Day 2 Match Report

ENGLAND BEAT PARAGUAY AT THEIR OWN GAME

England 1 Paraguay 0

Paraguay love to score a goal and sit on the lead. Well today England gave them a taste of their own medicine. If anything can be taken from this game it's this: England are not going to win the World Cup, at least not playing like this.

Match Rating: 2 out of 5. An own goal and tons of fouls. N0t the most thrilling game to watch.

Player of the Match: Beckham. One of the few bright spots for England. His dangerous free kick caused the own goal and he displayed a lot of heart throughout. At one point showed sublime skill in backtouching a long ball and running foward for a through pass.

Disappointment of the Match: The referee. Very inconsistent. Called Crouch for some ghost fouls. Gave Gerrard a yellow card for a clean tackle. Carded Paraguay's goalie for holding the ball too long, which apparently is six seconds total. Voided several throw-ins on both sides. Baffling. Dishonorable mention goes to Michael Owen, aka the invisible one.

Huh? At one point the ESPN commentator's called Becks "Michael Beckham." Spanish channel coverage for me, thank you, even though that included the ridiculously partisan Jose Luis Chilavert, former Paraguay goalkeeper.

The Fallout: England will be happy with this win but not with the way they attained it. Aside from a couple of Frank Lampard long-range efforts they showed no attacking verve whatsoever. Where was Gerrard? Paraguay have to be disappointed that they didn't break down England's solid defense. A lot will depend on their game against Sweden as England look to be in fine position to qualify.

Extra: Rooney better get fit quickly or England have no chance at the cup. They never looked like scoring a real goal. Great hustle in defense though. Germany have looked the most impressive side in the cup thus far. The English media are already moaning about England coach Sven Goran Eriksson's defensive tactics and team selection. But a win is a win, right?