England started commandingly and Gerrard’s flexible positioning reaped early reward: Wayne Rooney brought the ball down 30 yards from goal under pressure from the Belarus defence; Gerrard cut inside to unleash a powerful measured shot into the corner of the goal. England lost coordination and purpose after this goal and allowed Belarus significant periods of possession for the remainder of the half. A goal had seemed likely before they eventually scored through Sitko after an impressive 23-pass move.
After the break Fabio Capello tweaked the formation somewhat with Gerrard positioned centrally behind Emile Heskey, with Rooney now the nominal left-sided presence. The team structure in this half perhaps bore closer resemblance to 4-2-3-1. Whatever it was it certainly worked! England contained Belarus with apparent ease in the second half and attained greater attacking freedom. Five minutes after the break, a strong challenge by Wayne Bridge on the left, followed by his quick throw-in, set Heskey on a run down the wing. Heskey’s cross found Rooney on the edge of the six-yard box and he finished deftly. Fifteen minutes from time, Gerrard and Rooney linked up well; the former played through a neat ball and Rooney finished impressively after rounding a defender. Gerrard could have extended the lead further but he hit the post after rounding Zhevnov the Belarusian keeper.
Despite the first-half sluggishness England won fairly comfortably and were impressive in the second period. The goals were well taken and Belarus, who had dominated much of the first-half, were unable to contrive an attack of note. Capello seems to be doing something right and his interventions during fixtures tend to have a positive impact. The switch in the second period shackled Belarus with Gerrard impeding nascent Belarusian attacks from his advanced central role.
Capello recognizes that international sides require two deep-lying central midfielders, but under 4-4-2 this can leave a gap between the midfield and forwards, offering the opposition a surfeit of space to build attacks. Frank Lampard and Gareth Barry both sat quite deep in their central midfield positions throughout this game, and were more commanding during the second-period with Gerrard more fixedly infield. Rooney filled the gap more on the left in the second-half but was still free to take up central positions when England had possession.
8 Wayne Rooney: Two well-taken goals and close to his international best.
7 Frank Lampard: A highly commanding display bolstering the midfield; his decision-making was always sound.
7 Steven Gerrard: Quiet for periods but an excellent goal and tidy assist should boost his confidence.
7 Emile Heskey: Led the line well and caused the Belarus defence problems.
7 Rio Ferdinand: England’s most commanding defender.
7 Wayne Bridge: Provided the ‘second assist’ for two of England’s goals and performed well considering he was on his own on the left for significant periods.6 Matthew Upson: Secure enough and untroubled in the second period.
6 Wes Brown: Did well without much support on the right, although Sitko’s pace unsettled him occasionally in the first-half.
6 Gareth Barry: Plugged a gap without exerting much discernible influence.
6 David James: Sound enough when called upon; his most convincing display in the qualifiers thus far.5 Theo Walcott: Only the odd glimmer in attack and weak defensively. He has time now to find his form again.