England held to a 2-2 draw against Belgium in friendly

 England held to a 2-2 draw against Belgium in friendly.

After two of the most taxing assignments England will face in the foreseeable future, last night's friendly against Belgium almost left most England fans questioning and doubting England's prospects in the forthcoming Euros in Germany during the summer. Of course all international sides go through sticky periods when things never go according to plan. But for England familiarity seemed on the point of breeding contempt. In the end it all ended up happily ever after for Gareth Southgate's men but the atmosphere on the referee's final whistle was somewhat muted and reflective. It could have gone better for England on the night against Belgium but at the end England had to be grateful for small mercies.

On Saturday evening Brazil, surely football's most attractive of all practitioners in the world game, just did what always seems to come naturally to them, passing and passing over and again, in small, tightly knit clusters, triangles, rectangles and neat little cameos that left England chasing not only shadows but silhouettes. At times England found themselves imitating the South Americans but then found this to be a totally futile exercise since they weren't really achieving anything with the abundance of possession they had.

Last night England faced a difficult and technically comfortable Belgium side who occasionally resemble their neighbours Holland but can never quite replicate their style of play. For much of last night's fair and honourable 2-2 friendly draw, Belgium were nimbler, quicker and by far the more skilful team and, deep into injury time, were still ahead in the game. But then they saw the eyes of Jude Bellingham and almost rolled out the red carpet for the Real Madrid midfield maestro. Bellingham sized up the opportunity and fired home England's last gasp equaliser with an unstoppable shot.

In the bigger picture this was hardly the most disappointing result for England. Recent games for Gareth Southgate's men have been slippery banana skins but a mini crisis has been safely avoided. For a while England were staring down the barrel of two consecutive defeats within a couple of days. Brazil were always likely to provide England with stern and troublesome opposition but last night they redressed the balance. But Belgium almost poured salt onto slightly painful wounds although no collateral damage had been inflicted.

Most of us will regard a famous World Cup group stage match against Belgium as one of England's finest of hours. In 1990 Sir Bobby Robson's England left us desperately yearning for any kind of victory against their Belgian opponents. With the match in its final minute or so, a beautifully floated free kick fell perfectly for David Platt at the far post who swivelled balletically, wrapping his foot around the ball and volleying the winner for Robson's England. It was night in Italy that was almost as operatic as a Pavarotti masterclass.

So last night the circumstances may have been completely different but there were similarities. Had it not been for Bellingham's late, late equaliser, the inquests and heated discussions would have been quite toxic. Sometimes England can never seem to strike a happy medium with their critics and kind hearts. When you qualify for either a Euro or World Cup competition, you're immediately fancied as overwhelming favourites to win either. But then the lines become blurred and form just abandons England unforgivably. It's the end of the world and the harbingers of doom and gloom always seem to despair.

England once again began slowly and lethargically. Their football, though, was both uplifting and easy on the eye but although admirably constructive, never really threatened to go any further than the edge of their opposition's 18-yard box. For the first ten minutes or so, England established an impressive stranglehold on the game with passing both short and long of the highest quality. But then we noticed leaky holes in England's otherwise watertight defence. Before long, we were lamenting the half chances they'd created and then watched them wiping the egg off their collective faces. 

Jordan Pickford, Everton's goalkeeper, has generally looked reliable and capable in recent times. But then disaster struck and the embarrassing flaws that have always haunted England keepers over the years became self fulfilling prophecies. Rushing out to clear the ball from a regulation goal kick, Pickford completely lost his bearings and only succeeded in finding a Belgium player. A short ball found Aston Villa's Youri Tielemans who simply drilled the ball into an unguarded net for Belgium's opening goal.

For a while England looked slightly shell shocked and unnerved by a moment of defensive madness. Maybe Pickford shouldn't have been quite as hasty in retrospect but this simply sparked England back into life. The delightful dribbling at speed of Manchester City's Phil Foden was sweet as nectar and when the young Manchester United Kobbie Mainoo began to dart and weave his way between tangled Belgian legs, England looked the finished article. Then Jude Bellingham displayed the stunning playmaking gifts that can only prove of long lasting, beneficial value to England's future.

As Ben Chilwell and Joe Gomez began to find wide open spaces on the wings for England, an equaliser seemed an odds on certainty. Debutant striker Ivan Toney of Brentford became something of a handful for the Belgium defence while Jarrod Bowen, West Ham's free scoring striker, once again looked the part, running purposefully at the Belgians and finding his appropriate range.

Then England re-discovered the creative one and two touch football that almost left  Brazil uncharacteristically out of sorts at the back. From a superb sequence of quickfire passes between Bellingham and Mainoo, Belgium creaked open. Mainoo's pass was shrewdly judged, slipping past the last Belgium defender for Ivan Toney. Toney raced thrillingly into the penalty area before being blatantly upended. Toney's accurately taken penalties have been a feature of Brentford's season and once again he planted the ball  high into the net. No problem, never in doubt.

But this proved to be of no deterrent to Belgium. Leandro Trossard and Youri Tielemans looked both smooth and streamlined in midfield. They simply regained control of the ball and looked as measured and dangerous as the rest of their team. Shortly before half time, Belgium were back in front courtesy of another England defensive blunder. Lewis Dunk, the Brighton defender and captain, had dealt quite adequately with everything Belgium could throw at him. 

Then Belgium lofted a long, high ball towards the edge of England's penalty area. Dunk, completely flat footed for a fatal second or two, lunged out for a tackle that was never likely to be successful. Former Chelsea striker Romelu Lukaku bent a lovely cross with the outside of his boot and Tielemans, seizing his chance, headed smartly past Pickford. This was not on the menu for England's always enthusiastic supporters and what we had to be content with were scraps and agonising near misses.

And for the rest of the game, England continued to surge forward in unison, a cohesive unit full of imaginative touches in attack but somehow lacking the cutting edge up front. Then frustration began to eat away at Gareth Southgate's determined, doughty men. It all began to look lopsided at times and pedestrian for the home side. Wembley looked downcast and forlorn. Chances were snatched and there was a haphazard air about England's football.

Then, with the game ebbing away from England, the Three Lions roared vociferously one more time. After a series of wildly hopeful attacks, there was one more chance. Deep into injury time, which will certainly take us up until midnight at some point, James Maddison, Spurs excellent midfield player, picked up the ball from a flurry of short passes between England's brightest players.

Maddison laid the ball back to Jude Bellingham who hopped and skipped past his opponents as if they simply weren't there. Bellingham then drove firmly and accurately past Belgium goalkeeper Matz Sels. And that was that. A 2-2 draw may have saved England's blushes but this wasn't quite the performance their fans may have been hoping for.

At the end a noisy and cheerful contingent of Belgium fans thought they'd accomplished a moral victory. The amber colours were in full evidence and you suspected they may have been heading straight to the local pubs for just a drop of their famous beer. But still they remain unrewarded for their visits to Wembley. England boss Gareth Southgate puffed out his cheeks with relief but has to be concerned with a defence that seemed to desert him on the night. Still, onwards and upwards England.