Coach Steve McClaren said he could understand the England fans
who booed his players at the end of Wednesday's 1-0 friendly defeat
by Spain.
Substitute Andres Iniesta fired a worthy match-winner in the
63rd minute to dampen England's hopes of building on November's 1-1
friendly draw in the Netherlands, following a fairly dismal spell
in Euro 2008 qualifying.
McClaren's side, who are third in Group E after a 0-0 draw at
home to Macedonia and a 2-0 defeat in Croatia, were roundly booed
by nearly 60,000 fans at the final whistle.
"It's disappointing to lose, obviously, and I can understand the
reaction," said McClaren, whose men are due to play their next home
game at the new Wembley Stadium.
"They don't like losing football matches and especially with
this one being the last one at Old Trafford, where we generally
have a good record but finished on a low.
"We knew it was going to be a hard game and we lost it."
However, McClaren could also rightly point to a string of injury
absentees.
Defenders Ashley Cole and skipper John Terry, midfielders Owen
Hargreaves, Joe Cole and Aaron Lennon and striker Wayne Rooney were
all out, let alone long-term absentee Michael Owen.
"There were six or seven players who would be in the starting
lineup...So we had to juggle and because of that, at times, you're
bound to lack cohesion," he said. "And we did."
However, the underlying problem is up front where England, who
have scored only once in their last four games, rarely troubled
their opponents.
"Nobody is blind to the fact that we lacked quality in the final
third -- that final pass, that final cross and the final finish,"
McClaren said.
"That wins you matches. At times our approach play was good and
patient -- and the final ball let us down. And that's key at any
level of football."
SPANISH LESSON
Spain coach Luis Aragones underlined a difference in quality in
possession between the teams.
"It's always hard when you play England, they're a good strong
team internationally," he said.
"But we are good on the ball, we played the ball around well and
maybe we were thinking quicker as footballers.
"We knew where we wanted to play the ball as soon as we received
it and maybe that was one difference between the two sides."
Spain's own qualifying campaign has run into trouble, with
Aragones's side recording only one win and two defeats which have
left them fifth in Group F.
"The result was different but I don't think the performance here
was any different from the game we lost 3-2 against Northern
Ireland," Aragones said referring to their surprise defeat at
Windsor Park in a Euro 2008 qualifier in September.
"We were winning 2-1, we hit the post at 2-1 and were dominating
play but got caught out by defensive errors."
(Xinhua News Agency February 8, 2007)