra striker but nonetheless, it was they who took the lead just after the half hour mark, a brilliant ball from Rooney freeing Walcott down the right, whose cross found Darren Bent in the middle who nodded past the helpless Given to open the scoring.

However, the lack of England's usual holding midfielder with Scott Parker today employed higher up the pitch, was allowing the more advance Irish players more time on the ball in front of the England back line and ten minutes after half time, they took advantage of this. If you can't break down a defence, you can always smash one straight through it, and this is exactly what Darron Gibson did, unleashing a stunning 30 yard strike that swerved away from Hart and flew straight into the top corner of his net. England heads never dropped though, and when you have a world class player like Wayne Rooney in your team, there is always a chance that something might happen and this time it did; Rooney using his supreme trickery to unlock a door that just wasn't there midfielder Meyler and defender Evans had no idea what to do with him until he found himself through on goal and placed past Given to restore England's lead. The luck that the English had in the group game against Sweden when they held on seemed to have deserted them here though, as with just three minutes left on the clock, Aiden McGeady found a bit of space just inside the box and hammered a low shot across Hart to force an extra half-hour in Donetsk.

The luck of the Irish may have got them this far, and it nearly took them to a shootout but it just wasn't enough, as with four minutes left and Ireland soaking up the English pressure, Rooney broke clear from a Jagielka headed clearance. He couldn't find space for a shot due to frantic Irish defending but he did play a ball across the six-yard-box to which Theo Walcott was quickest to react and broke Irish hearts with a cool finish. Ireland threw everything they had at the English back line, but were punished in the cruelest of ways when substitute Tom Cleverley found Walcott onside, who took advantage of the absent Irish defence to beat Given and assure England's first semi-final since Euro '96 and the first away from English soil since Italia '90. England will now play the winner of the Spain v Italy quarter final in Warsaw next Thursday which will be two years to the day since England last lost, 4-1 to Germany in Bloemfontein on that occasion. But so much has moved on since then hasn't it?

Quarter Final Results:
Portugal 3-1 Ukraine
Netherlands 2-1 Germany
Italy 2-1 Spain

Semi Finals:
Portugal v Netherlands
England v Italy

[cerud]

Looking very good so far in Euro competition. Semis against Italy should be a challenge.

[ism-scfc]

Looking very good so far in Euro competition. Semis against Italy should be a challenge.

Thanks, and yeah, a very tough game! Was very pleased when I saw their QF result though as rather them than Spain!

[ism-scfc]

UEFA Euro 2012 Semi Final - England 3-1 Italy (Stadion Narodowy, Warsaw)
England: Walcott (38), Parker (80), Rooney (90+3), Rodwell s/o (84)
Italy: Pazzini (30)
Ref: Cuneyt Cakir (Turkey)

Teams:

England                Italy
 
1  Joe Hart            1  Gianluigi Buffon (c)
2  Kyle Walker         3  Giorgio Chiellini
3  Ashley Cole         4  Domenico Criscito
4  Scott Parker        6  Andrea Ranocchia
5  Phil Jagielka       8  Claudio Marchisio
6  John Terry (c)      9  Guiseppe Rossi
8  Steven Gerrard      11 Giampaolo Pazzini
10 Wayne Rooney        15 Riccardo Montolivo
11 Ashley Young        20 Antonio Candreva
14 Theo Walcott        21 Stefano Mauri
16 Jack Rodwell        23 Lorenzo di Silvestri

England reverted to their more familiar 4-5-1 for their first major tournament semi-final for 16 years, midfielder Jack Rodwell coming in for his first start of the tournament in place of Darren Bent. It was two years to the day since their last defeat and it did show, as England definitely started the game nervously. England had eleven men back behind the ball at times in the first portion of the match, and when Italy did score, Giampaolo Pazzini with a great turn and shot, they couldn't say it hadn't been coming! However, that seemed to be what England had needed to spark them to life, and it took only eight minutes for them to level, Steven Gerrard's through ball splitting the Italian defence and Theo Walcott beating Buffon. It remained 1-1 at half time, and set up what promised to be a cracker of a second half!

England had most of the ball in the second half, and forced Buffon into a number of saves, generally controlling the game, but without the much needed goal, they were always aware of how dangerous Italy could be on the counter! When the goal did come, it had a large slice of luck about it, Gerrard's quick free kick setting up Parker, whose fierce shot struck Claudio Marchisio on its way to goal, which wrongfooted Buffon and sent the ball into the opposite corner. Parker will claim it but no-one really cared, they all count and England were ten minutes from a first major final in 46 years! Still, the job wasn't quite done and England suffered a horrible moment when Giovinco broke on the counter attack, only to be pulled back by Jack Rodwell who had performed admirably. Despite Kyle Walker coming back to cover and Giovinco seeming to lose control of the ball before the pull, the Turkish referee produced red, and Rodwell would now miss the final if England got there! England's protests fell on deaf ears but the ten men left on the pitch just had to get the job done, which they did, Rooney making sure of their final appearance with the last kick of the game, once again set up by the outstanding Gerrard who had set up all three England goals. The whistle went, and England were able to celebrate their first major final for 46 years, but now the hard work starts, preparing a team to beat either Portugal or the Netherlands in Kiev on Sunday night.

Semi Final Result
Portugal 1-1 Netherlands (Portugal win 5-3 on penalties)

Final
England v Portugal

[deltablue]

That's a good omen.

[ism-scfc]

That's a good omen.

Indeed. Here's hoping!

[ism-scfc]

UEFA Euro 2012 Final - England 4-0 Portugal (Olympiyskyi, Kiev)
England: Jagielka (4), Gerrard (11, 27), Lampard (42)
Ref: Stephane Lannoy (France)

Teams:

England                 Portugal

1  Joe Hart             13 Eduardo
2  Kyle Walker          3  Fabio Coentrao
3  Ashley Cole          4  Pepe
4  Scott Parker         5  Bruno Alves
5  Phil Jagielka        7  Cristiano Ronaldo (c)
6  John Terry (c)       9  Hugo Almeida
8  Steven Gerrard       10 Danny
10 Wayne Rooney         12 Manuel Fernandes
11 Ashley Young         15 Silvio
14 Theo Walcott         18 Rolando
18 Frank Lampard        21 Carlos Martins

England made just one change for the big one, Frank Lampard replacing the suspended Jack Rodwell. The Three Lions had started a little lacklustre against Italy in the semi final, but there was no sign of that here as they flew out of the blocks in Kiev, with only four minutes on the clock when Ashley Young's free kick was met by the head of Phil Jagielka to give England the lead. Suddenly any nerves that were there seemed to disappear, as England had something to hang on to and had the upper hand in a major final. It got better after eleven minutes, another Young free kick wide right, this time cut back to Gerrard who smashed a shot through several Portuguese bodies, but none could get a block and the ball hit the net! The English now started to believe but eighty minutes is a long time to defend a two goal lead so there was still nothing certain! Any doubts that they did have were surely dispelled before the half hour mark though, when Gerrard timed his run perfectly to meet Lampard's through ball and smashed the ball left-footed past keeper Eduardo. Now the Portuguese seemed to know that the game was up, that they were about to lose their second Euro final out of the last three, and just let England come at them. Just before the half, England had a fourth, Lampard hitting a fairly tame shot from the edge of the box that slipped through Eduardo's fingers and into the net.

What the Portuguese manager must have said at half time is anyone's guess, but they did come out looking a lot more positive in the second half. Rooney never got in the game, but didn't really need to as his seven goals already had tournament top scorer tied up. Hart was forced into a couple of saves, but the closest England came to a fifth was through substitute Tom Cleverley, whose shot had Eduardo beaten but struck the crossbar. Stephane Lannoy's final whistle was met by incredible scenes as England had won their first major trophy in 46 years, had done it in style and were on top of the World!

[deltablue]

Wow, that was easy!

[ism-scfc]

Wow, that was easy!

Yeah, Portugal seemed to roll over for us thankfully, nice of them really!

Next task is Team GB in the Olympics, followed by World Cup Qualifying in a group with Poland, Ukraine, Montenegro, Moldova and San Marino, and of course the Confederations Cup in Brazil next summer.

[ism-scfc]

2012 Olympic Games Mens Football Tournament

Group A
Australia
Great Britain
Ivory Coast
Mexico

Group B
Japan
Spain
Tunisia
USA

Group C
Belarus
Brazil
Egypt
Iran

Group D
Fiji
South Korea
Switzerland
Uruguay

[ism-scfc]

Great Britain squad for the 2012 Olympic Games

Wayne Hennessey*
Jason Steele

Leighton Baines^
Ryan Bennett
Kieran Gibbs
Phil Jones (c)
Martin Kelly
Chris Smalling

Gareth Bale*^
Tom Cleverley
Adam Johnson^
Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain
Aaron Ramsey*
Jack Rodwell
Jack Wilshere

Daniel Sturridge
Danny Welbeck
Connor Wickham

*Non-English
^Over-23 Player

Team GB have not selected any players who played a major part at the European Championships success but have selected squad members who didn't feature particularly heavily. Three Welsh players are selected, goalkeeper Wayne Hennessey, and midfielders Gareth Bale and Aaron Ramsey. Phil Jones will captain the side, the most interesting selection being Sunderland striker Connor Wickham ahead of Liverpool's £35M man Andy Carroll.

The squad will travel to South Carolina for a pre-tournament friendly against the USA before returning to the country to face Mexico at Wembley, Australia in Cardiff and finally the Ivory Coast in Manchester, a top two finish needed to reach the knockout stages.

[TheGreatTraveler]

Good Luck in the Olympics!!

[ism-scfc]

International Friendly - USA 1-2 Great Britain (Blackbaud Stadium, Charleston (SC))
USA: Shea (pen 45+2)
Great Britain: Welbeck (24), Cleverley (90)
Ref: Rudolph Angela (Aruba)

Teams:

USA                        Great Britain

1  Tim Howard              1  Wayne Hennessey
2  Timothy Chandler        2  Chris Smalling
3  Danny Potts             3  Gareth Bale
4  Omar Gonzalez (c)       4  Phil Jones (c)
5  Alfredo Morales         5  Ryan Bennett
6  Daniel Williams         6  Jack Rodwell
7  Jimmy McLaughlin        7  Adam Johnson
8  Freddy Adu              8  Tom Cleverley
9  Jozy Altidore           9  Danny Welbeck
10 Juan Agudelo            10 Jack Wilshere
11 Brek Shea               11 Leighton Baines

Team GB played their only warm up game for the tournament away to the USA in South Carolina. It was a bit of an experimental team with a central midfield pairing of Cleverley and Wilshere, and Danny Welbeck employed as the lone striker, Aaron Ramsey and Connor Wickham stayed back in England as they weren't fit. Great Britain's key man was Welshman Gareth Bale, and he played a big part in the opening goal, going on a great run from his own half before providing a great cross for Danny Welbeck to turn home for 1-0. However, the Americans went into half time level when Rodwell was caught in possession by Freddy Adu in his own box and responded by bringing down the Philadelphia Union striker. Brek Shea sent Hennessey the wrong way from the spot to level. Great Britian struggled to get going in the second half, but just when it looked like they would have to settle for a draw, Tom Cleverley was afforded space to run at the US back line, and curled a brilliant effort into Tim Howard's top corner to win the game for the visitors.

[ism-scfc]

Good Luck in the Olympics!!

Cheers! We have a fairly tough group but should get through, need to win the group though or else we'll probably play Spain in the quarters!

[cerud]

Best of luck in the Olympics and the return of team Great Britain

[ism-scfc]

Olympic Games Group A - Mexico 2-2 Great Britain (Wembley Stadium, London)
Mexico: Hernandez (23), dos Santos (74)
Great Britain: Johnson (7), Welbeck (59)
Ref: Daniel Stalhammar (Sweden)

Teams:

Mexico                         Great Britain

1  Jonathan Orozco             1  Wayne Hennessey
2  Francisco Flores            2  Chris Smalling
3  Darvin Chavez               3  Gareth Bale
4  Hector Moreno               4  Phil Jones (c)
5  Nestor Araujo               6  Jack Rodwell
7  Jonathan dos Santos (c)     7  Adam Johnson
8  Diego de Buen               8  Jack Wilshere
9  Carlos Fierro               9  Connor Wickham
14 Javier Hernandez            10 Tom Cleverley
15 Marco Fabian                11 Leighton Baines
17 Diego Reyes                 12 Ryan Bennett

Team GB made a promising start to their Olympics campaign against a promising Mexican side, but were still left pleased to hang onto their lead. It started well, Connor Wickham's brilliant ball finding Adam Johnson onside, the Man City winger cut inside onto his left and curled past the keeper to open the scoring. Mexico hit back with a great goal from Javier Hernandez, playing two one-two's with team-mates before finishing past Hennessey. The impressive Wickham went off injured at the end of the first half, but his replacement Daddy Welbeck restored England's lead, allowed to run untracked leaving him with an easy finish when he recieved the ball from Jack Wilshere. However, Great Britain couldn't hold on, Carlos Vela's cross found Jonathan dos Santos in the box, his header hit the crossbar, but he reacted quickest to his own rebound to tap home the equaliser

Other Result: Australia 0-0 Ivory Coast

                     Pld   W   D   L   F   A   GD   Pts
1 Great Britain       1    0   1   0   2   2    0    1
2 Mexico              1    0   1   0   2   2    0    1
3 Australia           1    0   1   0   0   0    0    1
4 Ivory Coast         1    0   1   0   0   0    0    1

[Nobby_McDonald]

Excellent job in the Euros. Shame the real team isn't that good.

[cerud]

All even after one

[ism-scfc]

Excellent job in the Euros. Shame the real team isn't that good.

Indeed

Although I think even the real team might have got to the semis if they'd had that run! I only had to beat one good team!

[deltablue]

Finely poised.