|
 |   |
|
EVENTS Fantasy Central Inside Game Multimedia Central Statitudes Your Turn Message Boards Email Newsletters Golf Guide Cities Work in Sports
CNNSI.com GROUP
COMMERCE |  |
England earns congrats
Posted: Sunday June 18, 2000 08:49 AM
Kevin Keegan was in the team the last time England won a European Championship finals match abroad 20 years ago. The England manager was a youngster dreaming of the big time when his country last beat Germany in a competitive game 34 years ago. On Saturday night in Belgium, Keegan was urging his troops on from the sidelines as they brought both barren spells to an end in dogged -- if not attractive -- fashion with a 1-nil win over the defending champions in the most-hyped encounter of Euro 2000. Not that England was after style marks. This was an occasion when the victory counted for everything -- the manner of victory mattered little. After surrendering a two-goal lead to lose their opening Group A game to Portugal, Keegan and his team knew another defeat would eliminate them from the championship. With history weighing against them where playing the Germans was concerned, England simply had to shake that tiresome ol' monkey off their back. In 1970, Germany knocked England out of the World Cup at the quarterfinal stage, having trailed 2-nil. In the 1990 World Cup semis, the Germans won on penalties en route to the title. And in 1996, on English soil no less, they again silenced the roar of the three lions with a 6-5 penalty triumph in the semis of the European Championship. Again Germany won the title. In fact, the Germans have won two World Cups and three European Championships since the English won their one and only major title. Blocking all that out and trying to battle to a first win over the old enemy since that 1966 World Cup final was a major task in itself for the English players. For the first 35 minutes or so, it appeared they couldn't get over the hump. A very ordinary German side controlled play against an even more ordinary England team. But Michael Owen's header, saved onto the post by Oliver Kahn, sparked life into the English. Suddenly there was more purpose and direction.
They carried that forward from the end of the first half to the start of the second, when often-maligned captain Alan Shearer headed home a David Beckham free kick. It was all England needed. Well, perhaps not quite all. They also needed some sterling defensive work and a couple of misses from Mehmet Scholl and Carsten Jancker, the second of which was almost unforgivable. Germany had more shots on target and more efforts on goal overall. But for once, England rode their good fortune to victory. Often in past encounters, the Germans have escaped with the all-important win, having been second-best overall. The deflected goal from a free kick in 1990 and the golden goal escape (Darren Anderton hitting the woodwork, Paul Gascoigne just failing to reach the ball with the goal yawning) in extra time in 1996 spring to mind. A group of English fans, mindless louts one and all, brought disgrace on the country once again in Brussels on Friday night and before the game in Charleroi on Saturday afternoon. Drinking and fighting is all an amoeba-like mind can comprehend, I suspect.
But many more fans were in fabulous voice and spirits during the game, turning it into a home fixture for England. They are to be applauded, every bit as much as the thugs should be condemned. Keegan and his boys should gain a few plaudits too. This wasn't pretty. England was still far from impressive and sure as heck won't win the European title. But they were brave and feisty and determined and driven. And they did beat Germany. After waiting 34 years for that in a major tournament, that's all they'll care about right now. Phil Jones is co-host of World Sport, the international sports show that airs live on CNN/Sports Illustrated and CNN International. Jones is part of the World Sport crew that is in the Netherlands and Belgium covering Euro 2000.
| ||||||||||||||||||||||
