FIFAworldcup.com: So Justin, what did you make of the match?
It was a bit scary, I have to say. England scored so early that the players thought they’d done enough and could afford to take it easy. They would have been better off getting a second goal and then taking their foot off the gas. It was so frustrating to see the team resting on their laurels, when we were only leading by the single goal. Imagine if Paraguay had equalized in the last few minutes, as could easily have been the case. The coach should have ensured his troops were a bit more motivated than that. He was a too passive again, instead of urging them to attack more. At the end of the day though, it was stressful but we did just enough.

Where did you watch the match?
I was at the stadium, which was absolutely fantastic. It’s an incredible place, the atmosphere there was brilliant, the people working there were lovely and the organisation was stunning. It was magic.

Did the English fans sing like mad as usual?
Let’s just say I haven’t got a voice left! I think I shouted more than I sang, actually. It’s not like at a club match when the different sets of fans have their own special songs. With the national team, it’s more basic, you know, stuff like ‘England, England, England.’ But to be honest, the English fans were surprisingly quiet today. There was a half-hour spell when all you could hear was the Paraguayan fans, even though they only made up about five per cent of the crowd. It annoyed me a bit and I spent my time shouting at everyone to make more noise for our team.

What did you think of the side that was picked today?
It was more or less what I’d expected. (Peter) Crouch did quite well, no more than that really. (Frank) Lampard was excellent. John Terry was excellent. Joe Cole too. And you know what? David Beckham was really very good. I wasn’t expecting him to be that impressive, but I think he’s a good leader and does the captain’s job admirably.

How did you rate Steven Gerrard?
As a matter of fact, I didn’t think he was on top form. When he plays for Liverpool, he has this sparkle that was unfortunately badly lacking today. He worked very hard but he struggled to exert any influence.

Do you think you have a good chance of winning the tournament?
It’s hard to say with England. On their day, they can strike fear into the hearts of the opposition and they’re definitely a very good team, but the players seem to forget to play that way against the small teams. They seem prone to serious errors, which could ultimately prove fatal for us. For example, they should beat Trinidad and Tobago at least 4-0, but you can’t count on it with England. I think the match with Sweden should bring out the best in us, as it’s the most difficult one on paper.

So it’s not always easy to be an England supporter?
You can say that again! We like to do things the hard way. But for me, today has been a fantastic experience. It’s the first time I’ve been to a World Cup match and it was really emotional. Before the kick-off, I was so excited it was almost unbearable. And although I was very tense during the game, I think I can say that we saw enough magical moments from our lads to bode well for the rest of the tournament.

Source: WCoffsite