Silva saves Spain’s blushes; Gerrard rescues England

An another friendly,England bounced back from the nadir of their dismal World Cup campaign with a 2-1 victory over Hungary in a friendly on Wednesday which suggested the future might not be as bleak as it seemed for Fabio Capello’s men. Two superb goals from Steven Gerrard in the second half turned the game England’s way after Hungary scored a controversial goal.

Spain coach Vicente del Bosque praised his side’s attitude in the friendly,with players having little practice since their 1-0 World Cup final win over Netherlands in Johannesburg on July 11.

We,who turned up with few training sessions,have behaved extraordinarily. It’s just another match but it has big symbolic significance because we came here almost without preparation,Del Bosque said.

Some of the (team) members only had yesterday’s practice,he told the post-match news conference.

We must give the players 10 (out of 10),they made no excuses for playing the minutes they were asked to.

Hernandez put Mexico ahead when he chased a ball into space,faced goalkeeper Iker Casillas,and with the Spain captain expecting a shot across his body Hernandez slotted the ball inside the near post.

Mexico have a team of quality with young players who were a threat in attack throughout the 90 minutes,Del Bosque said.

SILVA BULLET

The Mexicans showed greater urgency than Spain and were worth their lead but the arrival of Xavi just past the hour injected some bite into the Spanish attack.

Playing their trademark short passing game at near walking pace in the first half,Spain had come closest when a venomous shot from Santi Cazorla rattled Guillermo Ochoa’s crossbar.

Casillas had to make a diving save from midfielder Rafael Marquez before ceding his place to Victor Valdes in the second half.

Substitute Pedro,who came on in the 72nd minute,brought a good save from Mexico’s substitute keeper Jesus Corona when he looked set to equalise three minutes from time.

Silva,however,made no mistake two minutes into added time when he ran on to a fine through ball from Xavi to shoot past the diving Corona.

Spain became the latest world champions not to win their first match after lifting the FIFA trophy. Brazil in 1994 were the last team to win a match immediately after their World Cup success.

Before kickoff,Casillas paraded the World Cup to applause from the 100,000 crowd in the Azteca.

He was handed a trophy at the end of the match in recognition of the Spanish team’s visit,which is part of Mexico’s Bicentennial celebrations.

Gerrard rescues England

London: Two superb goals from skipper Steven Gerrard in three minutes in the second half turned the game England’s way after Hungary scored a controversial goal which did not appear to have crossed the line.

Gerrard celebrated his first goal from a stunning 30-metre drive with the kind of joy that usually accompanies a cup final winner,such was the release of tension it brought — not just for what happened on the night,but all of the frustration pent up since the World Cup.

His second goal came after he danced his way round the Hungarian defenders before firing home with his right foot.

England had an indifferent first half which began with the team being booed by the home fans following their World Cup exit in the last 16 against Germany.

However,the impressively large crowd of over 72,000 were solidly behind them as they finished with flair,pace and power only to be denied a more convincing win by the acrobatics of Hungary goalkeeper Gabor Kiraly.

NEW FACES

Although no-one will get carried away by a victory over a team ranked 62nd in the world by FIFA,the fact Capello blooded four new caps in the second half: Michael Dawson,Kieran Gibbs,Bobby Zamora and Jack Wilshere gave a refreshing feel to the evening which ended on a high,boosting the players confidence before they start their Euro 2012 qualifiers next month.

Capello,who for once did not strut around his technical area all match but sat observing in his dugout,said: I enjoyed that. They (Hungary) were really compact so it was difficult. It was important to play here at Wembley. We found new players,young players.

The fans were really good. Thank you. I was surprised. We had to win for these fans. They were fantastic.

However,for the second England game running,there was a controversial goal which will fuel the debate on goalline technology following Hungary taking the lead in the 62nd minute.

A shot from Zoltan Gera deflected off Phil Jagielka and appeared to have been cleared off the line by Dawson before French linesman Fredji Harchay signalled a goal.

England goalkeeper Joe Hart said: It was not a goal as far as I was concerned,I heard a few groans when the replay was being shown.

England had a goal ruled out against Germany when the ball did cross the line,but ultimately Wednesday’s strike did not matter unduly as they stormed back to win.

Hart added: The result means the world. Steve’s celebration says it all. We came here to do a job and we did it. The crowd’s reception was very fair. We could have turned up to an empty stadium – some voiced their opinion which is fair enough.

Capello employed a new system in the first half with Wayne Rooney playing as a lone striker but reverted to a more orthodox approach in the second half which the players seemed more at ease with.

Zamora went close to a debut goal while Adam Johnson should have scored on his full debut after a substitute appearance before the finals,early on.

On a night of new beginnings with a view to the future Capello said before the match that former skipper David Beckham,now 35,was now probably too old to play for England again.