England 2 Czech Republic 2THE SINGLE achievement for England here against the Czech Republic was the eradication of any complacency about the campaign ahead. A stoppage-time equaliser from Joe Cole, following a muddle at a corner kick, was little comfort.
The dullness of his side's work will unsettle manager Fabio Capello more than the outcome. The crowd, booing Frank Lampard when he was taken off, also hinted at how dyspeptic life can get for England.
England's first goal also came from a corner. In open play there was a reasonable amount of running, but the flow of invention was sluggish.
There was something familiar about the scene and one could sense all the old debates, such as the feasibility of picking Steven Gerrard and Lampard, coming back to life.
The match had been a serious affair. This was a fixture intended to sharpen both line-ups before the 2010 World Cup qualifiers.
There was a clue as to the prevailing attitude when Gareth Barry was booked, after a mere 12 minutes, for a rough challenge on Jaroslav Plasil.
The disorder was more apparent still when the visitors went ahead after 22 minutes, with a move in which a few defenders looked overwhelmed.
Radek Sirl got free of Wes Brown on the left and Milan Baros gathered the cut-back before turning the reappointed captain John Terry. His shot then deflected off the outstretched leg of Ashley Cole to beat David James.
If Steve McClaren had still been in charge the announcement of this line-up would have had him in trouble. He could not have escaped accusations that he was distorting the team in order to pander to celebrity names.
With David Beckham, Barry and Lampard all picked, Gerrard had to be used on the left of midfield, a position he had also filled against the US in May.
No one would allege that the imperious Capello bows to the egos of the stars in the group. The England manager could claim, with perfect reasoning, he simply wants to fit in as many of the most effective players as is feasible.
There was continuity with the previous home fixture and the only alteration from the line-up that beat the US 2-0 was the introduction of Barry for the injured Owen Hargreaves.
The Italian now has to reflect on the consequences. With Beckham one-paced on the right and Gerrard inclined to cut inside, there was no obvious means for the midfield to get behind the defence and it was not surprising that England would equalise from set-pieces.
Ashley Cole was asked to run unstintingly, since the other full-back, Brown, does not overlap with confidence. Wayne Rooney, with a licence to roam, was meant to bring fluency.
Someone certainly needed to try and be inventive, since the Czechs were well served in a defence that had Petr Cech in goal.
While Emile Heskey was available to Capello for the first time, the manager preferred to begin with Rooney prompting Jermain Defoe and others. They had produced little in tandem against the US and the manager may simply have diagnosed that this would be cured with more practice.
Defoe, who was replaced by Heskey, did get himself into position on occasion but Cech responded capably, especially when he turned one over in the 38th minute.
Still, England lacked finesse and Lampard was muted in midfield.
Beckham, at least, was his usual self and a characteristically accurate corner helped the side pull level. Brown got in front of Tomas Ujfalusi to head his first international goal.
It had been an odd display by England. There had been no lack of energy, yet it came in a headlong fashion.
The shape and focus Capello seeks was sighted only spasmodically.
With Croatia to be faced in Zagreb next month, however, there may have been no harm in finding out how the team deals with setbacks.
Capello would not have wished to see the side's powers of recovery tested by a further goal. In the 48th minute Barry brought down Jan Polak and the full back Marek Jankulovski curled the free-kick past the right hand of James.
The blow did not prompt much of a response and the Czechs had the next clear opening, in the 61st minute.
A confused England claimed offside against an opponent in the middle while Vaclav Sverkos raced past James, who had been obliged to leave his area, only to miss from a tight angle on the left.
This friendly was all too close to a competitive match for England's comfort.
Cole was, however, positive afterwards and insisted it had been a tough game against difficult opponents. He said: "It was a difficult night, playing against a good team early on in the season and most of us played on Sunday.
"It was a tough game but we got a good draw against a good side, but we are disappointed not to have won. But we haven't been beaten. We are building our confidence and getting stronger."
Cole played out of position when he came on as a substitute and went on: "I'm a winger but the manager wanted me to play off the frontman. New manager and new ideas - we've got to try things."
Guardian Service
ENGLAND:James, Brown, Ferdinand, Terry, Ashley Cole, Beckham, Barry, Lampard, Gerrard, Defoe, Rooney. Subs: Robinson, Hart, Johnson, Bridge, Woodgate, Upson, Bentley, Downing, Jenas, Joe Cole, Heskey, Walcott.
CZECH REPUBLIC:Cech, Grygera, Ujfalusi, Rozehnal, Jankulovski, Vlcek, Kovac, Polak, Plasil, Sirl, Baros. Subs: Zitka, Kadlec, Pospech, Jarolim, Rajnoch, Papadopulos, Sverkos.
Referee:Terje Hauge (Norway).
