FIFA World Cup 2010: England "Roo" Chances, Are Their Hopes in Tatters?

Another disappointing night in South Africa for the English boys, who once again failed to capitalise and win their game.

With an early result which saw the US draw to Slovenia, this was even more reason for England to win their game and gain points going into their final group encounter.

Nevertheless, the English team showed one of their poorest performances in a long time, and a point was the only thing they managed to salvage from the game.

After an excellent qualifying campaign, many felt this year England had everything to go on and become world champions, but they have been exposed in their first two group matches.

In the first game, they led the US by 1-0 before Robert Green fumbled the ball and conceded a goal. The scoreline ended 1-1, but the performance was average to say the least, not convincing at all.

Next were the Algerians in Cape Town, the Green Point Stadium packed to capacity with Princes William and Harry amongst the crowd. More of the same, it seems it was a continuation of the first match—no real structure, poor vision, and no real shots on target. 

With so much talk about the ball and the difficulty goal keepers seem to have, England didn't test the Algerian keeper that much. If they did take shots, they were very easy handling.

While I didn't see any reasons for the loss but just a dismal performance, coach Fabio Capello will now have to go back to the drawing board and re-think his strategy.

Is Heskey contributing enough in terms of goal scoring opportunity? Yes, he works hard and can hold the ball, he has physical presence, but we need to understand something: it's goals that matter.

England lacked so much in possession that Rooney felt the need to drop back and help collect the ball, but then there was never someone in front as Heskey doesn't have the pace to make those runs. When Rooney was in front, the midfield failed to break through the Algerian defence to give Rooney a clear opportunity.

But there were times when they managed to play the short passes and work their way in the box at least, but then again we saw basic mistakes which led them to either shoot over the bar or shoot rather tame shots at goal.

If I were the manager, I would start with Rooney and Crouch, try to use both of their aerial abilities, and use the width. We saw in the Algerian match that Johnson was throwing the ball in, but when Crouch was brought on, there was less of that, which makes you wonder, why bring him on in the first place?

Looking at England's route to the World Cup, they played relatively weak opposition in terms of that they face in the World Cup, so large victories against Andorra and Belarus won't count for anything if you have to face Argentina and Spain, for example.

In terms of the World Cup qualifiers, personally I think the South American teams have the toughest run, having to face all of the countries and taking into account all are very talented and have ability.

So it's simple: England are not consistent enough. They have great players but as a team they don't seem to come together. Beating Kazakhstan 5-1 doesn't mean you can go on and beat the US. You have to take everything into account—tougher teams, the pressure of the tournament, higher expectations from fans, and in England's case, the media. All of this can contribute to their poor showing.

Whether they will improve in their final group stage is left up to them. Gerrard was poor last night and failed to dominate the center of midfield, Rooney didn't show anything from his club form, and at the back the wide men struggled to keep up with the Algerians.

Slovenia proved that they can hold out. Although they lost a two-goal advantage and were punished, they can trouble England.

Port Elizabeth will be the host of their next group encounter and I doubt support will be an issue. It's more a case of determination and work-rate.

I'd like to see more creativity and intervention from Lampard, for him to try to spread play more, open up spaces, and work the through ball.

Heskey shouldn't start; Rooney and Crouch would be the preferred option. Another area that needs to be looked at is Barry better than Milner or Joe Cole? Because it's clear that creativity is lacking, there is no artistry or vision in the passing.

Taking everything into contexts, England now have two points and a victory against Slovenia will ensure them a place in the last 16. Simple and straight forward...Otherwise it could be early doors for the English.