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Page Last Updated 16 April 2022
 
319 Party vs. Portugal
320
321 Party vs. USSR
Sunday, 11 May 1958
End-of-season pre-World Cup Iron Curtain tour match

Yugoslavia 5 England 0 [1-0]
Match Summary
Yugoslavia Party

England Party

Team Records
 

 

The England World Cup Provisional Party May 1958
Player Birthdate Age Pos Club starts subs App Capt
A'Court, Alan 30 September 1934 23 OL Liverpool FC 1 0 1 1 0
Banks, Thomas 10 November 1929 28 LB Bolton Wanderers FC 0 0 0 0 0
Broadbent, Peter F. 15 May 1933 24 IR Wolverhampton Wanderers FC 0 0 0 0 0
Charlton, Robert 11 October 1937 20 IR Manchester United FC 2 0 2 3 0
Clamp, H. Edward 14 September 1934 23 RHB Wolverhampton Wanderers FC 0 0 0 0 0
Clayton, Ronald 5 August 1934 23 RHB Blackburn Rovers FC 19 0 19 0 0
Clough, Brian H. 21 March 1935 23 CF Middlesbrough FC 0 0 0 0 0
Douglas, Bryan 27 May 1934 23 OR Blackburn Rovers FC 5 0 5 1 0
Finney, Thomas 5 April 1922 36 OL Preston North End FC 71 0 71 28 0
Haynes, John N. 17 October 1934 23 IL Fulham FC 18 0 18 8 0
Hopkinson, Edward 29 October 1935 22 GK Bolton Wanderers FC 5 0 5 5ᵍᵃ 0
Howe, Donald 12 October 1935 22 FB West Bromwich Albion FC 5 0 5 0 0
Kevan, Derek T. 6 March 1935 23 CF West Bromwich Albion FC 5 0 5 3 0
Langley, E. James 7 February 1929 29 LB Fulham FC 2 0 2 0 0
McDonald, Colin A. 15 October 1930 27 GK Burnley FC 0 0 0 0ᵍᵃ 0
Norman, Maurice 21 January 1933 25 CHB Tottenham Hotspur FC 0 0 0 0 0
Robson, Robert W. 18 February 1933 25 IR West Bromwich Albion FC 1 0 1 2 0
Sillett, R. Peter T. 1 February 1933 25 RB Chelsea FC 3 0 3 0 0
Slater, William J. 29 April 1927 31 LHB Wolverhampton Wanderers FC 4 0 4 0 0
Wright, William A. 6 February 1924 34 CHB Wolverhampton Wanderers FC 90 0 90 3 75

All information is complete to and including England's last match, the fifth of the 1957-58 season, against Portugal on 7 May 1958.

Diary

Tuesday, 22 April 1958 - The International Selection Committee, headed by Joe Mears, and with involvement from Team Manager Walter Winterbottom, have named a forty-man strong party from whom 22 players will be chosen for their World Cup Finals party in Sweden. Twenty of the party also include those travelling behind the Iron Curtain for the East European tour in Belgrade and Moscow, and the fourteen man party for the friendly match with Portugal at Wembley at the beginning of May.
Of the forty mean, thirteen come from the Black Country. League Champions Wolverhampton Wanderers providing seven, four of them half-backs, and neighbours West Bromwich Albion with six players. The team which beat Scotland on Saturday are included, and along with nine other players, make up the core of the travelling party to Yugoslavia and USSR.
The big surprise in the forty is the inclusion of Manchester United's Dennis Viollet, who has never played for England, and was one of the last players released from hospital following the Munich Air Disaster. And since then, has played one first team match and one reserve match. The list of forty has to be cut to 22 by 31 May.
The selectors also have a chance of watching the players against each other in a World Cup trial match at Stamford Bridge on 2 May when a 'full' team will face an under-23 team.


Friday, 2 May 1958 - World Cup Trial Match: England 4 England U23 Past & Present 2 - The Football Association decided to dispense with the over-thirties team and let the full international side (less the following day's FA Cup finalists) take on a "past and present" Young England. Three players were over the age of 23 (Broadbent, 24, Hall, 28 and Sillett, 25). Six of the eleven had senior appearances and all were included in the initial World Cup Party of forty players. Stamford Bridge hosted the match for the first time. England held the edge with their experience, but it wasn't a convincing performance.
England: Colin McDonald, Don Howe, Jim Langley, Ronnie Clayton, Billy Wright ͨ, Bill Slater, Bryan Douglas, Bobby Robson, Derek Kevan, Johnny Haynes, Tom Finney.
Young England: Alan Hodgkinson, Jeff Hall, Peter Sillett ͨ, Maurice Setters, Maurice Norman, Eddie Clamp, Peter Brabrook, Joe Hayes, Brian Clough, Peter Broadbent, Alan A'Court.

(Jimmy Greaves was replaced by Hayes)

   
  

Wednesday, 7 May 1958 - England 2 Portugal 1 - "Portugal, eliminated from the World Cup, made England's hope of winning it look sick at Wembley tonight. The side which strolled away to 4—0 victory against the Scots at Hampden Park looked a bunch of strugglers. Neither the wing halves nor the inside forwards managed to take a grip on the game and it was a miracle that England walked in at the interval leading 1—0. The threat was plain enough early on. In the sixth minute, centre forward Jose Augusto was perfectly placed to receive a cross from the left wing. With only goalkeeper Eddie Hopkinson to beat, he blazed wildly over the crossbar and left winger Hernani da Silva sat beating his hands on the turf in anguish. It sparked England into action—but what ragged action! They never combined in those sweeping, copybook moves so carefully worked out by team manager Walter Winterbottom. Right back Don Howe came brilliantly upfield, beating three men in a solo run, to show the forwards how it should be done. As defenders massed towards him he pushed the ball out to the wing for Douglas to loft it across to outside left Tom Finney. Finney, in a scoring position himself, unselfishly nodded the ball to the better placed Haynes, and Johnny's header was pulled out magnificently by Gomez. It was a moment of greatness. But Gomez was lucky to turn a Douglas shot around the post with his body . . . and then a soft, long-range shot from Bobby Charlton went inside the post for England's first-half goal. Haynes had slipped the ball through, Charlton hitting it on the run, but so caressingly that Gomez should have had ample time to cover it. That was the twenty-fourth minute, and immediately Portugal hit back, looking more menacing than England. Duarte gained possession in his own penalty area, came forward and put through to inside left Francisco Rocha. Da Silva carried on the move, shot and left back Jim Langley leaped miraculously to head away for a corner. Typically, the Portuguese pulled the old substitute trick a minute before half-time. . . .Augusto was called off and on went Travassos. After fifty-one minutes Portugal scored. A left wing move cracked England's defence and although Langley stemmed one shot the ball went to Duarte, who cracked the ball home. Ten minutes later, Charlton hammered home a goal that will live in Wembley history—a left foot thunderbolt that Gomez knew nothing about. Douglas crashed a shot on the bar and Finney was brought down in the penalty area by left back Martins. As he was being treated on the touchline, Langley took his first penalty for England...and MISSED! His shot hit an upright and the ball was cleared. Back came Finney and, at last, England were on top." - Bill Holden, Daily Mirror

Thursday, 8 May 1958 - Walter Winterbottom has revealed that Jim Langley is perfectly fit and available for the match in Belgrade on Sunday. Langley hurt his toe in the first half against Portugal yesterday and an x-ray today showed that he suffered a crack in his little toe. Tom Finney, who bruised a knee, is also fit.

Friday, 9 May 1958
"Manchester United take 15 players for the return leg of their European Cup semi-final with Milan in Milan on Wednesday. Matt Busby has been advised not to take the trip: Jimmy Murphy will be in charge."

The England party, twenty players, including five possible full-backs and nine forwards, set off from London Airport on board the B.E.A. Viscount, Sir Richard Burton, bound for Zeman via Zürich, for their Iron Curtain tour, starting in Belgrade on Sunday. The team will not be named until tomorrow. The side which beat Portugal will almost certainly get another chance. There was a 150-minute delay in Zürich, which ended any chance of Winterbottom and three other selectors, Joe Mears, Harold Shentall and Harold French, of naming the team tonight.
Team Manager Walter Winterbottom told a welcoming party of Yugoslav officials and journalists: 'This game on Sunday is NOT a practice romp for us—we will field our strongest possible side. The match is vital to our World Cup preparations—and the efficiency of our team must be tested to the full.'
Despite twelve hours of travelling in hot and steamy conditions, the party spent the evening doing a practice session.

"No one will ever know the small private hell that Bobby Charlton had to live through on the trip here today. It was his first flight since the Munich disaster. It was the first time any Manchester United player had flown since that tragic February day. His destination: Belgrade, the city where so many of his colleagues played their last game. No wonder he sat white-faced, tense and silent as the plane waited on the London Airport tarmac. It was a delay that seemed endless to him—it was actually about half an hour. No wonder he didn't smile until we touched down in Zurich for refuelling. Then, as the skipper of the aircraft drew him to one side and quietly said, 'Congratulations, son, you've made it,' Bobby broke his silence. 'Am I glad!' he breathed. 'I don't mind admitting I was dead scared. Still, it's O.K. now. I know I'm going to be all right.' But the ordeal wasn't over. A loudspeaker boomed out the dramatic message that the plane had developed a petrol-pump fault. And for three hours the second leg of the journey was delayed—three every long hours for the twenty  year-old wonder boy. His reaction was immediate and poignant. 'Thank God, they've found out in time,' he said quietly. Then at last, another plane was diverted to take us off again to Zeman Airport—and a rapturous reception."

Saturday, 10 May 1958 - Walter Winterbottom was involved in a row with Yugoslav Football Association officials before the team trained at the Red Army stadium. He was told that his players could not practice there. When Winterbottom queried, he was told that it was because the Yugoslavs could not train at Wembley eighteen months years ago. England party were sent to work out on the boys' pitch. The England team did eventually train at the stadium after Winterbottom again protested over the fact that boys' pitch had not even been mowed. The England team were wearing new dove grey track suits, and their light training took an hour, as temperatures were over 80°.
The team is announced, naming an unchanged side, but not until Jim Langley had a late fitness test on his broken little toe.
This evening, the party attended a cocktail party in their honour at the British Embassy in Belgrade, given by the British Charge d'Affaires, Mr. Terence Garvey, before visiting the Belgrade Circus.
Heatwave conditions with temperatures of over 90° were forecast for tomorrow's international match.

England Form: last six games
D W L W W W  f 17:a success: 75%
314 19 May 1957 -
Republic of Ireland
1 England 1 [1-0]
Dalymount Park, Dublin
(47,600)
Ringstead
Atyeo
WCP AD
315 19 October 1957 - Wales 0 England 4 [0-2]
Ninian Park, Cardiff (58,000)
Hopkins OG, Haynes (2), Finney BC AW
316 6 November 1957 -
England 2 Northern Ireland 3
[0-1]
Empire Stadium, Wembley (40,000)
A'Court, Edwards
Hopkinson OG, McCrory, Simpson
HL
317 27 November 1957 - England 4 France 0 [3-0]
Empire Stadium, Wembley (64,349)
Taylor (2), Robson (2) Fr HW
318 19 April 1958 - Scotland 0 England 4 [0-2]
Hampden Park, Glasgow
(127,857)
Douglas, Kevan (2), Charlton BC AW
319 7 May 1958 - England 2 Portugal 1 [1-0]
Empire Stadium, Wembley (72,000)
Charlton (2)
Duarte
Fr HW
____________________

CG