England Draw with France, Get off to a Decent Euro 2012 Start; Best of the Twitter Reaction

Soccer balls in the goal. Photo credit: Stevendepolo http://flic.kr/p/6Hc3VN

The background

England ground out a gritty 1-1 draw with France in their opening game of Euro 2012. Joleon Lescott thumped in a header to give England the lead but they were pegged back when French midfield maestro Samir Nasri beat England goalkeeper (and Manchester City teammate) Joe Hart from range shortly before half-time. France had the better of the second half but were unable to break down a well-organised and highly-motivated English defence. The opening match draw against the group’s favourites has roundly satisfied Three Lions fans and the sports commentariat.

The tweets

Thought England did well tonight. Decent performance. Good point. Nothing spectacular but better than most of us hoped for.

— Oliver Holt (@OllieHoltMirror) June 11, 2012

Hodgson achieving exactly what he was brought in for: bringing organisation, solidity and belief to a group of not-so-great players. Good.

— Philippe Auclair (@PhilippeAuclair) June 11, 2012

England can be pleased enough with that: well-drilled at the back, not much in midfield but some good moves on the break. Welbz MoM for me.

— Jack Pitt-Brooke (@JPBIndy) June 11, 2012

England deeply average in every department. Well done. Outperforming expectations again.

— Iain Macintosh (@iainmacintosh) June 11, 2012

England’s ball retention and creativity weak – as we thought they would be. But resolute defending en masse and strong spirit. Good start.

— Paul Hayward (@_PaulHayward) June 11, 2012