By Simon Wright – Follow
me on Twitter @Siwri88
Southampton
striker Rickie Lambert joined an exclusive list of players to score on his
England debut on Wednesday night, as he headed the winning goal in the
international friendly with Scotland to give the Three Lions a 3-2 win.
The Tartan
Army gave England some real scares throughout an enthralling contest that was
always played at a high tempo at Wembley Stadium. They led twice and showed a new composure
that was first in evidence when they recorded a shock win in Zagreb against
Croatia in June. However, Roy Hodgson’s
side probably just about merited the win.
It was Wayne
Rooney who made all the pre-match headlines, as he was given a start by Hodgson
after a pre-season dominated by injury concerns and huge speculation over his
future at Manchester United. It will be Lambert tough who will take the main
headlines over the next 24 hours.
The
31-year-old (pictured) deserved his place in the squad after finding the target 15 times
for Southampton in his first Premier League season last term, and he got his
chance to perform when he replaced Rooney in the 67th minute.
Four minutes
later, he added his name to those including Sir Bobby Charlton and Alan Shearer
to score on his international bow, and even more unbelievable, it was with his
first touch in the England colours. He
climbed above Celtic’s Scott Brown to power a Leighton Baines corner into the
back of the net, giving Allan McGregor no chance.
It was a
fitting reward for a player who has had to work incredibly hard to earn his
opportunity, and he did receive his luck to get this cap. Injuries to Daniel Sturridge and Andy Carroll
have opened the door for Lambert, and he took his chance brilliantly.
He could have
had a hat-trick with two late chances in time added on, but struck a post and
forced visiting goalkeeper Allan McGregor into a good save at his near
post. Nevertheless, he should be
considered for the important September World Cup qualifiers against Moldova and
Ukraine.
Lambert told
ITV afterwards: “It means so much. I
managed to get rid of my marker and it found the net.
“I was trying
to play it cool, but deep down I wanted to scream. I have to say a big thank you to the lads for
making me feel welcome into the squad.”
It caps a
brilliant few days for Lambert, whose wife just gave birth to their third child
only last week.
Scotland
started the game quicker and deserved the early advantage after 11
minutes. England failed to deal with a
corner, and James Morrison got too much time to shoot as Steven Gerrard backed
off from closing him down. It was a good
shot, but a poor piece of goalkeeping from Joe Hart who got two hands to the
strike but didn’t hold onto Morrison's effort.
Hart’s form
will be a concern to both club and country.
He was disappointing for Manchester City last campaign, and
this wasn’t the way to start a new season.
He did see the shot late, but a keeper of his calibre has to be saving these kind of shots.
England did
start far too slowly, but levelled on 29 minutes as they started to find their
way into the game. Tom Cleverley’s
lovely pass found Theo Walcott, who used his pace and craft to cut inside
Steven Whittaker and drill a shot past McGregor to level the scores.
The German
referee deserves credit for allowing an excellent flow to the match, and he
didn’t book anyone until Kyle Walker’s late challenge on James Forrest in the
56th minute. By this stage,
the score had already changed from 1-1 at the interval to 2-2 early in the second
half.
Kenny Miller
might be 33 years old, but he has the knack of finding the target wherever he
has been in his club career. Currently
playing in the United States, the former Cardiff forward produced a great piece
of individual brilliance to hand Scotland the lead again three minutes into the
restart.
Miller
tricked Gary Cahill with his back to goal, jinking left, then right. This gave him the crucial half a yard over
Cahill which was required to produce a superb finish. This time, Hart was powerless to do anything
about the shot.
If Gordon
Strachan was hoping his side could hold onto the lead longer, he was to be
mistaken. Danny Welbeck connected with a
Gerrard free-kick to bring the scoreline back to honours even. Strachan will be disappointed that central defenders
Russell Martin and Grant Hanley, both tall enough in the air didn’t deal with
Welbeck. The Manchester United attacker
was a constant menace all evening and was chosen as the Vauxhall Man of the Match.
Then it was
Lambert who stole the show, as Scotland started to tire towards the end. It was a big test for Hodgson and England,
and one they managed to pass. However
there were still some concerns for the boss, especially with the defending for
both Scotland goals.
Big tests lie
ahead, and England’s group rivals should be encouraged by Scotland’s courageous
performance, proving the Three Lions still have frailties that will be
scrutinised in the final stages of World Cup qualifying.
FINAL RESULT:
England 3-2
Scotland
GOALSCORERS: James
Morrison 11, Theo Walcott 29, Kenny Miller 49, Danny Welbeck 53, Rickie Lambert
70
TEAMS:
ENGLAND:
Joe Hart, Kyle Walker, Gary Cahill, Phil Jagielka (Phil Jones 84), Leighton
Baines, Steven Gerrard (Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain 62), Tom Cleverley (James
Milner 67), Jack Wilshere (Frank Lampard 46), Theo Walcott (Wilfried Zaha 75),
Danny Welbeck, Wayne Rooney (Rickie Lambert 67)
Unused
subs: Ben Foster, John Ruddy, Glen Johnson, Ashley Cole, Chris Smalling,
Jermain Defoe
SCOTLAND:
Allan McGregor, Alan Hutton, Grant Hanley, Russell Martin, Steven Whittaker,
Shaun Maloney (Steven Naismith 86), Scott Brown, James Morrison (Jordan Rhodes
82), Robert Snodgrass (Craig Conway 66), Kenny Miller (Leigh Griffiths 73),
James Forrest (Charlie Mulgrew 67)
Unused
subs: Matt Gilks, David Marshall, Gordon Greer, Andy Webster, James McArthur, Chris
Burke, Steven Hammell, Charlie Adam, Gary Mackay-Steven, Graham Dorrans, Barry
Bannan, Kris Boyd
Referee:
Brych (Germany)
Attendance:
80,485
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