England 1 Italy 1: VAR penalty denies Three Lions as Lorenzo Insigne’s late effort cancels out Jamie Vardy’s opener
England beat Holland on Friday but were denied at the death by VAR decision
THEY will have to work out a way to win games all over again.
England, done all ends up by a controversial VAR decision five minutes from time, have to press reset.
It is the sort of excruciating, irritating decision that England will have to face at the World Cup.
Then they will have to problem solve, to work out a way to start all over again and win a game all over again. They did not get that chance here.
England conceded their first goal in six games when James Tarkowski nipped at the ankles of Federico Chiesa five minutes from time. Normally he would have got away with it.
Not here, not on his England debut, not when German referee Deniz Aytekin had the chance to kick the decision upstairs.
Was it a clear and obvious error by the referee? No, not really.
All that matters, after Lorenze Insigne had buried the penalty kick beyond Jack Butland, is that it had undone England’s hard work.
They were looking good for the win, in tournament mode after draws with Germany and Brazil, a win against Holland, another one on the way against Italy.
Instead they ended up with a draw, finishing this international fortnight with a frustrating result. Shame that.
England were in a hurry, taking advantage of Italy’s sleepy defence when Jamie Vardy put them into the lead 26 minutes in.
It was all done at breakneck speed, with Jesse Lingard’s ingeunuity teeing up a classic Vardy chance after Raheem Sterling had been fouled.
Lingard was razor-sharp, quick on the draw when Sterling was bundled over as this bundle of energy made his way towards goal.
They are hurtling towards the World Cup now, speeding towards the tournament after extending their unbeaten run to eight games. You can win a World Cup with a game to spare on that form.
Suddenly the key to it all is Sterling. The little man is on fire, grilling this Italian defence every time he had a touch of the ball.
Sterling had a ball out there, picking up on his stellar performance against Holland with another man of the match performance here.
Good for him because the Manchester City flyer has taken a kicking off England fans over the past couple of years.
He is feeling the love now, the raw emotion bouncing off the stands after this dizzying spell in an England shirt.
It was only a day earlier when Sterling had been talking about the little coaching tips the great Guardiola has passed on to him.
One of them, opening his body up instead of taking an unnecessary touch of the ball with the outside of his boot, presented Vardy with his first chance.
That one was blocked when Italy left-back Mattia de Sciglio came haring across the penalty area with a perfectly-executed challenge.
There was more to come from him. He drew the foul in the 27th minute, luring Italy defender Marco Parolo into a clumsy challenge outside the area.
Lingard spotted the opening, immediately putting the ball down before setting Vardy scampering free inside the area.
The finish was from the heritage menu, taking Leicester fans back to a time when he started scoring these goals in their title-winning season. He can do it for England, as well.
The finish was ruthless and empathic, drilled into the top corner of Gianluigi Donnarumma’s net. Nothing could stop a strike like that.
This was a faster England, upping the tempo at times in this final tune-up match before Gareth Southgate gets down to the nitty-gritty of selecting a squad in May.
Options are emerging. He will be pleased with Ashley Young, with his experience and attitude adding a soothing voice to this youthful squad.
They still have a lot to learn. John Stones, this wannabe libero at the heart of England’s defence, is one of them.
His mistake, a stupid one early in this fixture, allowed Ciro Immobile to pinch the ball off his toes on the edge of the area.
Stones recovered, scrambling the ball away for a corner when Immobile was about to have a ping.
Beyond that, Southgate will be content with the performance.
They are asking questions up front, with Sterling and Lingard asking questions of Italy’s defence again.
Southgate is giving them freedom, confident enough in his own skin to dishing out debuts for Tarkowski and then to bring on Lewis Cook 19 minutes from time.
Incredibly he overlooked Dele Alli, using up his fifth sub when he brought on Jordan Henderson 19 minutes from time.
By then England were looking good for the win, the sort of the result that gives players belief they can beat all the big teams. Instead, they will have to start again.
