On November 21st, the day of the game, all the England fans were waiting at home or in the bar to watch the game that was about to start.
According to the news leaked before the game, David Beckham was indeed placed in McClaren's starting list. It seemed that in the face of such an important game, he finally decided to trust the veteran's experience for once.
Twain also waited in front of the television to watch the game. He was not there to cheer for England and McClaren. He was purely there to observe Beckham's form and performance.
In the Croatian squad, the striker, Eduardo da Silva, who currently played for Arsenal, was the most watched. Before the game, the English media had spent a lot of time praising his ability, looking back on his half-season at Arsenal, calling it "flawless". In fact, it was not "flawless," but it was "somewhat successful." He had scored five goals in less than half a season, which was considered very good considering that this was his first season. He would be the most threatening player for England in the game.
There was another change in the list announced before the game. Robinson, who had been the England team's main goalkeeper, was abandoned for this game, and Carson, who had performed well in the friendly against Austria, was the starter. It seemed that McClaren also did not trust Robinson. Otherwise, it would be a risky move to replace the main goalkeeper who had been used in such an important game.
As Owen and Rooney were injured, Crouch was the only striker in the starting lineup for this game. It was exactly the same as Wenger's previous analysis — Wenger thought McClaren would play 4-5-1 because England was currently short of strikers.
The five players in the midfield were Lampard, Gerrard, Beckham, Joe Cole, and Barry. In the rear defensive line, due to Rio Ferdinand's suspension and Terry's injury, they could not play. The lineup was Richards from Manchester City as the right back, Campbell and Lescott as the center backs, and Wayne Bridge as the left back.
Before the game, the English media touted Croatia with all their might. The subtext was that they hoped Croatia would let England go for the sake of advancing ahead of time. There was no need to fight them head-on …
The Croatian manager did not express any views on this issue. He cleverly bypassed the reporters who asked him. No one knew if he was going to let the team go all out, or if he was really just putting on an act and waiting for the England team to go all out …
Don't think that European football is much cleaner than China's football. Match fixing, betting, teamwork, throwing the match, cheating … These are all the dark sides of football in Europe. It was just that they did it better than China. Most people wouldn't be able to tell if they didn't look carefully. Even if they did, there was no evidence.
For example, the English would certainly hope that Croatia would throw the game. Although this would harm Russia's interests and violate the spirit of fair play, between harming Russia's interests and harming England's interests, which would England choose? Even a fool will not choose to satisfy Russia. This was because not everyone was a saint who was above the mortal world and did not have seven emotions and six desires. Fanaticism prevails in such matters as those concerning the nation and the people.
But the Englishmen were smart. They did not say it directly. They just gave Croatia a particularly high-sounding reason to throw the game — "They advance in advance. They don't need to fight hard for a game that doesn't matter to them. If they send out their key players or cause their main players to get a red card and be banned, then it would not be worth it."
The reason was good, reasonable, and justified. If Croatia really sent out a substitute lineup and did not work hard to let the English win, the Russians would be dissatisfied and appeal. If there was no conclusive evidence, the matter would be left unsettled.
But the question was … Would the Croatians play according to the script written by the English?
※ ※ ※
Eight minutes into the game, a boulder fell from the mountain that was pressing on all the English people's heads.
After Srna, the supporting full-back who had made Tang En hesitate to bring in this summer, broke through from the flank and Kranjča followed up with a powerful shot from 25 yards on the left side. The starting goalkeeper, Carson, who had squeezed out Robinson in the game and had high hopes for McClaren, made a major mistake in the face of this shot — he pounced on the ball and let it go!
The football slowly rolled from under him to the goal, while Carson was still lying on the ground, somewhat unable to recover.
"Oh, God …" The commentator, John Motson, groaned in pain. "Is he too nervous, or … this is really a stupid mistake!"
The Croatians were celebrating the goal, but the new Wembley Stadium was dead silent. No one expected to concede a goal just eight minutes into the game.
Before the game, everyone was generally optimistic that England could take advantage of the home advantage to defeat Croatia, so most fans were quite optimistic.
Tang En straightened his back on the sofa. Due to Croatia's active performance, he suddenly felt that he was full of expectations for the game … It seemed that the Croatians did not intend to play according to the script written for them by the English …
The English people's nightmare was not over. Just six minutes after the goal, in the 14th minute. Eduardo da Silva dribbled the ball to the edge of the penalty area. He attracted England's two center backs, Campbell and Lescott, to follow up. At that moment, he passed the ball straight to Oric in front of him.
Campbell raised his hand to signal that the other side was offside and did not chase back. But the assistant referee did not say anything, and Campbell realized that Bridge was still lagging behind …
Oric successfully reversed the offside position. He easily bypassed the attacking Carson and then hit the empty goal.
In just six minutes, Croatia scored two goals in a row.
2: 0!!
Croatia did not intend to throw the game at all. Their active performance was like a basin of cold water, falling from the sky and extinguishing the fire of hope among the English fans.
Wembley Stadium was silent, and so was the commentator, Motson. The camera panned to McClaren, who stood on the sidelines to direct the game. The poor man looked at the field in a slight daze, as if he still could not figure out what was going on. He still had a bottle of water in his hand. He had been drinking water on the sidelines since Croatia scored the first goal. Anyway, as long as the television camera panned to him after a while, he must be drinking water. His face was ruddy and full of sweat, not because he was in good spirits, but because he was completely tormented by nervousness.
After a long time, Motson's voice finally rang out again, "It's been less than 20 minutes since the start of the game and we have conceded two goals in a row … Is Campbell old? Lescott too young? These are not reasons. Where is our midfield defense? What is the most important barrier in front of the rear defensive line? Gareth Barry works very hard. He is an all-around midfielder. Gerrard and Lampard are also all-around midfielders … But what we need is a dedicated defensive midfielder! Barry alone can't stop Croatia's omnipresent attack. They have too many points of attack! "
Motson was vaguely reminding the television audience that there was a person who was very helpful to this situation sitting in front of the television at home watching the game.
Twain did not see it that way. As he watched the game, he commentated for Shania next to him, acting as a guest commentator. He picked up the skills he once had as a guest commentator for the BBC World Cup.
"Motson is wrong. What he said can only be used before conceding the goal. Now that England is two goals behind, it makes no sense to talk about the midfield barrier. McClaren is now in trouble — to press up and bombard indiscriminately, or to strengthen the defense in order not to continue to concede the goal? It's a difficult choice, Shania. And this dilemma is the easiest for things to go wrong if he doesn't choose either answer … So he must make a decision as soon as possible. "
Twain said with a grin. He knew very well how McClaren felt, because his opponent and he had experienced it himself. When you desperately needed a goal, but the opponent scored a counter-goal. The next step was to stabilize the defense to prevent continuing to concede the goal, or to go all out and attack the opponent?
McClaren did not seem to choose his answer. England appeared a little "anarchic" on the field. The players wanted to play alone when they got the ball. There was no cooperation to speak of. Even if there was cooperation, it was very impatient. They always lost the ball themselves.
The loyal England fans in the stands were still singing, but they could not hide their boos at McClaren.
Motson shook his head vigorously. "How can we expect a miracle with such offensive quality?"
Gerrard and Lampard's positions and roles on the field completely overlapped, each playing their own game. Beckham was limited to the right flank and lacked enough support. Other than passing from the top, he basically could not play a role once he was blocked. What about Joe Cole on the left? His skills were excellent, but the lack of speed made his breakthrough completely flashy. Once the Croatians surrounded him, the ball would be lost. What about Barry? He was placed behind the German duo. It was said that he would defend and take care of the offense, but in fact, his position was very awkward.
His best performance in the national team was against Israel. At that time, Lampard and Hargreaves were absent due to injuries, Carrick was abandoned by McClaren, and Gerrard could only play as a hermit, clenching his teeth and insisting on playing. In that situation, Barry played the same state as he did at Aston Villa. It turned out that it was not because he played exceptionally, but because the team's midfield personnel configuration was just right for him to play.
One of the German duo was missing, and Gerrard was injured and not in good form. Barry could be the core after he moved to the middle. His passes created five offensive opportunities for England in exchange for a goal. In that game, he was used as the core of the midfield organization, which was also able to fully play the characteristics of his all-round player.
But now, Gerrard and Lampard were not injured or sick. McClaren let them be the core, and Barry could only be a foil. Such a position and role were very awkward for Barry. He was a little at a loss and could not find his position. Naturally, he did not know how to play the best.
The entire lineup was like a freak. A lot of powerful star players were stuffed into the lineup, but when combined, they could not play the role they should. One plus one plus one plus one did not equal or exceed five. Instead, it was less than five.
The first half passed in Croatia's counterattack and England's blind mistakes.
Twain said to Shania next to him, "If I were McClaren, I would ask all the players to attack at halftime. Don't think about defense. Try to score a goal within the opening ten minutes so that there is hope to win in the second half. Otherwise … just wait to die. "
Shania curled her lips. "You're just talking so logically here. Why don't you go and coach the England team?"
Twain smiled. "I'm not going. I wrote a newspaper column to scold the national team manager and criticize his tactics. It doesn't mean I have to sit there and be scolded. That position is not meant for a human. "
※ ※ ※
After the start of the second half, as Twain said, England stepped up their offense. And it was not a gradual increase. It was an offensive like a tide all at once, aggressively pressing toward the Croatian team's hinterland. It was as if they did not have to defend at all. McClaren replaced Barry, who had a mediocre performance in the first half, with the striker Defoe to strengthen the forward line and increase the support for Crouch.
Croatia expected England to counterattack in the second half, and they quickly made their own defensive countermeasures in response to this situation.
Their defense against England's offense was simple. They retreated to the middle and let England pass from the flank. When they came in, they were cleared out. In the dense penalty area, it was not easy to fight for a header shot. Even a big man like Crouch, who was more than two meters tall, had little chance in the face of two defenders.
What changed the direction of the game was often not an unexpected personnel adjustment or a brilliant tactical arrangement, but a pure accident …
Joe Cole sent a pass into the penalty area and Defoe fell in the penalty area. The referee thought that the Croatian player, Simunić, had fouled and awarded a penalty. Despite the protests of the Croatian players, the referee had no intention of changing the decision. The penalty reinvigorated the atmosphere at the scene, and the Wembley fans sang songs of encouragement for the players.
Poor McClaren. When the broadcast gave him another shot, the water bottle in his hand was finally thrown away. Twain maliciously wondered whether he spent more time in the toilet during the halftime interval or spent more time in the locker room explaining tactics to the players …
Lampard stepped up to take the penalty. His low shot deceived the goalkeeper, and the football flew into the bottom left corner of the goal. England pulled a goal back! It was the 56th minute, just one minute after the start of the second half, which Twain said would be ten minutes later.
England's morale was boosted after they pulled a goal back, while Croatia looked a little listless. Things were developing in the direction that the English wanted — the Croatians scored two goals to shut the Russians' mouths, and then when they saw England's strong counterattack, they took advantage of the situation to do them a favor. In the end, England and Croatia tied at 2: 2. Everyone shook hands and advanced hand in hand.
But then Bridge, who made an offside mistake in the first half, cleared the siege and hit the crossbar, almost resulting in an own goal, which made all the English people's hearts jump to their throats. Next, Srna passed a straight pass, and it was Bridge's mistake to clear the siege and help the opponent stop the ball. Fortunately, Orić was a little unprepared for this frequent gift-giving opponent. His hasty shot from the edge of the penalty area was saved by Carson.
Twain shook his head and snorted. "Leighton Baines is better than Bridge. Unfortunately, McClaren, you don't think much of him. You don't think much of him."
In the 65th minute, David Beckham, who had been placed high hopes on before the game and expected to perform a miracle, finally shone. He sent the football to Crouch's side with a precise pass from the flank. The tall man stopped the ball with his chest and then volleyed directly into the air to equalize the score for England!
Wembley Stadium erupted with a huge energy at that moment, and the cheers of the fans were deafening even to Twain, who was sitting in front of the television.
"Crouch! Beckham! David Beckham, he's saved England again! This pass is so accurate that Crouch only needs to jump lightly to stop the ball. He doesn't need to get rid of the defenders at all, because David's pass makes the opponent's defenders unable to grab it! "Motson shouted excitedly. "A draw! The situation is in our favor! "
On the other side, there was still no news of a goal in the game between Russia and Andorra, so Motson said so. If Russia was also forced to a draw by Andorra in the end, England would have no pressure at all — even if they lost the game, they would still advance.
Beckham, who assisted his teammate to score, was more excited than Crouch, who scored the goal. After hugging his teammates to celebrate, he stepped back and clenched his fists to pound the Three Lions logo on his chest, which was the badge of the English Football Association.
Now that he was in the England national team again, the number behind him was no longer the glorious number 7. The number 7 was Barry's, and he could only wear the number 17. Even at Nottingham Forest, he could not wear the number 7 and 23. For a while, everyone thought he had completely sunk and could not return to the past. But every time people thought so, Beckham would use his own actions to prove how wrong they were.
In the 1998 World Cup, he was sent off to retaliate against Simeone and became the "public enemy" of the whole United Kingdom. Everyone thought his career was over. But in the first game of the 98-99 season, Beckham announced his return with a goal. That season, he helped Manchester United win the great Treble; in the 2000 European Championship, England was eliminated from the group stage, and he was in the same slump as England. But in the 2001 World Cup qualifiers, his free kick against Greece instantly turned him from a man to a god; in the 2004 European Championship, he missed a penalty kick, which led to the team's elimination by Portugal. For a time, countless people laughed at him, and this laughter continued until the World Cup in Germany. In the eyes of those people, England's stabilizing force today was Lampard, Gerrard, and Rooney. But in Germany, who almost single-handedly brought England into the top 16, and relied on his own free kick to help the team into the top eight? It was David Beckham. Who wore the captain's armband and ran tirelessly under the hot sun at the age of 30 until he vomited? It was David Beckham. After the World Cup, he was excluded from the national team and did not have a good time at Real Madrid. He could not even get on the substitute list. Everyone thought he was done for this time and could only go to the United States to make money, right? No, Beckham moved Capello with his amazing professional performance and stable form, as well as his never giving up fighting spirit. He returned to Real Madrid's main lineup and helped the team win their first league title in four years. He also announced his return to the English Premier League and joined the new European champion, Nottingham Forest. He was determined to make a comeback.
Tang En looked at the television screen and the familiar twisted face … He had been gloating that England was going to be eliminated, but now he could not be happy.
He was conflicted. Because he did not want McClaren to stay in the manager's position, and he did not want to see Beckham's national team career end so miserably — if he did not qualify for the UEFA European Championship final, would Beckham still have the conditions to look forward to the World Cup three years later?
Without his return in the first half of the year, McClaren's team would not even have the chance to face Croatia and Russia at Wembley for the last place to advance.
But was this more cruel? Which would make people feel better, falling before the finish line or quitting before the game?
For the rest of the game, Tang En was silent and did not explain the game to Shania. Shania thought it was a little strange. She glanced at the serious-looking Tang En and did not ask.
Beckham worked harder and harder, or rather, the England players worked harder, because Croatia was fighting back. It seemed that the Croatians did not accept the English's wishful thinking. They were not willing to shake hands with their opponents here.
Beckham began to frequently retreat and move to the middle to help defend. His offensive threat was weakened. After all, he was old and not as good at running as when he was young. Sometimes he went up and could not come back, and sometimes he could not go up. In the 74th minute, McClaren made a controversial substitution after the game. He replaced Beckham with Wright Phillips.
When Beckham came off the field, the fans stood up and applauded him, thanking him for what he had done for the team.
It could be seen that McClaren did not want to defend until the end of the game. He brought on Wright Phillips, who was more physically strong and had dribbling skills to break through, in the hope of continuing to put pressure on Croatia and slightly weaken their counterattack momentum.
His idea was good, but he ignored one point. Sometimes relying on offense to suppress defense could backfire because it was a double-edged sword …
Wright Phillips might be more active than Beckham in offense, but his contribution to defense was definitely not as good as the more responsible Beckham.
In the 81st minute, Wembley Stadium fell into a minute of silence after Croatia's substitute Petrich scored from 25 yards on the left flank to take the lead again.
Tang En did not clench his fists and cheer for Croatia's goal this time. He just sat on the sofa and sighed.
It was a predestined result, but for David, it was too cruel.
At the same time, Russia also scored. The score of the game between Russia and Andorra was displayed at the bottom of the screen — 0: 1. Andorra, playing at home, was behind.
The news made things worse for everyone in England and they could only continue to be silent.
Just after Croatia's goal, McClaren replaced Joe Cole with Darren Bent and continued to strengthen the attack. He used up all three substitutions and was going to go all out.
The England team turned out in full force, wanting to equalize the score at the end and create a miracle. But what made it very difficult for them was that Croatia did not retreat completely just because they were ahead and let England besiege them. On the contrary, they still persisted in counterattacking and attacking. As long as there was a chance, they would resolutely press up and create trouble for England's rear defensive line, forcing England to retreat and defend.
This was very much like Tang En's approach. No matter how many goals he was ahead, he would not give up the idea and opportunity to fight back. It was to not let the other side have the conditions to press up and attack with all their might and create a miracle.
When the referee blew the whistle to end the game, the score was fixed at 2: 3.
Beckham, who had not changed out of his jersey, stood on the field. The television gave a long shot of his back, with the noisy stands in the background and the eye-catching and dazzling big screen above his head.
Beckham, wearing the number 17 jersey, looked up at the score on the screen:
England 2: 3 Croatia.
No one could see the expression on his face. He stood there alone for a long time. Behind him were his dejected teammates and the cheering Croatians, and in front of him was an empty field and an empty goal.
Under this picture, Motson sighed and said, "England is out. The summer of 2008, announced early … the end. "
Twain turned off the television. He did not want to see Beckham's back, nor did he want to listen to McClaren's speech at the post-match press conference.
Shania looked at him strangely.
"I'm going to bed." He said and turned to go upstairs. "Good night, Shania."
"Good night, Uncle Tony." Shania watched his back disappear at the top of the stairs, and then she turned her head to look at the quartz clock on the wall.
It was not even ten o 'clock.
She turned back to turn on the television, which happened to be doing a post-match interview. Beckham stood in front of the camera, the front of his jersey soaked with sweat and sticking to his body.
He said wearily, "Being out of the UEFA European Championship qualifiers is not the end of the world. England has so many young and good players. I believe we will have a good future at the World Cup in South Africa …"
"Being out of the UEFA European Championship qualifiers, can you rest assured to play for Nottingham Forest?" A reporter asked vaguely.
Beckham shook his head and said, "I will not announce my withdrawal from the England team. As I said before, I am ready to play for the England team at any time, unless the England team no longer needs me. "
After saying this, Beckham refused to answer any other questions and walked out of the interview area with his head down.
Shania saw McClaren appear on the screen. She also turned off the television and went upstairs to rest.
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