England-Hungary

The British press seemed to think it was all a bit miserable, but I was impressed with England's 3-1 victory over Hungary. (Note on the link: how did a man named Angus MacKinnon get to cover England games?) After a boring first thirty minutes, the English controlled the entire game. Owen is still not in form, but this is only the third real match he's played snice coming back from injury.

The match was a reminder of why David Beckham is so important to this team. It may be difficult for those outside of the UK to believe, but quite a lot of fans have called for Beckham to be replaced over the last cycle. Not only did he set up the two goals, but his dangerous crossing and set pieces generated all of England's quality chances, with the exception of the Crouch goal, which came from Joe Cole on the left. Beckham won't beat anyone on the dribble a la Aaron Lennon, but when he's on his game he can shatter opposing defenses.

The Peter Crouch goal was very impressive, and I wonder if we're going to see Sven try pairing him with Owen from the start against Jamaica. And while the purists may scoff, I enjoyed his Kraftwerkian goal celebration. With their proud history of skepticism towards stuffy British institutions, it's no surprise that the Guardian liked it too.

P.S. I share a birthday with Steven Gerrard! Thank god it's not with Jermaine Jenas.