England will face hostile crowds, an ambitious opponent and some bad
memories for Wayne Rooney in a World Cup qualifier at Montenegro on
Tuesday.
The visitors cannot afford to lose to the Group H leaders. If
Montenegro wins, the team would move five points ahead of England,
jeopardizing its direct qualification for the 2014 tournament in Brazil.
England coach Roy Hodgson, who is poised to make several changes to
the team that routed San Marino 8-0 on Friday, said it will be a big
match in front of the partisan crowd in Podgorica.
"We are aware of the importance of the game," he said as his team
arrived in the Montenegrin capital during a thunderstorm. "It's not
going to be easy, but we are confident that the team will do very well."Montenegro will go into the game spurred by an eight-match unbeaten
run, including a 1-0 victory in Moldova on Friday to remain two points
clear of England. Ukraine and Poland are both eight points behind
Montenegro, and six back from England.
Montenegro's main striker, Mirko Vucinic, said his team will "fight like lions" against England.
"We can play against anyone, even against England," said Vucinic,
the leading scorer for Juventus who together with Fiorentina forward
Stevan Jovetic will spearhead Montenegro's attack.
"The most important thing is that we come out onto the field and leave every drop of our sweat and blood, if necessary."Montenegro, the tiny mountainous country of just 625,000 people, has
surprisingly established itself as a strong football nation after
splitting from Serbia in 2006. Its first official international
competition as an independent nation was in 2010 World Cup qualifying.
England were held to a 2-2 draw in a Euro 2012 qualifier in October
2011 in Podgorica when Rooney was sent off, and English players know the
atmosphere in Montenegro will be hostile, like it always is in the
Balkans.Rooney was sent off for kicking a defender with 17 minutes
remaining, and Montenegro later equalized. England still qualified for
Euro 2012, while Montenegro lost in the playoffs against the Czech
Republic.
"These are the type of atmospheres where they try to intimidate us,"
said England captain Steven Gerrard, who sat out the match against San
Marino and is likely to start on Tuesday.
"Any time you are away from home against these countries, when
England are in town, the supporters are up for it. They are desperate to
beat us and everything is against us but I think we've got the players
in the squad to go and handle the situation and get the three points."
The memory of Rooney's red card, which meant he was suspended for
two games at Euro 2012, will serve as a warning against any hasty
reactions.
"Wayne is older now," England defender Joleon Lescott said. "He is more experienced and mature."
Vucinic said Montenegro players will not deliberately try to provoke the Manchester United striker.
"I would like to see him get a red card again, because it would be
easier for us to play," Vucinic said. "But we definitely will not play
to make him angry or provoked."
Lescott, although playing only rarely for Manchester City this
season, was included in Hodgson's side because of injuries to defenders
Michael Dawson, Phil Jagielka and Gary Cahill. Rio Ferdinand is out for
fitness reasons.
"We know it's going to be a big game," Gerrard said. "If we play to our level, then we can get the three points."
Besides Gerrard, also likely to return to the English team are Glen
Johnson, Ashley Cole, Michael Carrick, Danny Welbeck and James Milner,
who were all absent against San Marino.
A 0-0 draw against England at Wembley in October 2010 and the 2-2
draw a year later in Podgorica were raucously celebrated by the
boisterous Montenegrin crowds, and their ambitions have grown ahead of
the 2014 World Cup.
Montenegro coach Branko Brnovic rejected claims, which he said are
coming from the English camp, that the rain-drenched slippery pitch at
the Podgorica Stadium will suit the style of play of the hosts.
"As far as I know, the English have always favored long passes and I
can't see why they are complaining about this," Brnovic said. "It
supports the fact they are more scared of this game than we are."
Montenegro will be without three first-choice injured midfielders:
Nikola Drincic, Milorad Pekovic and Branko Boskovic. Defender Savo
Pavicevic is suspended after being sent off in Moldova.
Monday, March 25, 2013
England facing up to hostile crowds
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