Bulgaria 0 England 3THERE WAS an efficiency to England's work and a dismayed home support would eventually disgrace itself with monkey chants aimed at Ashley Young.
The visitors will still enjoy the thought of an evening when they were expected to win but did so with commendable thoroughness. It is essential to acknowledge the inferiority of Bulgaria but England were purposeful from the outset. They may not have qualified yet but Montenegro’s troubles in Wales were of use to Fabio Capello.
Dealing with an apparently simple task often turns into a tortuous process but England were at their most efficient and confident here. The visitors did not allow Bulgaria to conceal their weaknesses.
These opponents were 2-0 behind by the middle of the first half.
The fixture was revitalising for Wayne Rooney, who headed home from a Stewart Downing corner in the 24th minute to add to Gary Cahill’s opener. The Manchester United forward thus took only his second goal in the last 16 outings with England, although he did not stop there.
It would be wrong to belittle an impact by England that registered from the very start.
A more languid approach would have heartened a crowd that was larger and, intermittently, noisier than expected. Had they found it in their hearts to appreciate England’s work they might have been impressed in particular by the interchanging of Theo Walcott, Young and Downing as they manoeuvred in support of Rooney.
If it was any comfort to Lothar Matthaus, who has improved Bulgaria slightly, he could hardly be denounced for losing this match. In nine meetings with England his predecessors had failed to record a win.
Regardless of that, England deserve a little appreciation for taking full points from the two previous away games in the group and continuing the trend so forcefully at the Vasil Levski stadium.
They had every cause to be enterprising, given the infirmity of the opposition and Montenegro’s challenge to Capello’s side in the group.
The England manager settled on a 4-2-3-1 formation. With Darren Bent injured, Rooney was the spearhead, as Young operated a little behind him.
The holding players were Gareth Barry and Scott Parker, a partnership devised at the expense of Frank Lampard. There is little prospect that Capello will believe the Chelsea player, at the age of 33, is still equipped to be an all-purpose midfielder ready to surge into every area of the field. There was little here that would have had the Italian entertaining second thoughts.
As a realist, Capello would nonetheless have recognised the fragility of Bulgaria that accentuated the ruthlessness of his own players. Matthaus’s men were confounded following a corner-kick that was not cleared completely and Barry picked out Cahill, who took the ball on his chest before knocking it past the goalkeeper Nikolay Mihaylov after 14 minutes.
Bulgaria were seldom able to raise themselves and foster even a pretence of competitiveness. The quickness of the England line-up took its toll of Matthaus’s men, which may have been a factor in the demotion of a senior player such as Lampard.
England, in any case, were far beyond Bulgaria’s reach when Rooney took his second goal of the evening. Walcott released Young, who did not hesitate before setting up the striker to score again in first-half stoppage time.
Bulgaria still had their pride. That was demonstrated, briefly at least, with a flurry following the interval but England could regain the ascendancy when they wished. Joe Hart, after having so little to do, was sharp in the moments of danger but the opposition had no prospect of recovery. Their plight could have deepened but a Downing header only brushed a post.
There was a subdued tone to the occasion at that stage. England’s supporters were sated and the Bulgarian onlookers were dealing with another anti-climactic occasion.
The visitors could take pride in illustrating their efficiency. There had hardly been a moment when Bulgaria supposed there was a possibility of making a stand.
From England’s perspective the issue will be whether Capello stands by this line-up or whether he judges that greater amounts of know-how will be essential on field when the fixtures are more rigorous.
It will not be a simple matter for the manager to deem that this line-up will stay together. The vitality might have been accentuated here because Capello considered Bulgaria unlikely to withstand such a tempo.
He will have been pleased at any rate even if effusiveness is not his style. It is too soon to assume that Capello has hit upon a formula, particularly since this had always been treated as a night on which anything less than freewheeling play would have been unsatisfactory.
There is work to come but this win will enhance England’s morale before both the visit of Wales to Wembley on Tuesday and of the trip to Montenegro on October 7th.
GuardianService
BULGARIA: Mihailov, Zanev, Bodurov, Milanov, Bandalovski (Sarmov 46),Ivanov, Georgiev, Martin Petrov, Stiliyan Petrov, Popov (Marquinhos 81), Genkov (Bozhilov 61). Subs Not Used: Vladislav Stoyanov, Iliev, Raykov, Kostadin Stoyanov, Kostadin Stoyanov. Booked: Sarmov,Milanov.
ENGLAND: Hart, Smalling, Cahill, Terry, Cole, Walcott (Johnson 83), Parker, Barry (Lampard 80), Downing, Young (Milner 62), Rooney. Subs Not Used: Stockdale, Jagielka, Baines, Defoe. Booked: Parker. Referee: Frank De Bleeckere (Belgium).
