International friendly/England 1 Brazil 1:The past locked arms with the present as the previous captain, David Beckham, flighted the free-kick with which his successor, John Terry, put them in front, but all the bonds that England forged could not shut out Brazil. At the rebuilt Wembley, the visitors equalised in stoppage time as the substitute Diego headed in from Gilberto Silva's chipped cross.
Gloom should not consume England. There can be cavilling about the continuing lack of incisiveness in attack, where Michael Owen was rusty and Alan Smith subdued, but there were heartening aspects for Steve McClaren, a manager who faces Estonia in the Euro 2008 qualifier next Wednesday. He will be relieved to have Beckham, considering how measured he had been in a dedicated display.
There were benefits in inviting Brazil to open the stadium, particularly since they possess the sensitivity of touch that could sometimes disguise the damaged nature of the pitch. So far as England were concerned, the principal advantage lay in the certainty that they would be tested fully ahead of the qualifier in Tallinn. There was an examination, too, of the manager's shrewdness.
It did look rash to dispense with a defensive midfielder, as Ledley King was fielded in the centre of the back four, but McClaren had deemed that another effort should be made to establish Steven Gerrard and Frank Lampard as a partnership. It worked to an extent in the first half, mostly where the Liverpool player was concerned.
While Gerrard's starting position was deeper than Lampard's, that gave him room to burst downfield and he found a way of attending to both aspects of his duties. After King had lost possession in the 28th minute, for instance, Gerrard charged back to make an excellent tackle on Kaka. When the England midfielder surged forward shortly afterwards, Mineiro brought him down near the penalty area. Beckham bent the free-kick a yard wide.
On his return, the former captain stuck to the same policy he has been following ever since he got to the England squad's Hertfordshire base. With a supreme effort of will, he has avoided drawing attention to himself and been a model of unassuming diligence. The attitude stayed with him on the field where he contributed rather than dominated.
There was another number seven around who also had reason to be crestfallen about last summer's World Cup finals. Ronaldinho's international career has had its troughs and, in Germany, senior figures in the line-up were reluctant to defer to him, despite all he has done at Camp Nou. The newish Brazil manager, Dunga, has that issue to contemplate ahead of this month's Copa America and even the 2010 World Cup.
Eleven minutes from half-time, Ronaldinho eluded Gerrard and stroked a through-pass that led to King's foul on Vagner Love. The Barcelona player sent his attempt a tad wider than Beckham had done at the other end.
It was not an especially artificial event and Brazil had been sufficiently in earnest for Daniel Alves to stop Joe Cole with a professional foul three minutes after kick-off.
The pace dipped towards the interval, but it was not a lack of endeavour that left the match goalless then. Perhaps each of these sides is deficient in conventional forwards.
Brazil experienced some frustration. Robinho guided a diagonal ball in the 19th minute and the linesman raised a flag against two players in the middle although Gilberto Silva was onside as he looped a header over Paul Robinson.
Nonetheless, this was scarcely an event to nurture grievances.
The benign mood, nonetheless, would have been sent packing had Paul Robinson not made an excellent save in the 50th minute. Ronaldinho's attempt took a deflection and the Tottenham goalkeeper pushed it behind.
By one means or another, England had settled themselves into this friendly. With 68 minutes gone, Terry climbed at the far post to meet Beckham's deep free-kick and head strongly over Helton.
Brazil sought to reply and the substitute Afonso Alvese put an attempt marginally wide, and in injury time Diego arrived to deprive England.
Guardian Service
ENGLAND: Robinson, Carragher, King, Terry (Brown 72), Shorey, Beckham (Jenas 77), Gerrard, Lampard (Carrick 88), Cole (Downing 62), Smith (Dyer 62), Owen (Crouch 83). Subs not used: Carson, Bridge, Neville, Bentley, Green, Defoe. Goals: Terry 68.
BRAZIL: Helton, Daniel (Maicon 65), Naldo, Juan, Gilberto, Ronaldinho, Mineiro (Edmilson 63), Gilberto Silva, Kaka (Alves 71), Robinho (Diego 74), Vagner Love. Subs not used: Doni, Alex Silva, Alex, Marcelo, Josue, Elano, Jo. Goals: Diego 90.
Referee: Markus Merk (Germany).
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