Fabio Capello's faith in Theo Walcott was vindicated in a 4-1 victory in Zagreb that saw Walcott net a hat trick. This is a huge victory for England and couldn't have come at a better time. After the 2-0 snoozer against Andorra many fans and pundits were second guessing Capello and calling for a change in players and tactics. That performance, combined with Croatia's double over England in Euro Cup qualifying, had many assuming a loss and even Jermaine Defoe only hoped for a point. Croatia had never lost at home, but Capello suggested that given England's current support an away match would suit them. He was right. Capello introduced an offensive lineup, and though they struggled to find their way early they made Croatia pay for their mistakes. Walcott pounced on a deflected clearance and bulged the ol' onion bag(that one's for you Tommy Smyth) in the 26th minute. They couldn't add onto their lead until the second half, when Robert Kovac was sent off for an elbow that took Joe Cole out of the game. Jenas fit in perfectly and some slick passing set up Walcott for his second, which he finished with confidence. and they made quick work of the Croatians. Rooney then fired a cross into the back of the net to end his own international drought. They lost the clean sheet to a goal from Mario Mandzukic, but Walcott's third erased any disappointment. Many will point to Kovac's red card as the reason for the victory, but Capello won't care. With only the group winner guaranteed a spot in the World Cup, an away win against their toughest rivals sees them sitting pretty early. Just as important this will get the fans and media off their back and give them some much needed momentum. Heskey, Walcott and Rooney all worked well together and Heskey may have earned a permanent place in the squad. Walcott's performance sees him a likely fixture on the right for years to come, and Beckham was only brought in at the end to so the crowd could cheer the young hat trick hero.
Walcott was not the only player with a hat trick, as Miroslav Klose grabbed one against Finland. They needed all three to walk away with a point in a 3-3 draw. Denmark completed the big upset of the day by winning in Portugal 3-2 thanks to two very late goals. Greece is off to a perfect start after a 2-0 win over Latvia. Gareth Bale missed a penalty as Wales fell to Russia 2-1. Ukraine is even with England at 6 points after their 3-1 win over Kazakhstan that saw Shevchenko net one. France's 2-1 defeat of Serbia at home might see Domenech keep his job(please no, please no). Italy beat Georgia 2-0 behind a brace from De Rossi. The Netherlands beat Macedonia 2-1 in an unconvincing game. The two big wins of the day go to Spain and Bosnia-Herzegovina. The Spanish were helped by two David Villa goals to beat Armenia(haven't they suffered enough) 4-0. Meanwhile Bosnia put 7 past Estonia without conceding a goal. Also Luxembourg beat Switzerland 2-1 in a battle of the tax havens.One Liners
- Zola accept West Ham job, said to be looking to bring Steve Clarke over from Chelsea as well as Ballack, Lampard, Drogba, Cole, Cole and Terry if they're interested
- Adebayor misses flight for Togo game after hearing that plane would crash if the team boarded, can you blame him?
- Robbie Fowler sign pay as you play deal with Blackburn, is Alan Shearer next?
- Adriano ready to make comeback with Inter, Mourinho sends his picture to all the gelato stores asking them not to serve him
- Cristiano Ronaldo is thinking about getting a haircut, Madrid interested in buying his clippings
