England's win over Spain was a purely defensive triumph

international friendly: england 1-0 spain

England's organisation and stubbornness against Spain was impressive but attacking options are still sorely lacking

Scott Parker, pictured here challenging Cesc Fábregas, did an excellent anchoring job against Spain. Photograph: Andy Rain/EPA

It would be churlish to be over-critical of an England win against the reigning world champions, though sometimes there is a need to look beyond a result. Fabio Capello proved on Saturday that it is not overly difficult to arrange defensive solidarity. Yet the way the game played out against Spain also showed how tricky it can be to combine that solidity with attacking creativity.

The England manager, as expected, had flooded his midfield, with Scott Parker proving an excellent anchor in quelling the triangular exchanges and one-touch movement of Spain's midfield. The orders were clearly to retreat behind the ball quickly with two banks, of four and five, and Darren Bent as the lone forward.

In this system, the release ball is often a longer one and the front man has to be able to retain possession, a difficult task when outnumbered. Here Bent, who lacks top technique, was left too isolated. It would have been interesting to have seen how Bobby Zamora fared in the role.

Yet England stuck manfully to their task. By retreating and not being enticed into trying to snatch the ball too early, the home side settled and waited to nick back possession, tackle or intercept. Covering the spaces between colleagues, they beavered away and stayed narrow when Spain attempted to thread the ball through the eye of a needle (see diagram), cluttering up the centre to ensure there was always an interception in waiting.

England retreated without trying to nick the ball too early. When Spain advanced with clever passing movements, the home side’s narrow defence cut out the final ball. Photograph: Graphic

The home side were never caught short of defenders, never dragged out of position seeking the ball, and never had to encounter a Spanish overload in the last 40 yards. Indeed, with bodies blocking their sight of goal, Spain were reluctant even to muster a shot.

As an exercise in stubborn defence, it was impressive. Yet this was a win purely for defensive organisation. The full-backs Glen Johnson and Ashley Cole kept narrow distances from the central former Everton combination, Phil Jagielka and Joleon Lescott, who sat deep and determined. In front, Theo Walcott and James Milner did their wide defensive duties diligently (again, see diagram).

But England will need to show more against opponents who are less likely to dominate in the way Spain do all-comers. The 4-5-1 formation Capello employed can be attractive too, providing there are no square pegs forced into round holes and there is an attacking philosophy behind the tactic.

What is key is including a more naturally attacking player to support the lone front man, a forward-thinking midfielder who is willing to drop deeper when possession is lost to rejoin the middle threesome. In 1987 at Tottenham Hotspur I had Glenn Hoddle in this role behind Clive Allen. Wayne Rooney is the obvious candidate to be England's modern-day Hoddle, though he was absent on Saturday, will be again on Tuesday and, likewise, will miss the group stage in Poland and Ukraine. And we appear to have no Allen at present.

Capello had Phil Jones and Frank Lampard either side of Parker at Wembley, but they had few opportunities to break forward as England were denied the ball for long periods. Indeed Jones, the debutant who seems assured of a future at this level though more realistically alongside John Terry at the back, seemed to be the closest midfielder to Bent in the first period. That seemed an unnatural fit.

Capello will have been encouraged by the discipline he witnessed on Saturday, but solving the balance between attack and defence will still be uppermost in his mind. We must unearth the right front man and loose forward in his five‑man midfield.