England beat Wales to close in on finals
Reuters - Tuesday 06 September 2011, 21:18
LONDON - England beat Wales 1-0 with a
first half goal from Ashley Young at a rainy and damp Wembley
Stadium on Tuesday to move to within a point of qualifying for
next year's Euro 2012 finals in Ukraine and Poland.
Young struck after 35 minutes when Stewart Downing beat Joe
Ledley wide on the left of the Welsh defence and sent a perfect
low cross for Young to sweep home first time past goalkeeper
Wayne Hennessey.
It was one of the rare scoring opportunities either side
created in a largely dour, defensive Group G duel although
substitute Robert Earnshaw, who had only been on the field for
nine minutes, should have equalised for Wales with the goal at
his mercy after 76 minutes. Instead he fired high over the bar.
The result took England to 17 points from seven matches, six
clear of Montenegro who have 11 from six.
England's final
qualifier is in Montenegro on October 7 and if England avoid defeat
they will win the group and qualify automatically for the
finals. Wales remain bottom with three points from six games.
After a slow start by both teams Wales settled into a
defensive shape and frustrated England for the first 35 minutes
until Young scored.
They also finished the more adventurous team and could even
have stolen a share of the spoils with better finishing and
luck.
Before the goal there was little action in either penalty
area and the match was in complete contrast to England's pacy
3-0 win over Bulgaria on Friday or Wales revitalising 2-1 win
over Montenegro on the same night in Cardiff.
Instead Wales appeared to be intent on damage limitation and
restricted England to a skied bicyle-kick by Downing after 28
minutes, although Wayne Rooney tried an ambitious chip from 30
metres which also went over the bar.
Wales, well beaten by England 2-0 in Cardiff in March but
vastly improved since then, were more resilient playing with
nine or 10 men back and only Steve Morison a distant figure
alone up front.
But without the suspended Craig Bellamy, they were toothless
in attack, hardly challenging opposing goalkeeper Joe Hart who
was a virtual spectator, without a serious shot to save in the
opening period.
Wales never looked like beating England for the first time
since 1984 or winning at Wembley for the first time since 1977,
but they did make England work hard for the three points.
The second half was better for the home side with James
Milner making some telling runs from deep, but with Rooney
largely shackled and Young isolated on the wing, England had no
time to relax.
Midfielder Frank Lampard, left out of the starting line-up on
Friday, returned to win his 88th cap and did well in carrying
the game forward to the Welsh, whose heavy reliance on Gareth
Bale to create their own chances was thwarted by some sterling
midfield work by Gareth Barry and Gary Cahill.
Wales have not scored a goal against England in the four
matches they have played against them since their last victory
at Wrexham in 1984, but Earnshaw should have done so but for an
astonishing miss from five metres out 14 minutes from time.
If that had gone in, it would have given Wales a merited
draw but on balance, England just did enough to win at Wembley
for the first time in five matches over the last 12 months and
move to within touching distance of the finals next year.