Crouch rises to an occasion of little apprehension

England 3 Belarus 0:CONSCIENTIOUSNESS IS all the rage with England and they remembered to defeat Belarus in a manner that confirmed their diligence despite World Cup qualification having already been achieved.

For his part, Peter Crouch, with two goals, did not forget to underline his merits. The margin could have been greater still, with substitutes James Milner and David Beckham each hitting the post.

Fabio Capello has had a resounding impact, but there are minor side-effects that are less welcome. In the days when England bungled their qualifiers, Wembley would have been crammed with agonised onlookers. Here the ground was notably short of capacity, with the audience in a good-natured mood rather than a state of apprehension. Those who had turned up did receive a quick reward.

The manager had wished to study the pairing of Gabriel Agbonlahor and Crouch from the start. Conventional wisdom states the Aston Villa forward is better as a lone striker because he has so little awareness of where any partner might be. That theory will have to be junked if the opener in the fourth minute is to be treated as sound evidence.

Gareth Barry released Agbonlahor on the left and the striker rolled over the perfect ball for Crouch, who had got in front of his marker, to convert. The provider in that move might have scored himself after tearing past Sergei Sosnovsky on the right, but the finish from an angle was aimed at the goalkeeper Yury Zhevnov.

Any potential merit in this occasion, however, could have lain largely in the work-out it offered an England defence that has been the least impressive department of the team. Belarus knew before kick-off that they would finish fourth in the group, but the defect has not been in attack since a total of 19 goals had been scored before they got to London.

The partnership of Rio Ferdinand and John Terry had not been sighted in consecutive matches since Capello’s second and third matches, the friendlies against France and the US. There was cause to think this game would give them much-needed practice.

Belarus showed ability, yet it normally petered out in the first-half. Barry also illustrated his judiciousness to make a tackle on Vitaly Kutuzov when he tore into the area from the left in the 35th minute.

The visitors, indeed, worked the ball slickly on occasion, only to seize up when they got towards the penalty area.

England, all the same, had defects of their own. Aaron Lennon, in his favoured position on the right, made little progress.

Anyone supposing Capello has been preparing to send Beckham into exile was confounded. His comment that the LA Galaxy player had looked tired last week seems not to have been a cover story. Nonetheless, one could see why Capello did not dispense immediately with a person whose career has depended almost wholly on landing the ball in the correct area. By and large, though, it would have been understandable to anyone other than the manager that concentration should flicker in a team who had nothing in particular to gain.

The visitors seemed in earnest now and again, as a wincing Shaun Wright-Phillips would agree. Sergei Kornilenko was booked for a foul on him after 54 minutes. Capello, for his part, also seemed keen to ensure that there was a degree of authenticity. His first substitution saw Beckham replace Lennon in the 58th minute.

The 4-4-2 system had not been especially convincing and an alteration on the flanks was needed. Beckham had an immediate impact. In a well-rehearsed move he pulled a corner-kick low to the fringes of the area when the Belarus defence had convinced itself that a swerving delivery was on its way. Wright-Phillips was in enough space to collect and shoot low into the net.

If that was pleasing, it would have been gladdening for Capello to watch Ben Foster contribute. The goalkeeper, who has been shaky for Manchester United, earned approval by passing the classic test of pulling off a save when there had been little, before that, to test him. He coped well in getting a hand to Sergei Omelyanchuk’s fierce strike.

On the whole, nothing creditable or unfortunate can have been taken as definitive evidence on an occasion such as this. There was no disguising the match was an obligation rather than a challenge, although there was pleasure at watching Crouch score again, when Carlton Cole, who had looked off-side, took Barry’s pass and hit a drive that Zhevnov parried into the striker’s path.

Guardian Service

ENGLAND:Foster, Johnson, Ferdinand, Terry, Bridge (Milner 78), Lennon (Beckham 58), Lampard, Barry, Wright-Phillips, Crouch, Agbonlahor (Carlton Cole 66). Subs Not Used: Hart, Upson, Ashley Cole, Carrick.

BELARUS:Zhevnov, Kulchy, Yurevich, Sosnovskiy, Bordachev (Kashevsky 84), Verkhovtsov, Omelyanchuk, Shitov, Kalachev, Kornilenko (Kovel 77), Kutuzov (Rodionov 45). Subs Not Used: Amelchenko, Lantsevich, Rudik, Krivets. Booked: Kornilenko.

Referee:L Cardoso Cortez Batista (Por).