LIVE: ENGLAND-URUGUAY (Second Half)

(That was a good bowl of soup — Progresso Italian Wedding with little meatballs and noodles!)

Subs: King for Terry, Jenas for Gerrard

And Uruguay changes keepers

46:10 — Uruguay has defended the long ball well, but Jenas seems not to have noticed

47:00 — good long bender from Carrick to create corner

47:30 — Rooney finally has a go: corner

51:10 — Jenas taken down from behind at the 25-yard line, but as he was dithering with the ball the ref is apathetic

With the various injuries and Terry being rested, the middle and back third for England make me anxious

53:30 — as if on cue, Forlan dances 30 yards without so much as a harsh glance to stop him

55:00 — another instance of insane uruguayan defending goes unremarked by the ref as somebody climbs someone else’s back just outside the box

Crouchie and Wright-Phillips warming up

Sam Allardyce bored in the stands — he yawns like a hippo

57:30 — Now Bent is pressing — second offside in about 4 minutes

59:00 — Uruguay getting a lot more run of the ball and forcing Robinson to act

59:10 — almost every touch by Rio is an adventure

60:30 — another well-developed push by Uruguary results in a diving stop by Robinson

61:30 — Rooney has to fight like a dog to stop another push from Uruguay

61:50 — counterattack — and finally Joe Cole creates a chance by being brought down in a close area

62:40 — let’s call it 30 yards — Becks scorches it low and it goes wide left

SUBS; S W-P for Becks, Crouch for Rooney — Crouch’s shirt has two different numbers on it: nothing like playing for a top-flight organization

64:00 — the subs contribute straight-away — Crouch draws a free kick and SWP creates a cross with a run down the right side

66:30 — the linesman and a Uruguayan play footsie with the placement of the ball before a corner kick: charming

67:20 — that second corner nearly did England in… If John Terry isn’t healthy for Germany, it could be a short tournament

68:00 — Uruguayan captain cautioned after a rough tackle on Joe Cole — both captains are in the book

69:00 — nice series of passes, but England never get inside the box and SWP coughs it away

70:30 — SWP does a briliant job bringing the ball up along the right touch line and crossing in just at the corner, but nothing comes of it

73:00 — Bent still shows some impressive pace, but it’s mostly whilst running into the corner away from the goal

GOALLLLLLLL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Joe Cole crosses beautifully to Crouch!!!!!! Nice ball out of the back (King?) then Cole crossed perfectly and Crouch got well into the air and smashed it!!!! How nice for him to do it at Anfield!

75:10 — and then Crouch almost returns the courtesy to Cole with a nice ball forward that Cole can’t make a goal of in a crowded box

76:10 — the complexion of the game has changed — Jenas with a promising free kick

78:30 — Ruggiero — the guy who tried to cheat with the corner kick — now flops on the ground blunting an English attack clear across the pitch: twat

79:40 — SWP to Neville to Bent — nearly!

England are having much more initiative

Jermaine Defoe suited up and ready to enter

Another booking for somebody hacking Cole. That’s Cole’s game — he gets the dander up in opponents and they start to make mistakes.

SUB; Defoe for Bent — Bent showed plenty of pace but not quite the purpose you;d like to see

82:30 — SWP brought down and for once the ref calls it

Ruggiero is off and the Forlan gets a yellow for lipping off to the ref during the switch

83:40 — Cole is fouled again

84:40 — Cole has another nice balll into the box, but unfortunately it’s to Rio, who tries to roll it into a spliff and gives it away

85:00 — England’s younger players are creating chances with steals and pushes forward; corner — and Rio knocks somebody down to make what point I can’t say….

87:00 — given enough extra time, England will score again

87:10 — Carragher booked for senseless foul and the announcer correctly diagnoses it as a potential red

This has become a chippy, feisty game

88:00 — SWP continues to devour the left fullback in gulps and gets folks angry at him — and now Crouch comes in to fight in defense of his wee mate SWP

With less than two minutes in regulation time the game has become a shove-fest

It occurs to me that Crouch is so tall that his every infraction looks enormous to refs

Uruguay brings in a sub at 90:05 — classy move from the caretaker manager

4 mins of stoppage time

91:30 — oneof Robinson’s very few touches since the half

92:20 — A final push from SWP into the box but no result

GOOOOOALLLLL!!!!!!!!!!!! Joe Cole on a beautiful short chip at the near post on a cross from SWP!!!!! Absolutely deserving result and just the players to have created it!!!!

A winner, surely in the 93rd minute!

FULL TIME!!!!!!!

Impressive turn around from 1-0 down in the 75th minute!