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DONETSK, UKRAINE – JUNE 19: Wayne Rooney of England in action during the UEFA EURO 2012 group D match between England and Ukraine at Donbass Arena on June 19, 2012 in Donetsk, Ukraine. (Photo by Scott Heavey/Getty Images)
England overcame Ukraine to win 1-0 and top their group to meet Italy in the quarterfinals of Euro 2012. The Three Lions should consider themselves very fortunate after some key refereeing decisions (or shall we say blunders) went their way. The first was a handball by Parker inside the penalty area which should have been a penalty, but the referee failed to take notice, the second was even more controversial and is sure to make headlines in Ukraine as a goal from Devic was astonishingly not given after television replays clearly showed the ball had crossed the line before it was cleared by John Terry.
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Ukraine went into the match minus the injured Andriy Shevchenko who started on bench, and managed to surprise everyone with their intent and industrious attitude as they sought to score a goal. They came close many a time, but agonizingly could not find the back of the net.
Ukraine
Andriy Pyatov (4.5)- Made a blunder when he failed to deal with Steven Gerrard’s cross which somehow found its way to Wayne Rooney, who calmly heads it into an open goal. However, he made a fine save of Ashely Cole’s effort in the second half.
Oleh Gusev (5.5) – Took a venomous shot from distance early on in the first half which goes just over the goal and also made a good tackle on Welbeck towards the end of the first half. Whipped in a dangerous cross in the second half that forced Hart to tip it over goal.
Yaroslav Rakitskiy (6.0)- Made a good clearance of Ashely Young’s cross in the first half, and made an important interception of ball that was on its way towards Rooney.
Yevhen Kacheridi (4.0)- Had real problems dealing with Rooney, who got away from him a few times. Also seems to be vulnerable to pace.
Yevhen Selin (5.5)- Attacked well and made a very good cross to Milevsky whose attempt was foiled by Terry. Was able to contain James Milner and Theo Walcott in the second half.
Anatoliy Tymoshchuk (4.5)- One of the bigger names in the team, but was unable to perform at his best. Seemed to be invisible in the midfield at times.
Andriy Yarmolenko (7.5)- Created plenty of problems for the English defense on the right with his pace and enterprising runs. Made a tantalizing dribble into the English box, turns Parker inside out but the ball is nudged wide by Joleon Lescott. Does very well to track back and deal with Rooney, who had managed to slip past the offside trap.
Oleh Garmash (5.5)- Has a go on goal from quite a distance and came quite close to scoring, and he was subbed for Nazarenko in the second half.
Yevhen Konopliyanka (7.0)- Industrious on the left flank, cuts in from the flank and takes a powerful shot which is on target but was blocked by Terry. Causes English hearts to flutter as he takes a scintillating shot that swerves at the last moment but Hart manages to get a hand on it.
Artem Milevskiy (6.0)- Played in front of Devic for most of the match, had a good chance in the second half when he gets a header bang in front of goal but he heads it high over the bar.
Marko Devic (6.5)- Op end up the defense in the first half when he made a good pass to Milevsky, who received the ball inside the box, but fumbled and allowed the defense to clear. Clearly a very talented player and was a good replacement for Shevchenko. Scores in the second half as his shot slips under Hart and crosses the goal-line before it was cleared by Terry, but the referee behind the goal stood like a mute despite Ukraine’s protest. Substituted twenty minutes from full-time for Shevchenko.
Subs
Andriy Shevchenko (5.5)- Had clearly not regained fitness and was far from his best. He would not have been sent on under normal circumstances, and was booked for a foul on Young. This was probably his last match for Ukraine.
Bohdan Butco (5.0)
Serhiy Nazarenko (5.0)
England
Joe Hart (6.0)- Made a very good save of Yarmalenko’s shot down to his right, and manages to somehow get his hand on a stunning shot from Konoplyanka, which nine times out of ten would have been goal.
Glen Johnson (5.0)- Contained Garmash but had problems dealing with the highly-skilled Konoplyanka. Stayed in his own half for most of the time and did not look to attack.
John Terry (8.0)- Was solid as a rock in defense and made numerous interceptions and tackles.
Joleon Lescott (7.0)- Very good again as right centre-back, made a couple of notable challenges on Konoplyanka and Milevsky.
Ashley Cole (6.5)- Played really well on the right flank as he so often does for club and country, was booked in the second half for wasting time.
James Milner (6.5)- Worked hard on the right and covered a lot of distance, was good in holding the flank defensively. Got substituted for Walcott.
Steven Gerrard (7.5)- Has easily been England’s best player in the tournament so far, he made yet another assist as his cross was met Rooney in the box, who calmly heads it home. Got himself booked in the second half for a rash tackle.
Scott Parker (4.5)- Wasn’t able to play to his potential as England were not looking particularly threatening for much of the game and were playing a defensive game. Handled the ball inside the penalty area while he was trying to tackle Yarmolenko but fortunately for him and England, the referee did not seem to take notice.
Ashley Young (4.5)- Hasn’t been at his best through out this tournament, was again quite ineffective and unimaginative in midfield and was contained well by Gusev.
Wayne Rooney (6.0)- Looked rather rusty for most of the match, and though he managed to score a goal, he missed an easy chance from six yards away from goal.
Danny Welbeck (5.5)- Was not able to create any significant impact on the game, got a little isolated up front and wasn’t supplied with enough quality crosses from the midfield.
Subs
Theo Walcott- (5.0)
Andy Caroll- (5.5)
Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain- (5.0)
