Terry inspired - By the Ashes

09 September 2009 07:15
Fabio Capello's men take on Croatia at Wembley tonight knowing victory will guarantee qualification for the 2010 World Cup in South Africa. However, even a draw would be enough should Ukraine fail to beat Belarus in Minsk. That game also kicks off tonight, but at 6pm BST, meaning England will know exactly what they need to qualify when their match starts at 8pm. Related Articles * England v Croatia: preview * Qualifying: key issues * The Daily Bung: what is Englishness anyway? * Niko Kranjcar: Wembley will inspire Croatia * Fabio Capello plots Croatia's downfall * Emile Heskey set to partner Wayne Rooney The whole country celebrated when Strauss' men defeated the Australians at The Oval this summer, to regain the famous Ashes urn, and Terry invited England's victorious cricketers to Wembley to watch Saturday's 2-1 victory over Slovenia. The Chelsea centre-back now says it is up to England's footballers to maintain the feel-good atmosphere and follow the cricketers' lead in next year's World Cup finals. Terry said: "It's an inspiration. When you see them, you want that same success. "Football is the No 1 sport in this country. To see the response the cricket team got... it would be 10 times that if we won something, so those images are in the minds of the players." Croatia ended England's hopes of qualifying for Euro 2008 with a 3-2 win at Wembley just under two years ago, and Terry is determined to make amends. He said: "Just winning is the be-all and end-all for me and the lads. "To finish the job early and to give the manager a great opportunity, with two or three games left, to try new players and new systems in the remaining games will be good if he chooses to do that. "It would give him the opportunity. He could experiment a little bit. But we need to realise as well, that they need to beat us. We need to be patient early on. I hope we can pick holes in their defence and score goals. "I thought this qualifying group would be tough. There were two or three very strong teams in the group - and you looked at Croatia being the main threat, with Ukraine behind them. "To go to Croatia and do what we did was brilliant. Now to get them at home, with the memories of what happened last time at Wembley, is a chance to correct things. "We're all so passionate about doing that for ourselves, for the fans and for the nation. We owe it to everyone."

Source: Eurosport