England must do it Chelsea style, says JT
CAPTAIN John Terry insists England will need to adopt Chelsea’s physical approach if they are to secure their World Cup qualification on Wednesday night.
Fabio Capello’s England entertain Croatia at Wembley knowing victory will guarantee their place in South Africa next summer.
The Croatians adopted an aggressive style in their last visit to Wembley back in November 2007 when a bruising 3-2 victory ensured England failed to qualify for the European Championships.
And it was much the same in Zagreb last September when England got their revenge with a 4-1 victory.
Now Terry has warned his men to expect another physical encounter with Croatia themselves fighting for their World Cup futures.
“From a personal point of view, the last game in Zagreb was very physical,” Terry said. “They set the tone of the game early on. That is what we need to do. I think for the first 15 minutes we need to be aggressive and match them. When the ball does get down and we start playing I think we’ve seen we can match a lot of the teams in the world. But physically, as we do at Chelsea, you go out to win your battles early on. That’s key; that can set the tone of the game.”
Terry has also heaped praise on in-form Tottenham striker Jermain Defoe, who is pushing for a place in Capello’s starting line-up after netting his fifth goal in three international matches in the 2-1 friendly victory over Slovenia on Saturday.
“Defoe has looked very sharp early this season for Spurs and England,” Terry added. “He is probably pushing to be our number one or number two striker at the moment.
“There is always the chance for anyone to force their way in. Jermain wasn’t involved a few months back. Now look at him.”