Soccer:Fabio Capello is confident Andy Carroll's first international goal will help to ease his transition to the England stage.
The €41 million striker's first-half strike looked like earning England a Wembley victory on Tuesday night until Sunderland's Asamoah Gyan levelled for Ghana in stoppage time. It was a fitting conclusion to an evening of immense promise for England, with Capello delighted by Liverpool frontman Carroll's contribution on his second senior international appearance.
Carroll has only recently returned to club duty after a thigh injury.
"It is important for the strikers to score goals," Capello said. "He was the same player here that I saw before he got injured. He ran a lot but he needs games. He is a big person, so it is impossible for him to recover quickly, like Jack Wilshere or Aaron Lennon."
Carroll's was just one of a number of pleasing performances that kept the crowd entertained. Stewart Downing and Ashley Young also turned in outstanding displays, leaving Capello pleased.
"I am really happy because I saw a fantastic game," the England boss said. "It was not a friendly game. Every tackle was a fight. The players did very well and the new players did very well. It is interesting for me to know the value of the players when they have a match at Wembley."
The manager, himself, received the backing fo Gareth Barry and Jack Wilshere, who hit out at the mounting criticism of the England boss. The build-up to game saw Capello's commitment to his job and decision-making come under renewed fire.
As well as attacking his modest grasp of the English language, critics laid into the Italian's decision to release five key players ahead of yesterday's game at Wembley. But Barry, who benefited from the withdrawals by being handed a recall and the captaincy, said: "The communication between the manager and players has always been good, has always been there.
"You can read things that are pretty negative but the important thing is the manager is getting his points across on the pitch. Any little negative seems to be getting blown up. But I'm sure the manager knows that comes as part of being England manager."
Barry's fellow midfielder Wilshere added: "Before the World Cup he couldn't do wrong, and since the World Cup everyone has been getting onto his back. I think we need to give him a break. He is a great manager.
"He has proved it at clubs before and he has got a great record for England as well. He is one of the best managers I've ever worked with. People need to get off his back a little bit."
Barry revealed Capello had told his players he was "pretty happy" with the performance of what was an experimental England side, despite Asamoah Gyan's stoppage-time equaliser.
"It's important we don't forget a lot of players haven't played together out there but you probably couldn't tell in that first half," Barry said. "In the end, (there was) probably a bit of inexperience conceding late on."
