England Vs. France reaction

So after months of anticipation and predictions, England finally got their Euro 2012 campaign underway and the majority of the country were subdued about their expectations for the national team.

However, Roy Hodgson's team were a typical Hodgson team, they were not spectacular but concentrated more on defensive solidity which for the opening 35 minutes was coming to the fore. After Joleon Lescott headed in the 30th minute opener, England not only jumped up and down as a whole but actually started to believe that Woy's boys could start to ruffle some European feathers. Despite coming out of the game with a draw after taking the lead and being put under a lot of pressure throughout the game, England have a lot of positives to draw upon after their opening game.

Joe Hart (after a shaky start) showed why he is England's number one stopper and produced some good saves and also came to meet a lot of crosses which will instill confidence into England's back four. The back four also performing admirably with Ashley Cole, John Terry and Joleon Lescott replicating their best club form and the much-maligned Glen Johnson also performing well after what seemed to be a shaky start for the Liverpool right-back. The centre of midfield looked solid in the tackle and Steven Gerrard's passing was incisive while Scott Parker's defensive shielding abilities shone once again as he put in vital tackles and blocks, his passing however left much to be desired in the first half but did improve greatly after the interval. James Milner did the job he set out to do on the right side of midfield with a hard working performance which showed as towards the end of his game he looked absolutely knackered, he probably won't be seen as a more permanent fixture in the first 11 by Hodgson though. Despite it being his first start and only his third cap, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain once again was able to show what a talent he is with some good runs and a solid performance down the left wing. Danny Welbeck was the candidate chosen to replace Wayne Rooney as the man to lead England's line and I thought he performed well in his audition - holding up the ball when necessary, making all the right runs and making the French defence unsettled, the only shame about Welbeck's performance is he wasn't able to utilize his pace more against two centre-backs who were clearly lacking in speed.

The performance is what the country should have expected from a Roy Hodgson team and despite missing the likes of Gary Cahill, Frank Lampard and Wayne Rooney, England still performed well. The major negative of the game was how lacklustre England were going forward, creating very little chances and in the second half especially not being able to get much of a foothold in the French half.

It was a promising start for England and let's hope this is a good foundation to build on for the rest of the championship.