Group Watch
England’s Group B rivals Sweden suffered a shock 3-0 defeat against Ireland in Dublin - and coach Lars Lagerback wasn’t impressed.
Goals from Damien Duff, Robbie Keane and Liam Miller secured victory for Steve Staunton’s side and handed a jolt to the Swedes.
Lagerback said: "We must make sure we don’t play like that in Germany. It was a really bad day at work. We did not play as a team, did not concentrate and made mistakes."
To make matters worse for Sweden their star striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic hobbled off in the first half - which will certainly have interested the England scouts.
England Head Coach Sven-Goran Eriksson also sent men to watch summer opponents Paraguay draw 0-0 with Wales in Cardiff.
Trinidad & Tobago beat Iceland with former Manchester United striker Dwight Yorke scoring twice at Loftus Road.
Elsewhere there were some bad performances from some of the tournament favourites.
Germany - with Arsenal’s Jens Lehmann in goal and Chelsea’s Robert Huth in defence - suffered a humbling 4-1 defeat against Italy. And Argentina lost 3-2 to a last-minute goal for the second match in a row when they were beaten by Croatia.
Even France lost 2-1 at home to Slovakia, despite having Nicolas Anelka, David Trezeguet, Thierry Henry and Sylvain Wiltord all in the squad. But Arsenal’s Jose Reyes scored in a 3-2 victory for Spain over the Ivory Coast.
Men in form
Peter Crouch hopes his goalscoring performance for England against Uruguay will earn him a place in the World Cup squad.
He said: "Of course it has helped my cause. I have made an impact when I have come on and scored the goal but other than that I think I have done well and made a nuisance of myself.
"Hopefully I have pushed my claims for the World Cup."
Italy’s Alessandro Del Piero confirmed he is back to his best when he scored in his side’s 4-1 thrashing of Germany - he will certainly be one to watch this summer.
And the two Ronaldos cannot be ignored.
The Real Madrid version scored Brazil’s winner in a 1-0 victory in Russia while the Man United model continued his amazing form with two goals in Portugal’s creditable 3-0 win in Saudi Arabia.
Injury update
Michael Owen is ahead of schedule in his recovery from a broken foot - according to Newcastle boss Glenn Roeder.
Owen broke a metatarsal against Tottenham on New Year’s Eve but is back in training.
Roeder said: "Michael saw his specialist on Monday and had a good look at his latest X-rays. He is happy at what he has seen and heard and now it’s full steam ahead for him."
Frank Lampard, who missed the match against Uruguay with a hamstring injury, is battling to be fit to face Barcelona next week for Chelsea.
Lampard had a scan on the injury yesterday and is a serious doubt for Chelsea’s match at West Brom this weekend.
Wayne Bridge, who went off against Uruguay with a twisted ankle, is having tests to ascertain the extent of the injury. But he is hopeful it will not prove to be a serious set-back.
Everton’s Dutch star Andy van der Meyde is ready to make a comeback from a thigh injury that has kept him out since December - just in time to fight for his World Cup place.
The midfielder said: "There are only 11 games before the World Cup but if I play ten or 11 good games then the coach can still choose me."
Quotes
Shaka Hislop, Trinidad & Tobago goalkeeper, has a word of warning for England: "We’re not going to Germany to be the whipping boys," he said.
Paraguay coach Anibal Ruiz says England’s Group B will be one of the toughest. "It will be very difficult, the Group of Death, but I think we can get through it."
John Toshack warned England after watching Wales draw 0-0 with Paraguay. He said: "They are technically good and anything can happen in a World Cup. England have an excellent chance to do well but Paraguay will be a tough test."
Stay with TheFA.com as we build up to Germany 2006.