England 0-0 USA – World Cup 2022: Three Lions stumble to nervous draw in Qatar

No rest for the timid.

The hope that England could qualify for the round of 16, win the group with a game to spare, and allow players a breather before the knock-out round commenced, evaporated north of Doha last night with a performance as lame as Monday’s win over Iran was boldly impressive.

Here, England reverted to this year’s type. They were slow, cautious and made to look ordinary but a United States team that was bright and energised but, again, failed to win. Gregg Berhalter’s team had the best chances and the best of the game but have scored just once in two matches and will go out if they fail to beat Iran next week. England remain in charge of the group but are vulnerable to defeat in a final match with Wales in which it is feared form could go out of the window, trumped by passion and emotion.

Lose and, if the other game has a winner, England are out. It would still count as a huge shock – Wales have been poor in this tournament so far – but the confidence that followed England’s opener drained from those invested in Gareth Southgate’s team as it laboured to gain a foothold in this match. Bright starts in each half soon evaporated and when Southgate made his first changes after 69 minutes, one of them was to introduce Jordan Henderson for Jude Bellingham in the heart of midfield. The young man, a star of the group opener, was labouring here and his coach clearly wanted the Liverpool captain’s experience to make sure the damage was limited to two points dropped, not three. Jack Grealish came on for Raheem Sterling and immediately looked livelier on the flank, but there is no escaping this was a dreadfully below par performance, a slap in the face after the promise of game one.

With the possible exception of Harry Maguire and John Stones – Maguire has now repelled with more headers than any player in the tournament – nobody looked entirely comfortable. Even goalkeeper Jordan Pickford flapped at a second-half corner from Christian Pulisic.

Southgate will see silver linings, as managers do, and one was certainly the steadfast displays of the centre-backs, who prevented too many fears that England would concede. Yet was this the work of potential champions, given what we have seen of France, Spain and Brazil. No, it was not. It was a sobering experience, and the idea that England could cost into the last 16, rested, fresh and buoyant, a fanciful one.

The modern United States may still be the underdogs against the best sides in Europe but that understates their abilities. They’re awkward. Hard running, high pressing, no little danger. The days when the best American players could only get a game at Coventry, or Luton, have long since passed. These days, they are as likely to play in the Champions League with Chelsea, or Borussia Dortmund, and last night it showed. England started well, dominated the early exchanges, but after 15 minutes began to lose the midfield and didn’t truly get it back for the rest of the half.

Gregg Berhalter’s side hit the bar, forced the odd save from Jordan Pickford and had good chances that missed the target. On points, they were the better team. England only came back into it in the last of the 45 minutes, plus injury time. It was a sobering experience after the six-goal euphoria of the win over Iran, but the United States are a better side no matter what the form line of the two non-European teams in Group B suggests. Whereas Iran sat back, the States got on the front foot, allowing England no time on the ball and threatening down then flanks. It looked promising after nine minutes when Jude Bellingham slipped a pass through to Bukayo Saka, who cut the ball back to Harry Kane. Walker Zimmerman – in the minority of American players forging a career in Major League Soccer with Nashville SC – did well to block, when England’s captain looked poised to score his first goal of the tournament.

And that was it, for around 36 minutes, until a fabulous run by Luke Shaw out in Saka who shot over from close range. A minute later, Mason Mount had a shot tipped round by Matt Turner in America’s goal. Between those episodes it was USA all the way.

As crummy sports chants go, one of America’s favourites – the win song – ranks among the worst. ‘We believe that we will win,’ chorus the fans. Really, and who the hell are you exactly. It’s vague, generic, unspecific and to English ears inspired little bar derision. The team, however, was made of sterner stuff.

The supporters may espouse chuckle-headed optimism but the players tried to do something concrete about it. From the 17th minute, when Haji Wright got in front of Harry Maguire and headed just wide, to the 43 rd when an attempted header from Christian Pulisic was misjudged, came off his shoulder but still skirted Pickford’s goal, the USA were a threat. They had dominated Wales in their first group game and seized the game here, too. Players who looked so assured against Iran, like Bellingham and Declan Rice, were stretched. Others, like Kieran Trippier, were diving in, anxiously, to extinguish fires. In the 25th minute, a lovely cross from the right by Timothy Weah was met on the half volley by Weston McKennie, of Juventus. From the upper tiers the pitch looked lush but some of the technical failings suggested it had its own challenges and McKennie got under the ball and sent it soaring over the bar.

Just three minutes later a shot by Yunus Musah – the one that got away, having represented England at age group level for four years while playing his football at Arsenal – had the sting removed from it by Rice and proved an easy collect for Pickford. The next attack brought more of a challenge, Pickford nowhere as a left foot shot from Pulisic ricocheted off the bar. England were pushed ever deeper into their own half.

The excellent Sergino Dest of AC Milan then cut inside from the right flank, only for his shot to be deflected over and, while England started the second-half better, a wonderful tackle by Leeds’ Tyler Adams on Saka, encapsulated the different in energy levels between the teams, England once again reverting to a ponderousness when challenged. Did Gareth Southgate’s team believe that they could win. They need to start playing like it, then.

 

 

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