Holland 2 England 2

The friendly international between Holland and England at the Amsterdam Arena, in Amsterdam, on Wednesday Aug 12, 2009.

Fabio Capello's hairdryer must have been red hot at half-time. England were being given a lesson in the art of possession, were being not so much played off the park by Holland but being run out of town. England’s head coach got his players going, got them believing, and, crucially, got Jermain Defoe on, the Spurs flier striking twice.

England looked so much better when Capello injected some pace into midfield at the break, taking off the pedestrian David Beckham and unleashing Shaun Wright-Phillips. Ashley Young hardly lacks a burst of acceleration but James Milner’s electrifying arrival on the left was particularly welcome on a night of mixed emotions.

Not until Capello got to grips with his players during the interval, cranking up that famous hairdryer, making wholesale changes, and particularly the insertion of Jermain Defoe for the ineffectual Emile Heskey, did England resemble an international force.

Until then, carnage. During the first half, memories of past embarrassments to the Dutch came flooding back, of Ronald Koeman’s free kick – "he’s going to flip it" – sending Graham Taylor towards a Rotterdammerung, of Marc Overmars showing that you can beat Des Walker, earning a penalty at Wembley. During the opening period’s evisceration of England’s defence, there were even echoes of Marco van Basten’s hat-trick in Düsseldorf when a young Tony Adams was given the runaround. Rio Ferdinand and John Terry were the chastened ones here.

Amsterdam boasts a Torture Museum and until Defoe’s goal early in the second period England could have been forgiven for thinking the house of pain had been moved to the Arena. The agony began after 10 minutes, Kuyt exploiting the first moment of English profligacy in possession, on this occasion by Ferdinand, and intensified when Van der Vaart added a second, this time after Gareth Barry lost the ball.

The first goal was a horror show. When Robert Green knocked the ball to Terry on the edge of the area, the danger appeared minimal. Terry rolled the ball square to Ferdinand in the right-back position and the Manchester United centre-half, not looking, passed it back inside.

Kuyt reacted quickest, intercepting the loose ball, rounding Green. The Liverpool striker kept his composure, ignored Arjen Robben in the centre, and calmly placed the ball between the despairing Terry and the post. Good finishing, shocking defending.

Even without such gifts, the Dutch menaced. They were sharper to the ball, hounding England relentlessly, fantastically fast on the counter. Until Capello made his changes, England simply could not live with Holland’s clever movement, the hosts’ interchanging four-man attack echoing Barcelona at times.

Kuyt marauded through the middle, giving a lively No 9’s performance, an encouragement for Rafa Benitez at Liverpool should Fernando Torres fade. Van der Vaart, unloved by Real Madrid, linked with the midfield and broke into the box with murderous effect.

Out wide, Arjen Robben clearly fancied his chances running at Glen Johnson, a good attacking fullback but too often vulnerable defensively at this elevated level. Robben also traded places with Robin Van Persie on the left, although the Arsenal man was enjoying his tussle with Ashley Cole, utterly deceiving him with a majestic turn on the half-hour.

In another blur of orange, Van Persie flicked the ball past Rooney, and glided past Beckham, who was so statuesque it could have been his new model from Madame Tussauds in Amsterdam. Uncertainty was dressed up in white for long periods of Wednesday night.

This, as the watching Taylor once remarked in Oslo, was a test, a real test. The current England coach, Capello, was out of his seat, glaring at this misfiring players. They tried to string some passes together, and Frank Lampard would have scored but for a fine save from Maarten Stekelenburg, but a serial failure to retain the ball held England back. Until Defoe broke through the middle, the only English deliveries that consistently found their targets were the paper-darts launched by the fans at their orange-skirted counterparts.

Barry, Beckham and Ferdinand wasted the ball in quick succession. After Lampard brought down Robben, the Madrid winger swept over the free kick that Kuyt met at the far-post. Green saved well, although he could have been forgiven for wondering where his defence was.

The Dutch love a double and their second duly arrived. Barry played Father Christmas Claus this time, presenting the ball to Robben, who raced through the middle. Green, again abandoned by his backs, somehow managed to save but with his defenders still Awol, the West Ham keeper, had no chance as Van der Vaart arrived to drill the loose ball in. "Do you English think it’s December the 25th?" remarked a bemused Dutch observer. "Why all the presents?"

Encouragingly for England, Capello showed he can address problems mid-match. Beckham was withdrawn, his lack of pace exposed by Holland. Shaun Wright-Phillips scampered on. Barry followed Beckham, replaced by Michael Carrick, ordered to hold on to the ball in midfield, although the United midfielder promptly lost it, and Ryan Babel almost scored.

At least Defoe was on, scoring when the Italian referee, Nicola Rizzoli, played a great advantage when Rooney was poleaxed by Andre Ooijer. Lampard had pounced on the loose ball, lifting it through the middle into the space vacated by Ooijer, who was still untangling his limbs from Rooney’s. Defoe was off and running, charging into the box and finishing with a superb left-footed shot past Stekelenburg.

Defoe’s intelligent movement brought England an equaliser after 76 minutes. Carlton Cole, who had just gone close, lifted the ball out to the left and Milner showed greater pace and determination than John Heitinga, darting ahead of the Atletico Madrid fullback and crossing low and hard into the six-yard box for the sliding Defoe to nudge England level. Some turnaround.