Steve McClaren's psychological ploy worked a treat at Wembley on Saturday - and now the England coach wants more of the same from Wayne Rooney.

In praising the Manchester United striker's honest admission about two years of below-par performances for England earlier this week, McClaren also added the warning his 21-year-old forward was still far from the finished product.

By labelling Rooney as 'potentially world-class', McClaren was delivering the kind of back-handed compliment guaranteed to draw a reaction. And what a reaction it was.

Rooney may have been edged out of man-of-the-match honours by the excellent Gareth Barry during Saturday's 3-0 win over Estonia.

But the energy in his performance was something to behold and in scoring England's second, belting home Joe Cole's cross with a neat shot on the turn, Rooney was ending a goal drought in competitive combat that stretched back to Euro 2004.

And, while there was no public admission his jibe about Rooney's talent was specifically aimed at triggering the performance the Merseysider produced, McClaren did not really have to. His beaming smile said it all about a job very well done indeed.

"When players of this standard receive criticism, they have to prove themselves on the pitch," said the England coach.

"That is exactly what Wayne has done. Now he has to do is consistently.

"He admitted himself he had a point to prove and he has gone a long way to doing that.

"We all know Wayne is a threat and I repeat, he has the potential to be world class. I am delighted with his goal but his overall contribution to the team was very good. He got better and better as the game went on."

It was not a blanket assessment of England's all-round performance as their effectiveness tapered off markedly as the second half wore on.

However, that did not really matter as by the half hour point, McClaren's team were three goals to the good, had victory in the bag and were merely saving energy for Wednesday's meeting with Russia in Moscow where victory will seal a place at Euro 2008 with a month to spare.

Such a prospect was virtually unthinkable six months ago when McClaren and his team were mercilessly jeered and heckled by their own fans after an atrocious performance against Andorra in Barcelona.

At that point it did not appear McClaren would even survive the summer, let alone reach a point where can preside over such a stylish route to Austria and Switzerland.

"I said all along qualifying is a long campaign," reflected McClaren.

"I am not really surprised at the position we are in now. I have always had great belief in these players and the quality we have got.

"It just frustrated me at the time that we weren't doing better, just as it delights me that we finally are doing that now."

Indeed, the only remnant from that sorry day is the incessant booing of Frank Lampard, who was introduced for Michael Owen to a notably negative reaction.

Given Lampard could yet figure at the Luzhniki Stadium this week as McClaren toys with the idea of a 4-3-3 formation to stifle Guus Hiddink's men, it was one of only two real minuses.

The other was the loss of Ashley Cole to an ankle injury which is almost certain to see him miss the Russia trip, and possibly quite a while after that given the amount of pain the Chelsea full-back was in as he was stretchered down the tunnel.

Nicky Shorey, Phil Neville and Joleon Lescott, who looked hesitant as he made his debut from the bench, are the trio vying to replace Cole if, as expected, he is ruled out.

Skipper John Terry continues to improve and his fitness will be assessed on Monday morning before England head to the Thomas Holford Catholic College in Altrincham for their first experience of the 'field turf' on which this week's game will be played.

McClaren now knows a win will seal his side's fate, while a draw would leave them requiring just a single point from their final game against Croatia at Wembley next month to confirm their place among the last 16.

Given the stakes are so high, it is perhaps understandable the former Middlesbrough coach prefers not to let minds become clouded by the pitch issue.

"I am not worried about it at all," he said.

"We have done our research over 100 games that have been played on it and there is no difference between the field turf surface and grass at all. Whatever we are presented with, we will cope with.

"Win on Wednesday and we will be through. What a great opportunity that is. We should have no fears about it at all."

Joe Cole insists Frank Lampard has the character to overcome being the latest target of the England boo boys.


Lampard was jeered when he came on as a second-half substitute during the comfortable 3-0 win over Estonia in Saturday's Euro 2008 qualifier at Wembley.


Striker Peter Crouch and midfielder Owen Hargreaves have also received similar treatment at various times during the past two years.

Cole is perplexed as to why Lampard, who has lost his starting spot to Gareth Barry, has joined that list.

But he is backing him to come through with flying colours as England begin preparations for Wednesday's vital clash with Russia in Moscow.

Cole said: 'For me, Frank is one of the best players in the world. He has never let England down.

'He has been England's player of the year. It amazes me that people can do that.

'I can't believe it. He is one of the best players I have played with. I can't remember him having too many average games in an England shirt.

'But Frank is a strong character. If anyone is a strong enough character to deal with that, it is Frank.

'It is not nice when it happens to anyone. But Frank will come through this and show people what a top player he is.'

England will have to contend with playing on an artificial pitch in Moscow but Cole believes that should not affect their level of performance as they look for the win which will ensure qualification for the 2008 finals.

He said: 'Russia are going to be a different kettle of fish to Estonia. It is going to be tough. They are a good side and when they lost 3-0 here the scoreline did not do them justice.

'People go on about the plastic pitch but, for me, the ball is still going to be round and it is still going to be 11 versus 11 and there no excuses.

'I have played on Hackney Marshes so I am sure it will be better than those! We certainly don't fear the artificial pitch.'

Cole feels the game against Estonia, settled by three goals in the first half, was perfect preparation for the battle with the Russians.

He said: 'It was a good performance. It was one of those games where you can make it difficult for yourselves, which we have done in the past, or you can make it comfortable.

'Our attitude, the way we came out and went straight at them, made it nice and comfortable. I'd be happy to be 3-0 up after 30 minutes in every game.

'We were able to make sure a couple of players didn't over-exert themselves in the last half-hour so we will be nice and fresh for Wednesday. It was a good build-up for the Russia game.

Manager Steve McClaren has vowed there will be no excuses for England if they fail the `field turf' test in Moscow on Wednesday.


The 3-0 win over Estonia at Wembley means McClaren's side will book their place at Euro 2008 if they can emerge victorious from their meeting with Russia at the Luzhniki Stadium.


Having already put three goals past Guus Hiddink's side on their previous encounter last month and now extended their winning streak in competitive combat to five games, which have yielded 15 goals including, finally, one for Wayne Rooney, England can approach their challenge in confident mood.

The only lingering worry is how the Three Lions will adapt to the synthetic surface on which UEFA have agreed the match will take place.

However, while the first chance his players will have for outdoor practice on the surface will come at the Thomas Holford Catholic College in Altrincham on Monday, McClaren is playing down the significance of not playing on grass.

'The pitch is not an issue,' he said.

'We have looked at research extending over 100 matches and there is no difference to a grass pitch at all. The game is no different.

'The loss of possession is the same, there are the same number of headers and tackles and it doesn't bounce high.

'It is a flat pitch and there is absolutely no excuse.'

McClaren's one, unspoken worry, is that the Russian authorities may alter the state of the surface between England's planned training session on Tuesday and kick-off time.

Celtic suffered a similar experience prior to their Champions League qualifier with Spartak Moscow earlier this season, although even then, Gordon Strachan's side were not too adversely affected given the went home with a draw which eventually proved enough to steer them into the group phase.

FA officials have spoken to UEFA about the matter but, having made their opinions known to the governing body, they are now eager to leave the matter in the hands of the official delegate and take whatever comes in their stride.

Certainly, there is no need for McClaren's team to let their focus stray following the latest in a string of impressive results.

While Estonia were never likely to prove anything more than obdurate opponents, the ease with which they were dispatched in an excellent first half pleased McClaren immensely.

In fact, just about the only thing that went badly wrong in the entire 90 minutes was the loss of Ashley Cole to an ankle injury which has ruled him out of this week's showdown, and possibly for quite a while afterwards too judging by the pain he was in as he was carried down the tunnel on a stretcher.

The frustration for McClaren was that he was about to take Cole off, just as he had done with Rio Ferdinand at half-time, to ensure the Chelsea man did not pick up a yellow card that would have seen him incur a one-match ban.

'We were looking at taking Ashley off to keep him out of trouble,' confirmed McClaren.

'Unfortunately that did not happen, but incidents like that can occur in the first minute as well as the 46th.'

McClaren has drafted in Luke Young and also has Nicky Shorey, Phil Neville and Joleon Lescott available. The latter was handed his debut as a half-time replacement for Ferdinand, but appeared slightly off the pace as England faded.

'I am 95% sure about what I am going to do,' said the England coach, whose catch-all statement could also include a rejigging of his midfield to include Steven Gerrard, man-of-the-match Gareth Barry and Frank Lampard, possibly at the expense of Shaun Wright-Phillips, who scored the opening goal.

One man certain of his place is Wayne Rooney, who ended a goal drought in competitive internationals dating back to Euro 2004, when he was still an Everton player.

In praising the Manchester United striker's honest admission about two years of below-par performances for England earlier this week, McClaren also added the warning his 21-year-old forward was still far from the finished product.

By labelling Rooney as `potentially world-class', McClaren was delivering the kind of back-handed compliment guaranteed to draw a reaction. The trick worked a treat.

'When players of this standard receive criticism, they have to prove themselves on the pitch,' said the England coach.

'That is exactly what Wayne has done. Now he has to do it consistently.

'He admitted himself he had a point to prove and he has gone a long way to doing that.

'We all know Wayne is a threat and I repeat, he has the potential to be world class. I am delighted with his goal but his overall contribution to the team was very good. He got better and better as the game went on.

Gerrard targets 'big' performance

Steven Gerrard wants England to capture the spirit of Istanbul when they face Russia in Wednesday night's Euro 2008 qualifier in Moscow.

The Liverpool captain admits "there are parallels" with the Euro 2004 qualifier away to Turkey four years ago when England got the draw they needed in a hostile atmosphere to reach the finals in Portugal.

A win on the plastic pitch at the Luzhniki Stadium on Wednesday would seal qualification for Euro 2008 while a draw would also keep England in a strong position going into their final match of the qualifying campaign against Croatia next month, and Gerrard is targeting a big performance.

Gerrard said: "I don't know if you can say this is the type of game that can define your career, but it is certainly one of those games that if we get the result that we want we can look back on in years to come with a bit of pride.

"I look back on the (5-1) win over Germany (in 2001), the draw in Turkey, games like that and they are big nights, for big players and leaders to step forward and that is what we are going to need again.

"There are parallels with this game and Istanbul. We gave everything we had and came through that night and the feeling now is similar."

source: teamtalk

McClown: I need some heroes

Coach Steve McClaren hopes his players can emulate the spirit of England's rugby union team in Wednesday's Euro 2008 qualifier against Russia.

McClaren admitted a draw would be a good result on the artificial pitch of the Luzhniki Stadium - but is targeting a win and is looking for heroics.

He told a press conference televised by Sky Sports News: "We know this is one of the crunch games - and if we can get the result here we know where that can take us.

"We need organisation and discipline but we need inspiration and heroics - the kind of performances we've had from previous England teams in Istanbul (in 2003) and Rome (in 1998), and we had from the rugby team in Paris at the weekend."

McClaren would not confirm who will replace Ashley Cole at left-back - with Joleon Lescott, Nicky Shorey and Phil Neville all hoping for action - although he admits he has made his mind up about who will be named in his starting

line-up.

The former Middlesbrough boss explained: "I can't name the team or formation.

"I've decided, but the team won't be confirmed until later on this evening to

the players.

"Joleon, Nicky or Phil - I've every confidence in whoever it is who replaces

Ashley to do the job.

"We are coming here to win the game, and it's important we do that and we go into the game knowing we can win it - look at our recent form.

"There are so many permutations and issues around the game. But we have got to make sure we do the job.

"I've got great respect for Russia, but it's about what we do - our personnel and players having the discipline to do our jobs.

"We need heroic and inspirational performances - we are going to have to deal with games like tomorrow and get through them.''

McClaren continued: "Four or five games ago, many doubted we would be in this position.

"But I said the last five games would be critical - and we have put ourselves in pole position. Our performances in recent games bode well.

"Russia have to win - the pressure is huge on them to get this result - but the pitch won't worry me or the players in the slightest.

"Whatever the surface, if someone is a good footballer he can play on it -

and we've got good footballers.''

source: teamtalk

by Phil McNulty - BBC Sport 16 October 2007

Everton's Joleon Lescott made an England debut riddled with uncertainty against Estonia - and now seems set to undergo an even bigger test of nerve against Russia in Moscow.

And just to add to the pressure of playing in a crucial Euro 2008 qualifier, the 25-year-old defender is being tipped to play in an unfamiliar left-back role.

If selected he will replace Ashley Cole, ironic because it was Lescott's hestitation that directly led to the Chelsea defender's ankle injury.

So is England coach Steve McClaren backing a wild hunch in selecting Lescott instead of his more experienced Everton team-mate Phil Neville or Reading's established left-back Nicky Shorey?

There is undoubtedly an element of a throw of the dice about Lescott's selection, but McClaren has been a keen observer of the elegant defender for some time and has received glowing recommendations from Everton manager David Moyes.

One criticism that can be aimed at McClaren is that he has passed up opportunities to use Lescott with England before, but now seems willing to test him in Moscow's hostile surroundings.

Fair point - but clearly he has seen enough to at least be considering a commendable show of faith.

England fans, however, should not be fooled by Lescott's tentative first steps in international football.

Lescott has proved himself to be an outstanding success since his £5m move to Everton from Wolves in June 2006.

He has pace, power, a sound temperament and the total respect of his Everton colleagues, who voted him their players' player of the year last season.

And this season he has turned a previously constant but unfulfilled threat at set-pieces into goals, hitting the target five times to make him one of the top scorers in England's current squad.

Lescott has overcome plenty of obstacles to build towards a well-deserved England opportunity.

No-one should question his character or stomach for a battle.

He fought for his life at the age of five after a serious car accident left him scarred, and knee problems meant he did not play a single game in Wolves' season in the Premiership four years ago.

Lescott is a composed central defender, but he has also been highly-accomplished at left-back for Everton.

He occupied the position for much of the second half of last season and occasionally this term, although the arrival of Leighton Baines - who has also impressed McClaren - has eased Everton's need to utilise him there.

Lescott's strength clearly lies in the defensive areas, the weakness may be on the offensive side.

He can be relied upon to keep it simple but effective, supporting Joe Cole but leaving the creative stuff to the Chelsea star.

Does this make him suitable for the Moscow mission? Yes it does.

In truth, Phil Neville has been in wretched form for Everton this season and Shorey's selection would also have been laced with an element of chance.

Lescott will give England presence in both penalty areas, and if he can overcome the nerves he understandably demonstrated on Saturday, then McClaren may just be on to a winner.

The other big selection dilemma facing McClaren is, once again, whether to select Frank Lampard in midfield.

McClaren had been expected to utilise Lampard in a 4-3-3 system alongside Steven Gerrard and Gareth Barry - but reports from the training ground suggest he will use the more traditional 4-4-2, which would mean the exclusion of the Chelsea midfield man.

It would be the more conservative option to go for Lampard in a three-man midfield - certainly Barry should not be sacrificed - but the temptation has to be to stick with a system that has brought success.

Nigel Winterburn told Sky Sports News that the loss of Ashley Cole is a blow but England have the players to cope without him in Moscow.

Cole was injured during England's 3-0 win over Estonia on Saturday and has been ruled out for up to three months.

Winterburn, who played twice for England, is sure that Steve McClaren has sufficient cover for the Chelsea full-back, even though he says Cole is one of the team's best performers.

"Ashley's been terrific for England," said Winterburn, "he's very consistent, almost a seven out of 10 every game he plays.

"He almost never has a bad game for England and has made that position his own. It's a big blow but we've got two players who can come in - and I'm thinking [Joleon] Lescott and [Nicky] Shorey - that I believe can do a good job for England.

Winterburn, whose number three shirt at Arsenal was inherited by Cole, would rather that McClaren picked either Lescott or Shorey ahead of Phil Neville despite their lack of experience.

"I personally think that McClaren may go with Lescott because he's been in terrific form for Everton last season and again this season, playing at left-back as well as centre-half," said Winterburn.

But with Lescott having only played 45 minutes international football (against Estonia), wouldn't that be a gamble in such an important match?

"I don't think it will be a gamble," continued Winterburn, "because Shorey has not played a lot of international football either so then you would say that we would have to go with Phil Neville.

"For me Phil Neville's more of a right-back or holding midfield player.

"Go with the men in form and who are comfortable in their positions and although Shorey and Lescott have limited experience at this level, if you don't play them how are they going to get experience anyway?

"I'm sure they will rise to the occasion and so I would go for either Lescott or Shorey."

McClaren relishes Russia pressure

England coach Steve McClaren is relishing the pressure of the must-not-lose confrontation with Russia in Moscow on Wednesday

Although the visitors' plans have been hit by the almost certain loss of captain John Terry to a knee injury suffered in training on Tuesday night, after five straight Euro 2008 victories, McClaren has every reason to be in bullish mood.

While he is refusing to get carried away at the prospect of booking a place at next summer's finals in Austria and Switzerland by beating Guus Hiddink's men, after the trials and tribulations of his early months in charge, the current challenge is one he is happy to face.

"Our qualifying campaign will be defined by what happens here - and that is great," he said.

"It is better than being here with no chance of qualifying. This is the position we wanted to be in at the beginning.

"Yes, we would have liked to have qualified by now - but only Germany have done that. I have always said it would come down to the last two or three games, and so it has proved."

Despite Terry's injury - which should see Sol Campbell retain his place in a defence probably also featuring Everton's Joleon Lescott as replacement for Ashley Cole - for once McClaren is in the happy position of being the least pressurised of the two managers.

While victory would take England through, a draw would leave Russia in the unenviable position of needing to beat Israel in Tel Aviv and then hope Croatia can defeat McClaren's side at Wembley on the same night, with Andorra on home soil their final game.

It is a healthy situation for the visitors and one that could hardly have been envisaged when England were lambasted by their own fans as they laboured against Andorra in March.

"Four or five games ago, so many people doubted we would be in this position," McClaren observed.

"We have come here knowing a draw is a good result - but we are coming here to win.

"Our performances in recent games bode well. Russia have to worry about us, not the other way round."

McClaren is demanding heroics and inspiration from a side which will now be captained by Steven Gerrard and will almost certainly have Frank Lampard itching to get involved from the substitutes' bench.

Although Gerrard does not conjure up the same bulldog spirit as Terry, he is capable of inspiration, as he showed against Andorra.

That trait has been so evident among England's rugby counterparts, who have performed heroically during their World Cup campaign - a fact not lost on McClaren.

"The history of English sporting teams and individuals suggests a never-say-die spirit," he said.

"When their backs are against the wall, they come out fighting and they come out on top.

"Despite the criticism or whatever may be thrown at them, they still stand up and deliver.

"It is exactly what we have seen in the last two rugby matches. We have all been inspired by that - me, my players and my staff - and that is what we need against Russia."

source: teamtalk