CHECK OUT the player ratings from Wembley and see if you agree or disagree
with the marks.
BEN FOSTER: 6/10.
BEN FOSTER
THE FIGHT for England's No 1 jersey is similar to the FA's bid for the World
Cup. Despite so much potential, the nagging doubt is: Is it all going to end
in tears? Foster's trademark nervous moment arrived when he lunged at Nilmar
on 56 minutes. He was relieved the shocking penalty by Luis Fabiano almost
hit the overhead camera. Distribution, usually one of Foster's strongest
assets, was also a problem. Most of his goal kicks gave Brazil possession.
Capello may lament this had more to do with the lack of height and physical
presence in attack without Emile Heskey. In his defence, Foster did 90 per
cent of his work with little fuss, but, as with David James, his
concentration level still needs attention.
WES BROWN: 5/10.
WES BROWN
FABIO has asked every England full-back other than '66 hero George Cohen to
come out of retirement to sort out this problem position. As one of the few
English right-backs still available, Brown finds himself in this team by
default. There were few signs of an kind of understanding on the right flank
with Shaun Wright-Phillips. The early debilitating conditions made rampaging
overlaps impossible, while Nilmar's persistent threat kept the United man
pinned in his own half. Glen Johnson will not be sweating on his England
place just yet after the dreadful chested backpass led to the penalty.
WAYNE BRIDGE: 5/10
WAYNE BRIDGE
THE SPECTACULAR light show before kick-off made it look as if the circus had
come to town. Some of Bridge's early contributions had the same impact.
There was precious little combination with James Milner. The lack of
dynamism on both flanks meant Capello was doing windmall impressions with
his arms all evening. No sooner was he sitting down, his wide men and
full-backs were losing the ball and the Italian was marching back to the
edge of his technical area. He will have learned a lot from some of this
performance, none of it pleasurable.
JOLEON LESCOTT: 4/10.
JOLEON LESCOTT
ACCORDING to the 'find your Brazilian nickname' website, Wayne Rooney would be
called Wayniano, Gareth Barry should be dubbed Biano and Lescott somewhat
cruelly finds himself renamed 'Costoomucho'. The £22million move to
Manchester City seems to have damaged rather than enhanced Lescott's
reputation. One of the most expensive defenders in football to mark Kaka,
the Brazilian will be salivating if they meet again next summer. The heart
of England's defence disappeared in the 47th minute. Many England fans will
be hoping that is also the case when John Terry and Rio Ferdinand are fit.
MATTHEW UPSON: 5/10.
MATTHEW UPSON
SUCH have been the injuries to Rio Ferdinand, Upson is reaching a stage where
he may no longer be considered a deputy at centre-back. He has been less
susceptible to knocks for the past 12 months - but question marks remain.
Upson made an early error when he was robbed on the touchline by the
lightning-fast Nilmar - and he never looked comfortable after that Whenever
the Brazilians stepped up a gear, especially in the second half, England's
defence looked primed for embarrassment. The exhibition nature of the game
was a God send if the shambles of Nilmar's easy opener was anything to go
by.
SHAUN WRIGHT-PHILLIPS: 5/10.
SHAUN WRIGHT-PHILLIPS
A WORD of warning: Wright-Phillips was the fourth member of the starting
line-up representing Manchester City. A harrowing thought for those
assessing Capello's strength in depth. Joe Cole's injury handed former
Chelsea clubmate Wright-Phillips a year's head start in establishing himself
as the first-choice on the right of England's midfield. With one game to go
before the squad for the 2010 World Cup in South Africa is named, he will
have to reflect on a missed opportunity. Cole will be welcomed back to the
fold once he has proved his fitness after a serious injury.
GARETH BARRY: 7/10.
GARETH BARRY
THE Manchester City midfielder was teased into thinking he would be captain.
But despite the disappointment of losing the armband, he still had the look
of an authoritative presence. Alongside Rooney, he stood out as the class
act in a white shirt, providing a lesson to some of those around him about
keeping possession. That is why he is a certain starter in South
Africa.Tactically, teams such as Brazil pounce on the carelessness of
opponents and look to monopolise the ball. At times, Barry looked like the
only England players who understood the importance of not passing to a
yellow shirt.
JERMAINE JENAS: 6/10.
JERMAINE JENAS
JERMAINE JENAS scored the first goal of the Fabio Capello era - but you get
the feeling the only way he is going to South Africa this summer is on
Safari. He was the brightest of the fringe players, but the quality of the
absentees means Jenas had to shine far more to make an impression. Being
okay is not enough to claim a World Cup place. The meticulous Capello is
looking for class acts to influence his decisions now. Jenas fell well short
of that against illustrious opponents.
JAMES MILNER: 5/10.
JAMES MILNER
THE 'dry' hotels in Qatar offer non-alcoholic strawberry flavoured beer
instead of real ale. It is a bit like replacing a player of Steven Gerrard's
class with James Milner. No matter how much you want it to work, it never
will be adequate. You cannot question his workrate but you wonder if there
is enough X-Factor about his game. He is more a Louis Walsh act than one of
Simon Cowell's. His versatility should ensure he is part of the final squad
but, like much of this team, you cannot see him making more than cameo
appearances in the summer.
WAYNE ROONEY: 7/10.
WAYNE ROONEY
FIRST a father, now an England captain, Rooney is emerging as England's top
ambassador. The Manchester United striker shared the A-list billing with
Kaka. Every touch and drop of the shoulder was greeted with shrieks of
approval from a largely subdued crowd. But such was the lack of support on
the pitch that he had to drop ever deeper to hunt for possession. When he
did get a pass, typically he was always trying to make things happen.
Inevitably, he cut a frustrated figure as the lack of quality showed - and
he will welcome back the cavalry like the rest of us in the next friendly.
DARREN BENT: 4/10.
DARREN BENT
ONLY the Royal Mail has carried a greater strike threat since Bent signed for
Sunderland. He was one of those with something to prove, but precisely what
he confirmed is not certain. If anything, he underlined the strangeness of
leaving Peter Crouch on the bench. Bent's first touch was header over the
bar from 25 yards and he looked lost for the rest of the match. His game
relies on the kind of regular service you can get in the Premier League, but
not at this level. He left the international stage on 55 minutes and his
World Cup hopes probably exited with him.
SUBSTITUTES:
JERMAIN DEFOE 5 (for Bent), 55m
May see his omission from the starting line-up more positively than it first
seemed. Capello wanted to take a closer look at Bent, but he will have seen
nothing to suggest he should displace Defoe as the prime goal-sniffer in the
box.
PETER CROUCH 5 (for Barry), 81m
His enthusiasm saw him chase everything - but he looked rather one-paced
against the masters from Brazil.
TOM HUDDLESTONE 4 (for Wright-Phillips), 81m
Given a half chance to stake a World Cup claim but did not improve his hopes,
not least because he was on for such a short time.
ASHLEY YOUNG 3 (for Milner), 87m
Just did not have enough time to shine.
SUBS NOT USED: Robert Green, Gary Cahill, Stephen Warnock, Joe Hart.