England face set-piece nightmare

THERE is no question that England leaked two entirely avoidable goals against Sweden the other night. But I don't think it is a contradiction to maintain that they still possess one of the more solid backlines at the World Cup.

Sven Goran Eriksson's men will go into their second round tie against Ecuador with what is a good defensive unit in general play. As the Swedes showed, it is in set pieces that they fall down. But that is because they do not deal with these as a unit.

At free-kicks, corners and throw-ins, two factors are key: concentration and set-up. Now Eriksson may claim that his men do not go zonal at set pieces but here I believe he is referring to how they order themselves for corners.

At free kicks, you can clearly see five or six England players strung across the box, holding the line. That can be a recipe for problems.

With no-one touch tight, that is to say wrapping themselves around opponents as you would see Spanish, Italian or Argentinian defenders do, there is space for forwards to break in between the line. When that happens, sometimes defenders are unsure whether it is their call to track the run.

I don't go a bundle on zonal marking and believe it is the reason Hearts lose the majority of their goals from set pieces. When I was at Tynecastle, I wanted the players to go man-to-man but they were adamant that wasn't for them and, having come in two thirds of the way through the season, I didn't feel I could impose my way.

But it is England's rigidity throughout their ranks, not just when they are screening the ball, that is the root of their failure to spark in Germany. Their banks of four in defence and midfield may allow them to restrict space for opponents when they squeeze up in open play. But it leaves them susceptible to the ball over the top and restricts their mobility going forward. The real test for England will be when they go a goal behind. That is when their organisation and discipline won't be enough to close out a game. I don't think they need have many worries on that score against Ecuador.

Certainly, the South Americans play a bustling, twin strike force in Agustin Delgado and Edwin Tenorio, and are adept at delivering crosses from deep. For some, it then follows that goalkeeper Paul Robinson and centre-back pairing John Terry and Rio Ferdinand could find themselves facing the sort of pressure they buckled under against Sweden.

Flip that argument on its head, though, and you could say that players schooled in a British up-and-at-them approach should relish confronting such an aggressive, direct, similar style. Robinson has been heavily criticised for the other night, but he has done all right, while Terry and Ferdinand complement each other well. Ferdinand likes to read and anticipate. That doesn't make him the best set-piece defender, because for them you cannot use those abilities. But making the play, rather than breaking it up, is where England's greater concerns should lie.

Talk of Eriksson switching to a 4-1-4-1 formation isn't surprising. Steven Gerrard and Frank Lampard have to be given licence to roam. So too must David Beckham. The England captain now appears damned by sections of the media and public down south. Yet, the wide-right role he has been detailed simply doesn't allow him to influence proceedings in the manner demanded of him.

How many dominant right-wing skippers have there been in the history of the international game? Beckham is starved of service in being stuck out on the flank. It is no coincidence that Luis Figo is proving a more vital cog in Portugal's play now that he is operating in a role that allows him to drift into central areas.

As it stands, Beckham's only means to make a mark on games are dead-ball situations or right wing delivery. From a free kick, he won his country their opening game against Paraguay, and effectively also made the difference when dropping the ball on the head of Peter Crouch from a cross to end Trinidad and Tobago's resistance. He needs to have the opportunity to channel play through the middle.

Without him doing so, I believe England's World Cup is going nowhere. I always said they would reach the last eight. With either Portugal or Holland as opponents, I cannot see them progressing to the semi-finals. Mind you, Greece proved in the last major finals that efficiency, discipline and organisation can take a team all the way.

Taken from the Scotsman