England Pay the Penalty After Rooney Sees Red

It was, in the end, not quite enough. Yet again England exited a major tournament after losing on penalties, leaving fans to think about what might have been following a dramatic game that saw Wayne Rooney shown the red card and David Beckham limp off early in the second half.

With England's World Cup hopes cruelly jettisoned, despite their spirited last-ditch stand at the Gelsenkirchen stadium, it's goodbye to Sven-Goran Eriksson, goodbye to the Wags, and, in all probability, goodbye to what was England's best hope of World Cup glory for a generation.

Eriksson, who now faces a forensic dissection of his management style, was defiant in defeat. 'I must say they fought enormously when it was 10 against 11,' Eriksson said. 'Then there was the sending off. We held the game up very well and lost on penalties again and I'm really sorry about that. I don't think we deserved to lose and I think the boys deserved better. But we lost the game ... and that hurts incredibly.'

For Portugal's flamboyant manager, Luiz Felipe Scolari - the man whom the FA earlier unsuccessfully wooed to replace Eriksson - last night's triumph was the completion of a humiliating hat-trick over his taciturn rival, which will see his side go on to face France in the semis.

The man they call 'Big Phil' managed Portugal in Euro 2004, when the team beat England on penalties, and coached Brazil in 2002 when, after a 2-1 victory over Eriksson's men, the South Americans went on to lift the World Cup.

At the death and following a emotional roller-coaster of a second half in which England had chances to win, it was Manchester United's Cristiano Ronaldo who sealed their fate, converting his side's fourth shootout spot kick and giving Portugal a 3-1 victory on penalties. England's first penalty taker, Frank Lampard, had his shot saved, as did Steven Gerrard, who took the third. Jamie Carragher, who was forced to retake his kick, saw the follow-up saved by goalkeeper Ricardo who, having stopped three spot kicks, emerged the hero. It means England must now add Germany 2006 to a long list of ignominous exits on penalties: the 1990 World Cup (to West Germany), Euro 96 (to Germany), the 1998 World Cup (to Argentina) as well as the Euro 2004 defeat.

'We practised penalties so much, I really don't know what more we could do about it,' Eriksson said afterwards. 'I was sure these players could get to the final and we should have done it. We gave a good performance but we're out and that's very painful. I'm sorry for the fans, who have been fantastic, that we couldn't give them a final.'

Eriksson was reluctant to be drawn on Rooney's red card, saying he would have a better idea after reviewing the match today. But he added: 'I don't think we can complain.'

The game will be remembered as a classic nail-biter. It had an epic narrative that has become all-too-familiar to England fans: one that starts with so much promise but ends with the dismissal of a star player and the implosion of a dream.

At 31 and too old to contemplate another World Cup, Beckham may have played his last game for England. Last night, bookmaker William Hill was offering odds of 9/2 on the England captain never representing his country again. If so, it would be a harsh end to a distinguished career. When he was substituted after just 51 minutes, he walked, head down, towards the England dugout and a limp, brief handshake with Eriksson.

That moment seemed to encapsulate England's campaign, one that promised so much but delivered so little. Within minutes of Beckham's substitution, Rooney joined him on the bench, sent off for stamping on Ricardo Carvalho, a foul which his Manchester United teammate, Ronaldo was quick to draw to the referee's attention. Old Trafford might be a rather volatile place in the months ahead.

England's exit follows criticism from Fifa president Sepp Blatter, who last week the team had not played the 'kind of offensive football' necessary to win the tournament. This comment now seems vindicated, while Eriksson's confident pledge before the match that it would not be his last in charge rings hollow.

'I think the manager contributed to the downfall of England,' TV commentator and former Liverpool star Alan Hansen said. 'Everybody will question the manager and quite rightly so.'

Before the match, around 70,000 England supporters poured into Gelsenkirchen, only around 30,000 of whom had tickets. The red-and-white masses occupied about 80 per cent of the stadium, far outnumbering the Portuguese. Despite the huge influx, local police said there was little trouble in the hours preceding the game: 13 English fans and 30 Germans were held following scuffles.

England's exit deprives the world of further glimpses of those most precious of creatures, the Wags. The wives and girlfriends of England's players have been subjected to a barrage of media attention ever since they collected their Louis Vuitton luggage from the airport carousel. Their well-oiled nocturnal outings have been followed avidly by the German press, with one magazine going as far as to brand them 'hooligans with visas'.

For the Wags - and their other halves - respite from the media may be the only compensation for this, another moment of heartbreak.

The World Cup in numbers


16 Number of hours German police officers in Dachau spent learning useful phrases in English for dealing with England fans, such as 'you are under arrest' and 'I need to search you'.

50,000 Number of two-and-a-half pint glasses in the shape of the World Cup trophy bought at Tesco in the past three weeks. 'The most patriotic place seems to be Tunbridge Wells,' says a spokesman.

8.8 Average mark (out of 10) that visiting supporters have given Germany for their hospitality during the World Cup.

45m Number of sausages sold by Tesco to lightly char on the 7.5 million disposable barbecues bought at the store since the competition began.

20% Reduction in people shopping at 4pm yesterday compared with a normal Saturday.

4m Number of cans and bottles of beer bought at Sainsbury's yesterday.