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Manchester United striker Michael Owen insists England must take positives from Spain victory
The former Liverpool man praised the youngsters within the squad, but feels Capello's side must develop their own ‘identity’ if they are to challenge next summer
15 Nov 2011 18:45:00
By Joe Wright
Getty Images
Manchester United striker Michael Owen believes England can take a lot of positives from their surprise victory over Spain on Saturday.
Fabio Capello’s side secured a 1-0 win courtesy of Frank Lampard’s second-half header, and held off the European and world champions’ fearsome attack despite fielding a host of inexperienced players.
Owen, who has 89 caps for the Three Lions, praised the unity of the side after the win at Wembley, but pointed out that it all counts for nothing if results do not go England’s way in the finals of Euro 2012 next summer.
In an interview with BBC Sport, he said: “There were a lot of positives to take. Everyone did their job well, we were strong as a unit.
“The youngsters did well. It’s nice to see one or two youngsters being introduced at a time, it’s good to keep the nucleus of the side like that.
“It’s nice to put the players and fans in a better mood going to a tournament but it’s only the results in that tournament that are going to matter.”
Despite the result, Owen still believes that Spain will be the side to beat next summer, but has backed England to pose a threat in the tournament - provided the manager makes the right calls.
The 31-year-old said: “I still think we’ve got some top players.
“If we can get our way of playing, our identity as a team, if the manager picks a good team, a good formation, then I think we’ve got players than can rattle anyone’s feathers.
“Spain are still the stand-out for me, but after that, it could be any one of a dozen teams of which we’re as good if not better.”
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Fabio Capello’s side secured a 1-0 win courtesy of Frank Lampard’s second-half header, and held off the European and world champions’ fearsome attack despite fielding a host of inexperienced players.
Owen, who has 89 caps for the Three Lions, praised the unity of the side after the win at Wembley, but pointed out that it all counts for nothing if results do not go England’s way in the finals of Euro 2012 next summer.
In an interview with BBC Sport, he said: “There were a lot of positives to take. Everyone did their job well, we were strong as a unit.
“The youngsters did well. It’s nice to see one or two youngsters being introduced at a time, it’s good to keep the nucleus of the side like that.
“It’s nice to put the players and fans in a better mood going to a tournament but it’s only the results in that tournament that are going to matter.”
Despite the result, Owen still believes that Spain will be the side to beat next summer, but has backed England to pose a threat in the tournament - provided the manager makes the right calls.
The 31-year-old said: “I still think we’ve got some top players.
“If we can get our way of playing, our identity as a team, if the manager picks a good team, a good formation, then I think we’ve got players than can rattle anyone’s feathers.
“Spain are still the stand-out for me, but after that, it could be any one of a dozen teams of which we’re as good if not better.”
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| Open an account with Sportingbet today and get up to £50 in free bets! |
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| Sign up with William Hill for a free bet up to £25 |
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| Sign up with bet365 for a free bet up to £200 |
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21:50 BST -
And here are some quotes from today's goalscorer, Danny Welbeck: "It's still the same, me and Ashley [Young] playing together.
"We know each other's games and obviously we're training with each other day in and day out.
"So, it was really good to start up top with him."
"We know each other's games and obviously we're training with each other day in and day out.
"So, it was really good to start up top with him."
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