Estonia vs. England: Winners and Losers from Euro 2016 Qualifier

England continued their 100 percent start to the latest European Championship qualification cycle with a narrow 1-0 win over Estonia in Tallinn on Sunday.

To a certain extent it was a tale of two captains, as Estonia talisman Ragnar Klavan was given his marching orders for a second booking at the start of the second half, with his England counterpart, Wayne Rooney, sealing the victory not long after with a curling free-kick.

It was far from an emphatic performance from Roy Hodgson's men, but the main objective was achieved. With that in mind, here are some winners and losers from the game.

Winner: Wayne Rooney

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This was not a classic performance from Wayne Rooney, not by any means, but it was at least a decisive one. In his new role as England captain, it is important that he is able to show he can make the difference in close games—and that is what he did.

For large parts of the match Rooney was undeniably below his best—he was downright poor even. Time and again his first touch let him down, while he and his team-mates frequently appeared to be on different wavelengths as they tried to create openings against an Estonia side that was determined to make life as awkward as possible for their more vaunted opponents.

In the second half, after Estonia's captain, Klavan, had been dismissed, the tension began to rise, and the importance of coming away with the three points increased. England were struggling for inspiration, but in the end Rooney delivered his team-mates from potential embarrassment, curling home a fine free-kick with 15 minutes remaining.

It was clear as soon as the free-kick was given that Rooney fancied the opportunity, and the way his team-mates celebrated with him suggests he is a popular leader among the squad, even if the jury remains out among the wider media.

Of course we would all like to see Rooney putting in better individual performances over the course of the 90 minutes. But, for now, making the difference and winning games should be considered good enough.

Afterwards Roy Hodgson said (via Sky Sports):

"

To come in at half-time at 0-0 having played like that, it meant that coming out for the second half there was an air of frustration and pressure setting in. Luckily we took our chance in the second half and it's four wins in a row and five clean sheets—these are thing not to be sniffed at. We'll keep working at the other aspects of our game. 

It was a frustrating night for Wayne and I think he'd have been bitterly disappointed if he'd have come off without scoring. Luckily he got the winner. Although we were clearly superior to Estonia, they're going to cause other teams problems because they certainly don't give up.

"

Loser: Danny Welbeck (and Arsenal)

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Arsenal fans had their weekend ruined somewhat when Danny Welbeck walked off down the tunnel immediately after being substituted towards the end of Sunday's game. That immediate departure for the changing room suggested a slight injury that needed attention; the forward had been rolling around in some pain just moments before he was taken off.

Fans, along with Arsene Wenger, will wait anxiously for news about their striker, who has become increasingly important to their attacking play over the last few weeks. But in truth he did not have his best game in Tallinn, making wrong decisions on the ball and occasionally showing poor touches as Hodgson's side struggled to break down their belligerent opponents. 

It was not a great display, certainly not one to convince Hodgson that Daniel Sturridge should not be immediately returned to the starting line-up when he returns to full fitness.

More generally, it was interesting to note that, while Liverpool players seemed to be used fairly sparingly, the likes of Chambers, Welbeck and Wilshere were all used for all (or almost all) of both games over the past week.

While it would be unfair on Roy Hodgson to suggest he would react so overtly to the fallout from Daniel Sturridge's recent injury, it is not unreasonable to wonder if he had held a discussion with Brendan Rodgers and come to some sort of understanding that was not replicated with the Arsenal contingent.

There did not seem to be a real problem with that, at least until Welbeck appeared to limp down the tunnel with an injury. Only time will tell how serious it is and whether Hodgson ends up holding a similar conversation with Wenger to the one he has just had with Rodgers.

Winner: Jack Wilshere

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Jack Wilshere received a certain amount of criticism—as much criticism as you can ever get following a 5-0 win, at least—for his performance during the game against San Marino. Playing on one side of the midfield diamond that Roy Hodgson now seems to have set upon as his preferred formation, he failed to impress with either his passing or his movement for much of the game.

On Sunday, however, he was arguably England's best player. Restored to the base of the diamond, where his tackling and his vision can be given greater prominence, the Arsenal midfielder gave the visitors an impetus and bite on the ball that they seemed to be noticeably lacking whenever anyone else was in possession.

Wilshere did not score England's winning goal, but he was impressive throughout and outshone Jordan Henderson while both men were on the pitch. The two emerging talents have been pegged as the men to replace Steven Gerrard and Frank Lampard as the Three Lions' midfield talisman; on this evidence Wilshere appears determined to grow into that vast responsibility as soon as possible.

Loser: Nathaniel Clyne

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The Southampton full-back ends up a loser through no real fault of his own. But the fact he did not play during either of England's recent games will surely be a disappointment to Clyne, perhaps slightly taking the gloss off his first senior call-up.

In this away trip, it was clear Hodgson had tasked his two full-backs with providing the width in a system that is often particularly narrow in midfield.

That setup would appear to suit Clyne's natural tendencies—the former Crystal Palace product has shown his attacking threat already this season, possessing a fine engine and decent delivery that would presumably have served as a natural mirror to Leighton Baines on the other side.

Instead Hodgson continued with Calum Chambers, an arguably more reliable defender but one without the same presence going forward. Clyne was left to watch from the bench as his former club-mate struggled to find any consistency in the final third, something England desperately needed as the score remained at 0-0.

This would seem to have been an ideal game to blood Clyne, but the fact Hodgson did not does not bode well for the player's immediate prospects of a first cap.

By next month's international break, it is possible both Kyle Walker and Glen Johnson could be back to fitness, with the likes of Chambers, Phil Jones and Chris Smalling also fully available to contend for that right-back slot. Unless he really impressed in training, Clyne might find he has to wait a little while for his next call-up to the senior squad.

Winner: Joe Hart

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For the second game in a row, goalkeeper Joe Hart was voted Man of the Match by the public. Hopefully this scintillating run of form can continue for the Manchester City man...

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The results are in: you voted as Joe Hart as your #England Man of the Match - http://t.co/8ZSAeD2KBs Consistent pic.twitter.com/iSeXBqsYJH

— Vauxhall England (@VauxhallEngland) October 12, 2014"