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GAME DETAILS
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Tournoi de France
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Attendance: 50,000
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0-1
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Romário (61)
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Alan Shearer (44), Sol Campbell (53), Paul Scholes (65)
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Dunga (44), Ronaldo (53), Célio Silva (65)
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| Managers |
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DT92 Members at this game: (you can click here to load your profile picture) |
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robert didd
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Cotswoldstokie
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England 0-1 Brazil
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Of course, this being England, reality was always going to strike at some point. England won the tournament with their victories over Italy and France, but they were well beaten by Brazil. The old uncertainties came back. England were overly reliant on their main striker: they struggled to keep the ball: and, like every other team in international football, they were susceptible to a toe-poke from Romário.
England revival as delicate as a glass football By David Lacey
The glass football that England bore home in the early hours of yesterday morning, the winners' trophy from the Tournoi de France, was tangible evidence of the success Glenn Hoddle has achieved in his first year as coach to the national team. It was also a reminder of how fragile a commodity new-found optimism can be.
By any yardstick Hoddle has done well since he took over the England squad from Terry Venables when the nation was still abuzz after Euro 96. It is to his credit that, 12 months on, England are looking forward in expectation rather than back to what might have been. Under Hoddle, England have won nine matches out of 11, and the victory in Poland 12 days ago has revived the team's chances of qualifying directly for next year's World Cup finals.
A great deal now rests on the result in Rome on October 11, when England will try to reverse their defeat by Italy at Wembley in February. Brazil could not deprive England of their pretty French bauble in Parc des Princes on Tuesday night, but the 1-0 win by the World Cup holders was a timely reminder to Hoddle and his players about the task ahead.
The principal message from the Brazil match was that, if Alan Shearer does not score, England's alternative match-winning options are thin indeed above a certain level. It was the same against Italy at Wembley, and beating the Italians 2-0 in Nantes last week, when Shearer was kept out of the firing line, did not alter the basic fact.
If England qualify, Hoddle will be heavily reliant on Shearer, Paul Ince and David Seaman each surviving the 1997-98 season without serious injury. Those three players represent the core of England's ambition, and the loss of one or more of them would be a body blow to the coach's plans.
Then there is Paul Gascoigne, who in the Tournoi de France demonstrated that he can still perform for 90 minutes at international level – although questions about his true value remain unanswered. Hoddle's faith in him is admirable but if England qualify it will be important that David Beckham, suspended for the Brazil game, and Paul Scholes emerge in a year's time as serious prospects for what is going to be a long and demanding 32-nation tournament.
England's main gains from the Tournoi de France have been in defence, where Sol Campbell now wears the look of a genuine international footballer and Southgate has become more of the player he was under Venables. In Phil Neville England have potentially a genuine wing-back although against Brazil he did not look quite the finished article.
For Hoddle an important benefit of this summer's exercise has been to work with his squad for three and a half weeks uncluttered by club commitments, a problem that is bound to arise next season when the programme will be busier than ever.
At least the coach appears to be happy within himself. Graham Taylor completed his first year in office by complaining that the England job did not command enough respect. When I was Chelsea manager, looking on from the outside, it looked a very difficult job, said Hoddle, and it is just that. But it's one I'm enjoying and taking a lot of pride in. The ups are very high and the downs very down but I've got a good family behind me and that is the most important thing, whether you're up or down.
The less Hoddle's family see of him over the next year will be a measure of how well things are going for England, and so much depends on what has happened by the time he returns home from Rome.
The aftermath
On the Sunday after England returned home from France, Amy Lawrence wrote in the Observer about a new closeness among the England squad: Luton Airport may not have been the scene of tearful partings when England arrived home from the Tournoi, but the lads had forged a strong enough bond to suggest a few heartfelt hugs and a bientots weren't out of place.
In going their disparate ways to be reunited with their folks, Glenn Hoddle's squad were leaving a second family behind. Before we know it they will be entering the world's sporting arenas holding hands. Brazil, the team who ended England's six-match winning streak, do precisely that, so perhaps it's another detail for Hoddle to mull over in the weeks before he organises his next reunion.
There was much praise for Hoddle, who was keen to share the compliments with his staff. When asked about England's disciplinary record, the manager was happy enough to crack a joke: Just for once, it's nice to miss out on the Fair Play Award but win the actual tournament.
That sanguine approach to his team's disciplinary record would be gone within a year, when Hoddle would find himself bemoaning a costly red card given to David Beckham in England's defeat to Argentina at the World Cup. Beckham had missed England's final match in Le Tournoi due to suspension, but Hoddle did not seem too concerned. The player was distraught: I was gutted. Playing against Brazil is every player's dream. He did not learn from his mistake quickly enough.
In other post-tournament news, Hoddle sent out a warning to Paul Gascoigne, who was playing for Rangers at the time. L'Equipe reported that the manager had criticised Gascoigne's lack of focus: Paul no longer thinks of football as a priority in his life. Today football comes fourth in his list of interests. He thinks too much about money and is beset by personal problems. It's time the penny dropped. If not, I'll wash my hands of him.
Hoddle claimed the quotes had been mangled to misrepresent him. Perhaps he should have been a bit more forthright. A sterner warning may have pushed Gascoigne harder and saved him from the anguish he experienced the following summer, when Hoddle rejected him on the eve of the World Cup finals and was nearly clobbered for it. Gascoigne, who reacted like a man possessed, later admitted: I went to the wardrobe and kicked the door in. Then I overturned the table, smashing a pottery vase. I didn't try to hit Hoddle, though I'd have liked to.
All in all, 1997 was to prove an apex for England. They could look back on a successful Euro 96 with pride, look forward to the 1998 World Cup with hope, delight in their performance away in Rome and feel united by their success in France. Le Tournoi is not quite the World Cup, but at least it broke up the years of hurt.
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wrrxh04
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Teams
ENGLAND:
Seaman, Ince, Southgate, Le Saux, Campbell, Gascoigne, Shearer, P Neville, Keown (G Neville 20 min), Sheringham (Wright 75 mins), Scholes (Lee 75 mins).
BRAZIL:
Taffarel, Cafei, Aldair, Carlos, Dunga, Ronaldo, Leonardo (Ze Roberto), Romario, Silva, Conceicao, Denilson (Djalminha 22 mins).
Match Details
Brazil Scorer: Romario (60 mins)
England Cautions: Shearer, Campbell, Scholes
Brazil Cautions: Dunga, Ronaldo, Silva
Referee: T Rendon (Columbia)
Attendance: 50,000
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Ritchie - Pusb
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cookie england
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