England 2, Sweden 2 : Owen injures knee after two minutes on field against Sweden

No, not a win -- that has been too much to ask for. A 2-2 tie Tuesday, however, was enough for the English to win Group B at the World Cup.
Henrik Larsson tied it off a throw-in, getting the slightest touch to deflect the ball into the net in the 90th minute. England hasn't beaten the Swedes since way back in 1968 -- seven years before David Beckham was born -- a streak of frustration that is now at 12 games.
But the tie means Sweden has to face three-time champion and World Cup host Germany in Munich in the second round Saturday.
"We won the group and that's what counts," England coach Sven-Goran Eriksson said.
Joe Cole scored in the 34th minute, and then set up Steven Gerrard's go-ahead goal in the 85th for England. But the English couldn't put away the Swedes, a problem that has lasted nearly four decades.
Marcus Allback had tied it 1-1 for the Swedes on a header in the 51st minute.
England plays Ecuador on Sunday in Stuttgart. But it might have to do it without striker Michael Owen, who left in the fourth minute with a nasty-looking injury to his right knee.
"It does not look good," Eriksson said.
Asked if Owen might miss the rest of the tournament, Eriksson said, "Maybe, we don't know yet."
England looked as if it might finally end its misery against Sweden thanks to Cole. He scored on a brilliant 30-yard shot, then got the ball to Gerrard for the go-ahead score.
But Sweden, which pressured England throughout the second half, came through in the dying moments.
Larsson barely brushed the throw-in from Tobias Linderoth, but it was enough to get by Sol Campbell and England goalkeeper Paul Robinson. It set off a raucous celebration by the Sweden fans and quieted the English, who had been singing "God Save the Queen" only a few minutes earlier.

"What's clear is we have to defend better in the match against Ecuador," Eriksson said.

Sweden is 4-0-8 in the streak against England, with four of the matches coming while Eriksson -- a Swede -- has coached England.

England got a spark from Wayne Rooney, making his first start since breaking a bone in his foot April 29. But it was Cole who made things happen. He came frustratingly close a couple of times in the first half before breaking through in the 34th.

Niclas Alexandersson cleared the ball with a header, and it dropped a few feet in front of Cole. It bounced, Cole blocked it with his chest, then took a powerful swing with his right foot.

The ball sailed straight for the goal and Sweden goalkeeper Andreas Isaksson leaped desperately to deflect it. But he could only brush the ball with his fingertips, and it caromed off the post into the back of the net.

Cole ran to the corner of the field, tapping his chest in salute to the roaring England fans, before Crouch picked him up from behind and he was mobbed by the rest of his teammates.

And after Allback made it 1-1, it was Cole once again providing for England. He sent a beautiful cross from the edge of the box to Gerrard, who'd come on in the 69th minute. Gerrard leaped and knocked the ball into the goal, just past Isaksson.

Though England came in with an eight-game unbeaten, it hadn't played its best in Germany. But with Rooney back in the starting lineup, England controlled the tempo from kickoff Tuesday night. Even when Michael Owen went out with a knee injury just four minutes into the game -- it tied the quickest substition in a World Cup match -- England played quickly and aggressively.

Cole, Rooney and Frank Lampard all came close to scoring. Sweden's best chance was off a corner kick in the 19th by Tobias Linderoth. The ball went straight to Teddy Lucic, who had a clear shot to the goal, but it banged off of Lampard. Lucic held up his hands as if to say, "Just inches," then shook his head in frustration.


But the teams looked very different after halftime -- a good thing for Sweden, not so good for England.
Six minutes into the half, Allback outleaped Beckham for Linderoth's corner, knocking the ball back toward the goal and over Robinson to tie it.
Sweden missed a chance to go ahead four minutes later. Larsson's header deflected off an England defender, and it looked as if it would go into the net. But Robinson got a shoulder on it, and it bounced off the crossbar.

Owen injures knee after two minutes on field against Sweden
Owen's right knee buckled beneath him just after he had played the ball. He lay on the sideline clutching his leg while play continued. He was treated by doctors and then strapped to a stretcher and taken off the field.
"It does not look good," coach Sven-Goran Eriksson said, acknowledging that Owen might miss the rest of the tournament. "Maybe. We don't know yet."
He was replaced by Peter Crouch in the fourth minute, tying the fastest replacement in a World Cup match.
Owen returned last month from a broken foot sustained on Dec. 31. He had been replaced before the hour mark in England's opening two World Cup games

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It really was a Disaster... Apparently England have not Beaten Sweden since 1968 and with the bad luck and bad DEFENDING I saw in the match last night they won't be beating them for a while yet...

Owens Injury looked Serious but we will know more after a Scan today... the Wonder Goal by Joe Cole from 35 Yards (A looping curling volley that went in via the crossbar and righthand post) was the highlight of the Match...

All in all though it was a Good Performance from England with many enforced formation changes and substitutions...'

They really need to work on theier defending from set Pieces though...

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It was a great match wich end by a draw .

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Just heard on the news that Owen will be out for 5 months meaning he'll miss the rest of the World Cup.

Article Taken From bbc.co.uk

Owen arrives for his scan near England's Baden-Baden training camp
Michael Owen is out of the World Cup and flying back to England after injuring his knee against Sweden, the Football Association has confirmed.
The 26-year-old striker twisted his right knee in the second minute of the 2-2 draw with the Swede's in Cologne.

He had a scan near England's training camp at Baden-Baden on Wednesday.

After the game, England goalkeeper Paul Robinson told BBC Sport Owen's injury "was a bad one".



Robinson added: "Everyone's gutted for Michael. He did his knee quite seriously and won't play again in the World Cup."
England coach Sven-Goran Eriksson also feared the worst for Owen, saying: "Maybe he's out of the tournament, it doesn't look good."

The bad injury caps a nightmare season for Owen, who returned to English football last summer in a £17m switch from Real Madrid to Newcastle.

He enjoyed a successful start to his Newcastle career, but broke his foot on New Year's Eve at Tottenham.

Owen battled back to play at the World Cup but looked less than fully fit and was substituted in both of England's opening games, without scoring.

Oh No... Poor Newcastle United...

They Lost Shearer to Retirement and have never really seen Michael Owen...

Who will they play up front next Season??? Bobby Robson & Kevin Keegan Maybe?!?!

It's bad news for England too but at least they have Replacements/Options...

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just heard on the radio latest reports suggest that Micheal Owen won't be out for 5 months but will infact be out for a whole year! He's also made an official apologie to England & Newcastle fans for the incident.

Hope your better soon Micheal