Two goals either side of half-time gave England their first victory of World Cup qualifying Group 9 with a 2-1 win over Finland at Anfield this afternoon. Although they fell behind to a Gary Neville og after 27 minutes, goals from Michael Owen and skipper David Beckham proved enough to resurrect England’s hopes of qualifying for the 2002 finals in Japan/Korea.
Andy Cole’s first minute strike lifted spirits in the 44,000 capacity crowd, the Manchester United striker shooting inches wide following a defensive error by Hannu Tihinen on the edge of the box. England then had appeals for a penalty turned down by referee Manuel Mejuto-Gonzalez after Owen fell under the challenge of Tihinen in the box, before a stinging effort from Beckham forced Antti Niemi into a strong save after 21 minutes.
Finland broke immediately and could have gone ahead but for the quick thinking of David Seaman, who denied Charlton’s Jonatan Johansson from close range after he beat the offside trap. Beckham was at this stage revelling in midfield, where he was drifting infield in effective fashion from his right wing berth. He went close again in the 30th minute with a scorching 30-yard drive which flashed inches over Niemi's crossbar.
However, the visitors stunned the Anfield crowd when they took the lead in fortunate circumstances in the 27th minute. Aki Rihilahti headed Joonas Kolkka's corner from the left goalwards, and with Seaman looking ideally positioned to collect, Neville deflected the ball into the net to leave the partisan crowd in silence.
With half-time looming England stepped up a gear, and their increased pressure was duly rewarded when Owen hit the equaliser two minutes before the break. The Liverpool striker latched onto a pass from Cole on the edge of the area and slotted home, to complete an excellent move which involved Beckham and Neville down the right.
England emerged after the interval with renewed confidence and Beckham struck for only his second international goal five minutes in. Steve McManaman started the move with a suspicion of hand ball, but the Real Madrid man’s surge through the centre opened the Finnish defence with ease. He found Paul Scholes on the 18-yard box, who in turn passed for Beckham, who hammered home a stunning effort from a difficult angle to put England in front. With their tails up, England pressed for a two-goal cushion, and Owen was unlucky with a header off the post in the 59th minute.
Cole, Beckham, with a trademark free-kick, and substitute Robbie Fowler all went close to increasing the lead, but England were let off the hook when Liverpool’s Jari Litmanen was denied twice from close range by Seaman and Rio Ferdinand with just three minutes remaining. However, England held on to record their first win in the group, and put them second behind Germany, who play this evening.
The England team was:
David Seaman, Gary Neville, Chris Powell, Steven Gerrard, Rio Ferdinand, Sol Campbell, David Beckham, Paul Scholes, Andy Cole, Michael Owen, Steve McManaman.
Filed by Shane Murray
