Euro 2016 qualifier: 10 talking points from England and Slovenia

England’s 3 – 2 win over Slovenia in Ljubljana was about 10 times more entertaining in the second half, when England really came alive. 1. What colour England were (Mike Egerton/PA) Spent the first 10 minutes cheering for the team in white. Really should have listened to the commentary! #SLOvENG — Nick Coke (@nicholascoke) June 14, 2015 #SLOvENG Thought we were playing Well…Then Realised……We're Playing In Red :-) — stokietony (@stokietony) June 14, 2015 2. Phil Jones’s terrible throw It led to a counter attack for the first Slovenia goal. He seemed to be a baffling choice at right-back ahead of Nathaniel Clyne. Hooked at half-time. Phil Jones trying to throw the ball in… pic.twitter.com/a4wDbOq8IY — Paddy Power (@paddypower) June 14, 2015 3. Henderson playing right back (Mike Egerton/PA) Not sure I quite understand Henderson at right back. Bizarre. England look very imbalanced already #SLOvENG — Danny Jamieson (@DannyJamieson14) June 14, 2015 Just switched on, am i seeing things or is henderson right back???? #SLOvENG — CPFC (@Steveg1581) June 14, 2015 What was the point in playing Henderson at RB for 40 minutes & then being on an actual RB in Clyne with 5 mins left? #HodgsonOut #SLOvENG — Rob Price (@SaintRobinho86) June 14, 2015 4. Gary Cahill’s defensive mistake Playing for offside instead of going with the runner. That’s just abysmal #SLOvENG — John (@wiltch82LFC) June 14, 2015 The most we saw of Cahill was when he tried – and failed – to play Milivoje Novakovic offside with dire consequences. It led to Slovenia’s first goal. 5. Roy Hodgson’s reaction to said goal Did he just nod off? 6. Rooney’s missed opportunities Rooney having a mare today. Pony finishing. #SLOvENG — Owen (@Kingstonbro) June 14, 2015 For most of the match it seemed he just couldn’t find the back of the net. The skipper missed golden chances, although one did draw a top-class save from Samir Handanovic in the first half. Then even when he was offside at 66 minutes, he hit the post. It wasn’t looking like Rooney’s day – he got an elbow in the head by the Slovenian captain (who was lucky not to get a red card) and all Rooney got was a free kick, which he missed of course. May as well have just adopted this position for most of the match Rooney (Mike Egerton/PA) Then FINALLY he got his goal (his 48th England goal, making him level with Gary Lineker in international goals for the country) when it really mattered. He told ITV afterwards: “It’s great to score the winner and it was a great team performance.We were unlucky to be 1-0 down and we spoke about that at half-time and came out on the front foot.” 7. When we were reminded of a simpler non- HD time .@ITV just lost its HD. Did we really used to watch football like this? #SLOvENG — Chris Peilow (@cjpeilow) June 14, 2015 Best moment of the game so far… #SLOvENG pic.twitter.com/OHdLKfxVQz — Three Lions News (@3lionsnews2day) June 14, 2015 8. Jack Wilshire’s brilliance Apart from putting England back in the game when they were 0-1 down, he won a lot of possession back throughout the match. The midfielder’s first goal was a perfect  finish after the ball dropped to him just outside the penalty box. His first international goal was followed by a second. 9. The impact of the substitutes Adam Lallana came on for Jones at half time and made a big impression, playing a key role in the equaliser. Meanwhile Theo Walcott, who came on for Townsend at 75 minutes, played a part in Rooney’s winner by drawing the foul that led to the goal. 10.  Raheem Sterling justifying Hodgson’s faith Sterling leaving Bostjan Cesar in his wake (Darko Bandic/AP/PA) The prolonged contract dispute with Liverpool led their fans to turn on Sterling towards the end of the season – a reception home fans replicated throughout last weekend’s friendly in the Republic of Ireland. Hodgson expressed concern that the winger is not currently tough enough to deal with such abuse, but trusted him to start in today’s game. Off the pitch matters aside, it was an impressive display from Sterling in attack and defence. His quick feet and balance allowed him to turn the hosts in knots, while his tracking back was notable throughout. The display was more like the Sterling onlookers had become accustomed to, showing a fearlessness in attack and a desire to create. One thing Hodgson deserves praise for is identifying Sterling and Wilshere as England's two best prospects and trying to build around them. — JDL (@JakLew89) June 14, 2015 He should have scored inside four minutes though. The winger wasted a glorious chance when put through and somehow turning onto the roof of the net from close range. Sterling continued to threaten and an exceptional second-half run could have also ended in a shot, but he selflessly played out to Rooney.

Source: SNAPPA