Not a particularly impressive performance by England even if there can be do complaints about the result.

As much as Wayne Rooney prefers to play as a second striker it is readily apparent that Steven Gerrard completely disappears when he is playing on the left wing. If Gerrard is to play for England he must play in the second striker role that he plays at Liverpool.

Rooney on the other hand when switched with Gerrard in the second half played well in the role on the left, arriving as an additional attacker as needed. Rooney also tracked back very impressively. One particular English corner saw both central defenders up for the kick and Kazakhstan break quickly. It was Rooney who led the charge back into defense.

Theo Walcott was fairly invisible and was replaced by SWP at the half. A curious game for our right midfielder as his touch was poor throughout. Yet it was his pass that sprung Glen Johnson leading to the third English goal and when Johnson was replaced by David Beckham, SWP slotted back into the right back spot. Not sure England could have got away with that against a world class team, but against the rapidly tiring Kazaks there was little threat. Johnson had a very poor game and you have to wonder if the muted moves to Chelsea or Liverpool will be impacted by this display. The Portsmouth full back is effective going forward but I'm still not convinced he's a good defender. The Micah Richards of two seasons ago would be a much better selection for England so if he can get back to that level of form there is hope for a World Cup place.

New signing Gareth Barry got on the score sheet and settled the team's nerves but he too has played better.

Meanwhile other City players were getting on the score sheet in World Cup qualifying. Nigel de Jong helped Holland qualify for next year's finals with a 2-1 victory against Iceland and Richard Dunne was on target as the Republic of Ireland for a valuable point against Bulgaria. Elano and Robinho both started for the best team on the planet as Brazil destroyed Uruguay 4-0 in Montevideo. Again the question must be asked. If Elano is good enough to start for Brazil, why does Hughes seem to have an issue with him.

All in all a pretty good night for City players with the added benefit that Barry picked up a yellow card and doesn't get to play next wednesday. The less chance of injury the better!