Men on form

England hopeful Stewart Downing scored for Middlesbrough in their remarkable 3-0 victory over Chelsea.

Shaun Wright-Phillips, the hero of Chelsea's FA Cup win against Everton in midweek, played the entire second half of that game, too.

Former England Under-21 star Kevin Nolan showed what a good player he is with an excellent goal against Arsenal.

The Bolton man's clever lob over Arsenal's Jens Lehmann was his ninth of an tremendous season.

Man City's Joey Barton and Charlton's Darren Bent both scored in a Premiership thriller on Sunday and Wayne Bridge continued his revival on loan at Fulham, putting in another impressive display as Fulham beat West Brom 6-1.

And what about Aston Villa's Luke Moore? The England Under-21 hero is on fire right now and scored his fifth goal in three games in his team's 2-1 defeat against Newcastle.

Scoring boots

Cristiano Ronaldo could be one of the stars of the World Cup for Portugal if he keeps up his goalscoring form.

The flying winger scored twice in a 3-1 victory for Manchester United at Portsmouth, making it four in two games and nine for the season.


Group B watch

Paraguay captain Carlos Gamarra has been looking ahead to his team's World Cup challenge.

"England are supposedly strongest but I am more afraid of Sweden," he said.

"I don't know which of the two will be knocked out but I can assure you Paraguay will qualify for the next round.

"I think Ibrahimovic will be a more difficult opponent than Wayne Rooney. Rooney is strong, he can run right through you and he’s very quick. But Ibrahimovic can do it all."

Quote

Alan Shearer says Wayne Rooney can be our 'Ronaldinho' at the World Cup.

"Wayne and Ronaldinho are definitely comparable. Both have the ability to transform a game on their own.

"They are different players but Rooney is every bit as talented. And he is five years younger."

Stay with TheFA.com for all the build-up to Germany 2006.