The Three Lions came into the Germany match on the back of a morale sucking and poor 2-0 defeat at the hands of Chile on home soil, and were once again hosting as they welcomed Germany for a friendly before domestic action resumed across the continent. However, their misery compounded as they fell to a 1-0 loss on Tuesday night, courtesy of Arsenal defender Per Mertesacker’s header in the first-half.

Germany put out a rather second string side, as key players like Mesut Ozil, Bastian Schweinsteiger, Phillip Lahm, Thomas Mueller and Manuel Neuer were all rested. That saw the likes of youngsters Andre Schurrle and Julian Draxler get an opportunity to stake their claim for a place in the squad for the World Cup next summer. The line was led by the likes of Marco Reus and Mario Gotze and the side had the calming influence of the likes of Per Mertesacker and Mats Hummels in the heart of defense.

England had a relatively strong side as the line was led by Wayne Rooney and Daniel Sturridge, and with Steven Gerrard behind them, the attack looked threatening. The in-form Andres Townsend was also started on the right wing.

England did try to pile on the pressure after Germany went ahead through Mertesacker’s header but could not do much to penetrate Germany’s back line, who efficiently kept them at bay. The closest England came was when Townsend’s long range attempt struck the post.

The two back-to-back defeats will cause alarm throughout the country, as this marks the end of Hodgson’s experimenting phase. With just one more friendly match to go against Denmark in March before the World Cup begins, what do you make of England’s recent results and their chances in Brazil next summer?