On its first goal, Germany played like England; on its second it played like Brazil. And on its third and fourth goal Germany played like Italy. England, on the other hand, spent most of he evening playing like the Faroe Islands in this 4-1 thrashing. The score line is tricky. This game will forever be known as the one where accounts were finally evened from 1966. That was when England controversially won the World Cup final on a shot that bounced off the crossbar and maybe, maybe went over the line. There was never any doubt that tonight England, which fell behind 2-0, found the net twice. Matthew Upson made it 2-1 Germany after being left unmarked to head in a free kick. And just moments later Frank Lampard pushed one off the crossbar and over the line in the 38th minute. But Uruguayan referee Jorge Larrianda didn’t see what everyone not carrying a whistle or a flag did. So a 2-2 game became a 2-1 game. And then 3-1, and 4-1. Grave injustice? Not really.
Despite the controversy, this German team was compelling, and England everything but. We’re still waiting for Wayne Rooney to wake up, still waiting for England to find someone to play behind him. Germany had offensive options all night, and its blistering pace and counterattack was too much for poor Upson, who was abused on Germany’s first goal by Miro Klose and left for dead by Mesut Özil on its fourth. In between, Germany put together a three-pass move to cut gaping holes in the English defense, with Lucas Podolski beating David James from a tight angle in the 32nd minute. Its third, by Thomas Müller, came after an English free kick bounced off the defensive wall and was back upfield in a heartbeat. It was brilliant football.