Fight or flight for England, Uruguay
20 Jun 2014 5:08 AM IST
Heavyweights England and Uruguay must resurrect their World Cup hopes or face the prospect of an early flight home when they collide in a crunch Group D fixture on Thursday. Opening defeats to Italy and Costa Rica respectively have left both countries in danger of elimination with little room for error in their last two pool games.
Defeat in Sao Paulo would surely spell doom for either Roy Hodgson’s new-look England or two-time winners Uruguay, who were unimpressive in their 3-1 loss to Costa Rica.
Both countries have question marks over their strikers with calls in British media to either drop talisman Wayne Rooney, or move him from the left to his preferred central role. For Uruguay, Liverpool’s Luis Suarez, this season’s Premier League top-scorer with 31 goals, is set to make his return from keyhole surgery on his the meniscus in his left knee last month.
Rooney set up England’s goal but missed a chance to equalise during Saturday’s 2-1 loss to Italy, in a subdued display which had many critics questioning his place. The Manchester United forward, 28, is still to score at a World Cup.
But England will be wary of a strikeforce pairing Paris Saint-Germain’s Edinson Cavani with the lethal Suarez, even if he won’t be fully match-fit.
Defeat in Sao Paulo would surely spell doom for either Roy Hodgson’s new-look England or two-time winners Uruguay, who were unimpressive in their 3-1 loss to Costa Rica.
Both countries have question marks over their strikers with calls in British media to either drop talisman Wayne Rooney, or move him from the left to his preferred central role. For Uruguay, Liverpool’s Luis Suarez, this season’s Premier League top-scorer with 31 goals, is set to make his return from keyhole surgery on his the meniscus in his left knee last month.
Rooney set up England’s goal but missed a chance to equalise during Saturday’s 2-1 loss to Italy, in a subdued display which had many critics questioning his place. The Manchester United forward, 28, is still to score at a World Cup.
But England will be wary of a strikeforce pairing Paris Saint-Germain’s Edinson Cavani with the lethal Suarez, even if he won’t be fully match-fit.
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