After what might be described, at best, as two fairly forgettable matches, there might be some value in England fans reminding themselves of more halcyon days. However, over the years, the Three Lions have contributed to some thrilling matches at World Cup Finals. Harking back to former glories, here’s a list of some of the most memorable matches of World Cups past, one which Wayne Rooney and Steven Gerrard are no doubt striving to lengthen in South Africa.
’86 England v Poland, 3-0
After losing their opening match against Portugal 1-0, the Three Lions played out a goalless draw against Morocco with captain Bryan Robson picking up a tournament-ending injury and Ray Wilkins receiving a red card. They went into the final group game with Poland in need of a result and, having failed to score against Portugal and Morocco, it looked as though Bobby Robson might drop Everton striker Gary Lineker. But Robson stuck with Lineker, and the prolific marksman repaid this faith with a devastating first-half hat-trick. Delight turned into delirium in Monterrey as Lineker grabbed his third after just 34 pulsating minutes.
’66 England v W Germany, 4-2
Famous for Kenneth Wolstenholme’s oft-quoted commentary, Tofik Bakhramov’s hotly debated decision to award Hurst’s second goal and, of course, the iconic image of Bobby Moore lifting the Jules Rimet Trophy, the final in 1966 certainly lived up to its billing. Goals from Martin Peters and Hurst helped England recover from going a goal down, but West Germans equalised in the dying minutes. Cue extra-time and ‘that goal’. Having lost his marker with a neat turn, Geoff Hurst’s shot from the edge of the six-yard box bounced off the underside of the bar and was adjudged to have crossed the line. Hurst later sealed his hat-trick to make England’s World Cup triumph certain.
’54 England v Belgium, 4-4
With a remarkable 140 goals in just 26 matches, the 1954 tournament in Switzerland remains the highest-scoring World Cup. Notably, the West Germans recovered from an 8-3 humiliation at the hands of Hungary’s ‘Golden Team’ to beat the Hungarians, including the prolific Sandor Kocsis and footballing great Ferenc Puskas 3-2 in the final. Walter Winterbottom’s side played out an eight-goal thriller against Belgium after Ivor Broadis and Nat Lofthouse had put England 3-1 up. A last-second own goal from Portsmouth defender Jimmy Dickinson put paid to England’s hopes of coming away with all two points and levelled the scores at 4-4. This encounter with Belgium was just one of numerous memorable encounters in this World Cup that has gone down in history for its remarkable scorelines and great comebacks.
