England 0 Germany 1 we didn't have a single shot on target they said

England 0 Germany 1 we didn't have a single shot on target they said

Apart from the traffic, the Germans simply adore it in London. Having taken to travelling around on the Tube, they have not lost in the city for nearly three decades. And neither have their reserves.
Sadly for England there is little consolation in this defeat. They escaped the sort of humiliation they suffered in South Africa but were still beaten by a team which would be flattered to be considered  Germany’s second-string.
Unlike the lesson from Chile on Friday, this did not come with the ready-made excuse of experimentation. And it will only intensify the pain for Roy Hodgson that his side were not torn to shreds on the counter-attack but beaten by a simple header by Per Mertesacker because they were unable to defend properly from corners.

Beaten: Joe Hart watches Per Mertesacker's header fly past him and nestle in the bottom corner

Rise and fall: Mertesacker beat Chris Smalling to the ball and headed past the helpless Hart

Loving it: Arsenal's centre back enjoyed his goal and produced a knee-slide celebration

Match facts

England: Hart, Walker, Jagielka, Smalling, Cole (Gibbs 53), Gerrard (Henderson 56), Cleverley (Wilshere 64), Townsend, Rooney (Barkley 71), Lallana (Lambert 76), Sturridge.
Germany: Weidenfeller, Westermann (Draxler 67), Mertesacker, Boateng, Schmelzer (Jansen 45), L Bender, S Bender, Gotze, Kroos, Reus (Schurrle 82), Kruse (Howedes 56).
Goal: Mertesacker 39.
Att: 85,934.
Ref: Stephane Lannoy.

Until Mertesacker struck in the 39th minute, England’s defence had been solid, even if it made for a torpid spectacle.
Joe Hart had responded well to his personal challenge but though England stifled their opponents successfully, they lacked creativity on the ball around the fringes of the penalty box.
Once behind, Hodgson took more risks and his players operated with more freedom. They started to threaten Germany but were increasingly vulnerable at the back and Hart had to make several  excellent saves to stop them extending their lead.
Who knows what Joachim Low’s first team would have done in these circumstances?

Lunging in: Mario Gotze is tackled by Adam Lallana (left) and Tom Cleverley (right)

Getting to grips: Ashley Cole tries to rob Gotze of possession as England struggled to create

Side by side: Joachim Low (right) reacts on the touchline as England manager Roy Hodgson looks on

Hodgson made nine changes to the team beaten by Chile on Friday while Low, in his 101st game in charge, made eight changes to the Germany side which drew 1-1 in Italy. Mesut Ozil, Philipp Lahm and Manuel Neuer were excused.  Bastian Schweinsteiger, Lukas Podolski and Sami Khedira were among those injured and Andre Schurrle, Thomas Muller and Julian Draxler were on the bench.
There is such a rich history between the teams but Hodgson had been at pains before the game to insist that it was more important to gather knowledge about his  players. It was important for Hart, playing for the first time since his mistake at Chelsea more than three weeks ago, and for Ashley Cole, in the unfamiliar position of having his place threatened for both club and country.
Neither appeared uncomfortable as the game unfolded at a gentle tempo. Germany did not stretch and penetrate England in the opening exchanges as Chile had done at Wembley four days earlier.
On the eve of the game, former Germany midfielder Dietmar Hamann offered Andros Townsend as a good example of what English football did wrong — failing to  nurture their young players,  sending them on loan around the lower leagues and then over- reacting when they finally start to mature at the top level.
But Townsend it was who added urgency to the pedestrian start and lifted fans from their seats when he got on the ball, linking with Wayne Rooney, who tried to drop and work between the lines with mixed success, and Daniel Sturridge.

Wheeling away: Mertesacker turns to celebrate after opening the scoring for Germany at Wembley

All together now: Germany players celebrate with Mertesacker after he nodded home with panache

Frustration: Gerrard (left), Daniel Sturridge and Andros Townsend (right) look dejected after the opener

Hodgson’s team enjoyed some good situations in possession but as Germany dropped deep and invited England to come forward, Rooney and Sturridge got little out of Mertesacker and Jerome  Boateng. At the back, Hodgson will have been relieved to see some solidity after signs of flimsiness against the counter-attacking power of Chile and Poland.
Low’s Germany, too, love to break at pace but there was little  evidence of this in the first-half. Phil Jagielka and Steven Gerrard brought defensive strength and determination to the team and Cole brought his experience, clearly tripping Mario Gotze from behind on one occasion but getting away with it.
So it would not have impressed the manager to see this same unit surrender the lead after a poorly defended sequence of set-pieces.
First Hart was required to make a splendid reflex save to turn a header by Mertesacker around the post after the Arsenal centre-half beat Chris Smalling to a corner taken by Toni Kroos.

Off the post: Townsend hit the woodwork in the second half but could not breach Germany's defence

Making himself big: Hart jumps to put off Germany midfielder Sidney Sam who tried to lob him

From the next corner, Rooney headed clear but only back to Kroos, who delivered another fine cross which Mertesacker converted. Again, the veteran central defender, winning his 95th cap, got the run on Smalling, darting ahead of him and Tom Cleverley to plant his header inside the far post.
England summoned a response but again were left searching for a magical finish from outside the penalty area. Townsend ate up the ground down the right and Gerrard unleashed a dipping strike from 25 yards.
As it cleared debutant goalkeeper Roman Weidenfeller there was a split second when it seemed set to dip under the bar, but instead it brushed the roof of the netting.
As England loosened up and began to test the German defence a little more after the interval, the visitors found the room they sought on the break. Marco Reus was let down by his touch before half-time, Max Kruse wasted a terrific opportunity early in the second half, shooting when he might have passed it, and Hart produced a good block to thwart Reus.
Townsend thumped a low drive into the foot of the post but England end the year with two Wembley defeats and two performances which should at least keep any fanciful notions in check before the team departs for the World Cup next year.

Block: Kyle Walker (right) and Smalling try to stop Andre Schurrle from adding to Germany's lead

Mixed emotions: Low (right) celebrates Germany's goal while Hodgson looks on, disappointed 

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