FOOTBALL: OWENLY JUST

RELIEVED Sven Goran Eriksson last night saluted goal hero Michael Owen after his winner in Bratislava eased the pressure on the beleaguered England boss.

The Liverpool striker headed his 19th goal in 43 internationals eight minutes from the end to complete England's fightback after they had fallen behind in a dismal first half.

Eriksson, already facing embarrassment over revelations in Ulrika Jonsson's book, was facing another nightmare when Middlesbrough striker Szilard Nemeth shot the Slovakian side ahead on 24 minutes. It was no surprise after they had hustled England completely out of their stride on an appalling mudheap of a pitch. But England equalised in the 65th minute after starting the second half in much more determined style.

Owen was initially credited with getting a faint touch to David Beckham's wickedly curling free-kick from 35 yards. But Eriksson revealed it had gone in directly. He said: "I asked Michael and he said he didn't touch it, so it goes to David. But there is no doubt the second goal was his."

The match was marred by racist abuse aimed at England's black players by Slovakian fans, and by scuffles on the terraces.

Owen said: "The atmosphere was a bit intimidating and I guess the trouble was a cause of concern, although I didn't see much of it. It is an immense test of character to come and win at places like this. It wasn't a vintage performance by any means but we've grabbed three points and that's what counts. I have not played on a pitch like that since I was a 12-year-old. You don't expect to play at this level on that type of surface."

Captain Beckham praised the players' commitment and said the side showed immense character to come back after falling behind. He said: "The playing surface was dreadful but it's difficult to complain because it's the same for both sides. But we showed tremendous character to turn it around. Of course you want to play better but the atmosphere was difficult and the pitch didn't lend itself to the sort of football we like to play. I'm just relieved to get out of here with the points in the bag."

Eriksson added: "We didn't play well for the first 30 minutes, but I was very happy with the response in the second half. Now we must see what happens against Macedonia on Wednesday."

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