Switzerland v England: Focus on Jermain Defoe-Wayne Rooney Link-up
Posted Tuesday, September 07, 2010 by sportinglife.aol.co.uk
EURO 2012 QUALIFIER: ST JAKOB-PARK, BASEL, TUESDAY SEPTEMBER 7, 2010. KICK-OFF: 1945
It would not be an England game if it there wasn't a backdrop of potential distractions and, having gone into last week's Bulgaria meeting with pressure growing on coach Fabio Capello, the national team will now face Switzerland 48 hours after allegations about Wayne Rooney's private life appeared in sunday newspapers.
Rooney, who made a welcome return to form against Bulgaria, has travelled to Basel with the rest of the squad and will play unless Capello believes the adverse publicity is weighing too heavily on the Manchester United striker.
It all adds up to yet more concerns for a team still battling to restore its pride and reputation after the World Cup and the fear inevitably is that performances on the pitch will suffer.
It shouldn't have been this way. While the overall display against Bulgaria was good rather than excellent, a four-goal victory is always welcome at international level and there were enough commendable individual performances – most notably Jermain Defoe's hat-trick – to suggest progress was being made.
It remains to be seen whether that progress can be maintained in Switzerland, but this game was always likely to be England's toughest test in the qualifying group, no matter what the circumstances surrounding Capello and his squad.
Like Capello, Swiss coach Ottmar Hitzfeld has also been placed under pressure following his side's performances in South Africa at the group stage and a victory over England can only strengthen his position.
Form Guide: Capello's side have recorded successive wins since they hit rock bottom in South Africa this summer but such was the scale of the World Cup failure, they remain a fragile unit and are one defeat away from being written off as no-hopers. The display against Bulgaria was much more convincing than the victory over Hungary, and the tactic of playing Rooney in a deeper role transformed England as an attacking force
Key Match-up: Stephane Grichting v Jermain Defoe: All eyes will be on Rooney, but Defoe delivered an outstanding display of finishing to ensure England avoided a slip-up against Bulgaria. The Tottenham player recovered from a groin problem in the build-up to these internationals, but looked fresh and sharp last Friday and his pace and mobility will test the uncompromising Grichting who plays his club football with Auxerre.
Odds: Switzerland 10/3, England 5/6, Draw 5/2
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