Struggling England held by Macedonia

Manchester: A mis-firing England had to settle for a 0-0 draw with Macedonia on Saturday that cut short their winning run in the Euro 2008 qualifiers.

England, who notched a laboured 1-0 win over Macedonia in Skopje last month after crushing Andorra 5-0, were outplayed at times by their slicker-passing opponents.

The hosts' best chance came in the closing minutes when Steven Gerrard hit the bar.

Steve McClaren's first setback as England manager since taking over after the World Cup was down to poor passing and a lack of authority in midfield, where Macedonia looked far more comfortable on the ball.

Though the draw will not compromise their qualifying chances, the performance will give McClaren's men little reason for optimism for next Wednesday's Group E match in Croatia, a far tougher game on paper.

England made a bright enough start, with Wayne Rooney looking sharp on his return from suspension, but there was also an early warning when Macedonia strker Goran Pandev broke into the box and fired into the side netting.

England had plenty of early possession but were held up by a combination of dreadful passing and some alert defending by Macedonia, who were quick to get men behind the ball.

Stewart Downing on the left flank, midfielders Steven Gerrard and Frank Lampard, along with right back Gary Neville, were all guilty of wasting possession.

As England toiled and started to look edgy, the visitors grew in confidence as the first half wore on, with much of their attacking play going through the impressive Pandev.

Superb work on the right by Vlade Lazarevski, getting the better of Ashley Cole, enabled him to get in a booming cross which the inrushing Robert Petrov volleyed high over the bar.

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Ilco Naumoski was also causing trouble down the left, leaving both Gerrard and Michael Carrick on the floor with his twisting runs, and Goran Maznov finished the half with a raking shot which flew wide of the far post.

With Macedonia playing the better football and looking the more likely to score, the halftime whistle was greeted by boos from the Old Trafford crowd.

There was a further setback for McClaren within minutes of the re-start with Gerrard picking up a booking that will rule him out of the game in Croatia.

England Booed

England continued to struggle and had two let-offs in quick succession when Aleksandar Mitreski headed over the bar from a corner and substitute Aco Stojkov sped through for a shot which keeper Paul Robinson turned round for a corner.

England had to wait until the 58th minute for their first real scoring chance, when Peter Crouch's header was parried by keeper Jane Nikoloski and Neville blazed the loose ball over.

McClaren tried to inject some bite into England's attack midway through the half by sending on right-winger Shaun Wright-Phillips for the ineffective Downing on the left. Rooney made way for Jermain Defoe, but there was only a minor improvement.

England's frustration began to boil over in the closing stages, with pushing and shoving by a group of players in the centre circle as play stopped for Stojkov, who was on the ground following a thundering tackle by Ledley King.

England kept pushing forward and Gerrard nearly snatched an ill-deserved win with five minutes to go, only for his searing drive to hit the bar, while Crouch headed wide in the final seconds.

It was not enough to deny Macedonia a merited point and give McClaren plenty to consider in the days ahead.