MANAUS,
Brazil — England had just counterattacked and counterpunched, quickly
responding to a goal by Italy with one of its own. But this is the World
Cup, and England never seems to escape the bizarre.
In
the ensuing celebration during the first half on Saturday, Gary Lewin,
England’s physiotherapist, jumped in the air, landed on a water bottle
and dislocated his ankle.
Eventually,
Coach Roy Hodgson’s attempt to blend experience with dauntless youth
brought great enthusiasm but neither victory nor even a draw. Instead,
England lost, 2-1, to Italy, a four-time champion, its defense wilting
in the heat and humidity of the Amazon rain forest.
And with Costa Rica stunning Uruguay, 3-1, earlier in Group D, England may have to defeat both teams to reach the second round.
“Could
we be out before we finish our malaria tablets?” Henry Winter of The
Daily Telegraph joked to his British newspaper brethren.
As the inventor of modern soccer, world champion in 1966 and mostly an
underachiever since, England always seems to enter the Cup with a sense
of entitlement and insecurity. Hopes are high, but something is sure to
go wrong. It always does — often in a penalty-kick shootout.
“I
see the semifinals,” Colin Wilkinson, 59, an English fan from Essex,
said before Saturday’s match. “But that’s my heart, not my head.”
At
the World Cup draw last December, the chairman of the English soccer
federation made a slashing motion across his throat when Group D was
formed. It was widely interpreted as a gesture of defeat.
Government
officials seemed hardly more confident. During a debate about whether
to extend pub hours for the tournament, the Home Office said there was a
“high probability” that England would exit before the late rounds.
The skepticism seemed warranted Saturday.
England
attacked with vigor, but it also seemed vulnerable to the next pass,
the next creative thought, by the patient and incisive Italians, who
played without their injured goalkeeper and captain, Gianluigi Buffon.
In
the 35th minute, a clever stepover move by Andrea Pirlo let a pass
through to Claudio Marchisio above the penalty area. His low, hard shot
found its way through a rain forest of legs to put Italy ahead, 1-0.
England
tied the score two minutes later as Daniel Sturridge half-volleyed a
cross from Wayne Rooney. But the celebration ended with England’s
physiotherapist being taken off on a stretcher.
“It’s a really sad moment for us,” Hodgson said.
The
game was the first at the World Cup to be played in the Amazon. Arena
Amazônia resembles an indigenous basket, its seats painted in the colors
of tropical fruit. But there is not a fevered soccer culture here, and
many believe the 44,500-seat stadium will become the most exotic of
Amazon creatures — a white elephant.
At
halftime, nearly an hour after sunset, the temperature was still 83
degrees with 70 percent humidity at the patchy field, dyed green to hide
the bald spots. Even in victory, Cesare Prandelli, Italy’s coach,
called the conditions “absurd.”
Still,
Italy persevered. Five minutes into the second half, England’s left
flank was exposed yet again as a cross from Antonio Candreva was headed
home by the mohawked Mario Balotelli for the decisive goal.
If
public hope merely simmered instead of boiled for England as this World
Cup opened, so did the pressure. Hodgson found Saturday the perfect
time to introduce the speed and skill and exuberance of players like
Raheem Sterling, 19, who started behind Daniel Sturridge in England’s
4-2-3-1 attack. Sterling appeared fearless, threatening with an early
shot, starting the counterattack that led to Sturridge’s goal.
But
Rooney, 28, will not soon escape scrutiny. He is England’s best and
most heavily criticized player. In two previous World Cups, he
accumulated one red card and zero goals. Some called for Rooney to be
benched against Italy. Paul Scholes, Rooney’s former teammate at
Manchester United, said Rooney might be past his peak, adding, “There’s a
chance he’s worn out.”
Inevitably,
a backlash followed. Hodgson said it was “a bit sad” that England
seemed so obsessed with Rooney. Phil Neville, an assistant at Manchester
United, called the criticism of Rooney “a witch hunt.”Rooney took two fitness trainers with him on vacation before the World
Cup and said he felt rejuvenated. “I don’t care what anybody says,” he
said. “I’m ready.”
