Euro 2012 qualifying Group G: Wales 0 England 2

England regained top spot in Euro 2012 qualifying Group G with a comfortable 2-0 win over Wales at the Millennium Stadium.

Frank Lampard’s penalty and a Darren Bent strike in the opening 15 minutes of Saturday’s match proved enough to secure all three points for Fabio Capello’s team.They are now level on 10 points with Montenegro, but move into first place on superior goal difference. England started brightly in Cardiff and were rewarded after just seven minutes. Wales centre-back James Collins brought down Aston Villa teammate Ashley Young inside the box and Chelsea’s Frank Lampard converted the resulting spot-kick to make it 1-0.England continued to control the game and needed just seven minutes more to double their advantage.A long ball from Liverpool fullback Glen Johnson released Young in behind the Wales defence and a simple square pass allowed Bent to crash a shot into the roof of the net from close range.England’s only cause for concern was a yellow card shown to Wayne Rooney in the 37th minute. The Manchester United forward was fortunate to escape with only a booking after a high challenge on Wales captain Aaron Ramsey. England continued to dictate terms in the second half and while they were unable to increase the lead, Wales failed to muster any kind of threat. The hosts lost star man Gareth Bale to injury during the week and despite boasting the likes of Arsenal’s Ramsey and mercurial forward Craig Bellamy, they were unable to force their way back into the contest.Gary Speed’s team remain bottom of the group with no points from four matches played and look almost certain to miss out on a place in the finals. Their next qualifier is at home to Montenegro on September 2.England’s next competitive match is against Switzerland at Wembley Stadium on June 4.