Good evening and welcome to Sports Mole's live text coverage of England's final Euro 2012 group match against co-hosts Ukraine.
The maths are simple - a win for England and Roy Hodgson's side progress to the quarter-finals this weekend, while a victory for Ukraine will see Oleg Blokhin's team progress at the expense of the Three Lions.
Of course France, who play Sweden at the same time, are also in the mix, with all three sides still able to finish top of Group D.
21.37Did England deserve it? Find out with our match analysis coming up shortly! Thanks for joining us this evening.
21.36And that is that! England have beaten Ukraine and barring a miracle in Kiev, they will top Group D.
90+3 minRESULT: England 1-0 Ukraine
90+2 minSecond goal for Sweden! Sebastian Larsson puts them 2-0 up against France. England will surely top the group!
90+1 minYarmolenko, who has been impressive, tries a curled effort from the edge of the box. However the ball goes wide and with it, possibly, Ukraine's chances of progressing.
90 minThree minutes of stoppage time will be played.
89 minBig chance for the Ox on the break there. He runs free of the defence but when the time was right to get his head up and pick out Walcott, the pass was lacking.
86 minAnd that's it for Rooney. It's almost like Roy was listening to me. He is replaced by Oxlade-Chamberlain for the final four minutes or so.
86 minYellow card for Shevchenko following a reckless challenge on Young.
84 min...which is well defended by Rooney of all people! The ball eventually goes out for a goal-kick to England.
84 minCorner to Ukraine...
83 minRooney is looking very tired out there now. He has given the ball away three times in the space of two minutes. Could do with being replaced.
81 minEngland substitution. Welbeck comes off for Andy Carroll.
80 minSubstitute Nazarenko tries his luck from distance, but his effort sails over Hart's bar. Ten to go.
78 minNeedless booking for Cole, who is cautioned for time wasting. Will that come back to haunt him?
78 minMichael Owen on Twitter: "This is starting to look interesting. If we avoid Spain and play Italy, I for one may start getting excited about our chances." Steady Michael, steady!
77 minAnother substitution for the home side for the sees Butko replace Milevskiy.
76 minDespite the nerves and the shaky performance, England are just 14 minutes (plus stoppage time) away from winning their group.
75 minMeanwhile, a Gerrard corner falls to Rooney at the back post. However, the striker heads straight at Pyatov.
73 minAnother escape for England! How many lives have they got?! Konoplianka's shot from distance is parried straight out by Hart into no man's land. However, Lescott reacts quickest to hack clear.
72 min...Which clears everybody as the ball heads out for a goal-kick.
71 minCorner to Ukraine...
69 minSubstitution time! Milner comes off for England to be replaced by Walcott, while the main man Shevchenko comes on for the Ukraine in place of Devic.
68 minAlmost a goal for Cole there! Rooney goes up to challenge a Milner cross with Pyatov, who flaps. The ball falls to Cole, whose shot is pushed wide by a retreating Pyatov. What was the Chelsea defender doing up there in the first place?!
66 minBack to the action and Ukraine have found a second wind here. They are beginning to press England, who are falling deeper and deeper.
65 minStill struggling to fathom how the official on the post failed to award a goal there. Is that not his one and only job? Mr Blatter, are you watching?
64 minMeanwhile, up the other Rooney sends a free-kick from 20 yards out into the side netting.
63 minReplays show that Devic's shot was OVER THE LINE! Quite how the extra official standing on the post missed that is beyond me. Two huge escapes for the Three Lions. Video technology anyone?!
62 minMassive drama! Devic's pace gets him free of Terry, but he shoots straight at Hart. The ball is looping goalwards, only for Terry to retreat and hook off the line.
61 minJust as I say that, Ukraine should be level! Milevskiy finds himself six yards out and unmarked, but he somehow heads over. That was easier than Rooney's chance that he missed in the first half. Big escape for England.
59 minInitially Ukraine responded positively to going behind. However, they (and the crowd) now seem extremely flat.
57 minNews of Sweden's goal must have filtered through to Hodgson. How will the boss react? Will he now looked to protect what England have got?
56 minIn all the excitement I forgot to mention the Swedish goalscorer! It was none other than Zlatan Ibrahimovic!
55 minMASSIVE goal for England in the other match! Sweden have taken the lead against France, which puts England three points clear of the French! Les Blues will still qualify, but as runners-up.
54 minIn fact Gerrard's clearance sets England off on a counter-attack. The captain sets Rooney free but he doesn't have the pace to get beyond the defence. Instead he cuts the ball back for Milner on the edge of the area, whose shot is blocked.
53 min...which is poked clear by Gerrard.
52 min...and again it falls to an England head. This time Welbeck is on hand to clear. However, in their next attack Ukraine force another corner...
52 min...which is cleared for another one by Cole...
51 minUkraine have responded well to going behind. Hart back peddles to push a Gusev cross for a corner...
49 minGood old England! Just two minutes after going in front and they are under pressure! Thankfully for them, the defence holds firm and the danger is averted.
48 minThere it is! He may have been poor during the opening 45 minutes, but Rooney is right on the money two minutes after the restart. Gerrard's corner is cleared back to skipper, who drills in a low cross. Pyatov spills the ball into the path of Rooney, who nods in from close range for his 29th international goal. As it stands, England top the group.
47 minGOAL! England 1-0 Ukraine (Rooney)
47 minCorner for England, which Milner wins after his cross is blocked. Gerrard to whip it across...
45 minEngland will get us underway.
20.48The players are heading back onto the pitch, with neither side having made a change.
20.47Back to Donetsk and surely Hodgson has to be contemplating changes to his England side. Walcott? The Ox? Some pace is needed.
20.46Just to keep you abreast of what is happening in the other Group D match. France and Sweden are drawing 0-0. As it stands France will win the group, while England will finish second. You can read our half-time report here.
20.34Stick with us to find out who will progress to the quarter-finals. Back in five.
20.33Well what can you say?! Rooney has looked exactly what he is - a striker that hasn't played for a month, while the likes of Johnson and Milner have been wasteful in possession. Apart from that, everything is hunky dorey from an England perspective! To be fair to Ukraine, they've looked dangerous at times. Perhaps with Shevchenko on the pitch they would have posed more of a goal threat.
45 minHALF-TIME: England 0-0 Ukraine
44 minOne minute to go. Can someone find a goal that will make the half-time oranges taste all the better?!
42 min...which is drilled into the near post before going out for a goal-kick. England need half-time.
42 minCorner for Ukraine as Yarmolenko's run into the area is halted by Lescott...
40 minRooney's cross is cleared to Parker, whose strike from 25 yards out goes closer to the corner flag than the goal. Sums up England's half so far.
39 minHow many more mistakes is Milner going to commit?! Another pass from the Man City goes astray to set up a Ukraine attack. Thankfully for him it comes to nothing.
36 minDangerous low cross from Young on the left is hacked clear by Rakitskiy with both Welbeck and Rooney waiting to pounce. That's better from Young, who has been disappointing so far this tournament.
33 min"Never an easy watch England, are they?" No Mr Lineker, they are not!
32 min...and it's a free header for Terry, who cannot get up high enough and the ball sails over the bar. England are improving though.
31 minAnother corner for the Three Lions. Young wins it after his shot is blocked. Gerrard will take...
30 minUkraine respond by creating a good chance of their own. Yarmolenko cuts back on to his favoured left foot, but his curling effort from 12 yards is well held by Joe Hart.
28 minRooney has not scored in a major tournament since 2004 and he won't get many better chances than that.
28 minThat should have been the moment for Rooney! Not sure how he has missed. Two great passes from Terry and Young present the striker with a headed chance, but he mistimes his jump and the ball flies wide.
27 minPoor from Milner. Very poor. Welbeck shows good feet to release the winger on the right hand side, but his cross is badly over hit.
25 min...but the danger passes and Ukraine have a goal-kick.
25 minAnother free-kick for England. This time Young is brought down by Tymoschuk, who commits a needless foul. Gerrard will take again...
24 min...almost for Rooney! The striker gets across his man but cannot connect. Pyatov flaps for a corner, which comes to nothing.
23 minFree-kick for England in a dangerous position around 40 yards from goal. Gerrard will take...
22 minI'd like to have something positive to report from an England point of view. Unfortunately the last two posts from Lineker and Taylor are accurate.
21 minBit of advice for Johnson from Mr potato chip Gary Lineker on Twitter: "Any chance Glenn Johnson can show Konoplyanka down the line and stop letting him cut inside?"
19 minGraham Taylor on BBC Sport: "What an impressive start by Ukraine. They're playing very, very well. England have only had one period of possession and other than that it's been all Ukraine."
18 minAnother blocked shot for Ukraine. This time Konoplianka's goalbound effort is stopped by Terry's shoulder. The hosts are certainly the better of the two sides.
14 minJust to let you France and Sweden are currently drawing 0-0 in Kiev. As it stands, the French and English will progress.
13 min...which is punched clear by Pyatov.
13 minCorner for England as Johnson's cross is cleared to safety...
12 minBack up the other end Scott Parker throws himself in the way of a shot from Devic. England are looking a little nervy at the back it has to be said.
11 minFirst venture forward from full-back Cole, whose low cross is collected by Pyatov.
10 minDon't want this to sound like the 'Rooney Show' but the Man United man is looking rusty at the moment. His first touch is non-existent at present. Perhaps understandable given his (self-imposed) lack of game time.
8 minBig chance for Yarmolenko. The Ukrainian winger drifts inside but his touch is poor and John Terry retreats to clear. A better touch and England would have been in trouble there.
7 minFirst foul of night committed by Rooney for a hook challenge on Khacheridi.
6 min...but his run is halted by Gusev.
6 minHere come England and Rooney...
5 minA lot of whistling from the home fans every time England get the ball. Their 3,000 or so supporters in the ground are trying their best to be heard, but to no avail.
3 minEngland have been extremely wasteful in possession so far, highlighted by Johnson's mis-placed pass inside his own half which goes for a throw-in.
2 minTwo minutes in and the match has currently descended into a midfield battle. Someone needs to get their foot on the ball.
19.45As the great word-smith Rio Ferdinand would say: "Let's avvvv ittttttttttt!" Ukraine will get us underway.
19.42Done! Kick-off shortly! Stay with us.
19.41Ukraine's turn...
19.40That's a fiver I owe all of you! Although whether what Rooney was doing classifies as "singing" I'm not sure!
19.39Anthem time - fiver says Rooney doesn't sing!
19.39A quick "come on boys" from full-back Glen Johnson any the players head onto the pitch.
19.38Players are in the tunnel, the miners are off the pitch! Almost game time!
19.36On the subject of the miners, here's Matt Lawton on Twitter: "Brilliant. Wouldn't let people train on the pitch last night but will let 30 blokes with giant hammers run about on it."
19.35Apparently there are dancers dressed as miners on the pitch at the moment. Interesting.
19.31Bit of praise for record-breaker Cole from former England boss Graham Taylor on BBC Sport: "Ashley Cole started off as a left winger. He dropped back and in my opinion has probably been the best left-back in the world for the last 18 months or two years, not just for his attacking ability but his defensive work. He has been brilliant."
19.29You know what I was saying about this not being easy for England? Forget it! The stats show that Ukraine have lost their last six matches in Donetsk! Will the Three Lions make it seven?
19.27Record breaker: Ashley Cole will set a record this evening as England's most capped player in a major tournament. The Chelsea man will be featuring for a 21st time - like him or loathe him, that's impressive.
19.25Gerrard and Rooney have linked up well in an England shirt in recent years. Will the skipper be allowed further forward this evening to support "Pele"?!
19.24More Twitter (where would I be without it!?) - The Mirror journalist Oliver Holt: "England warming up. Gary Neville been giving advice to Welbeck. Now doing work with Lescott. At shooting practice, Gerrard + Roo v sharp."
19.23Particularly when you consider that a victory will see Ukraine advance. Many of the squad have gone on record recently saying that they are keen not to follow fellow hosts Poland out of the competition in the group stages.
19.20It seems that quite a few England fans are taking a positive result here for granted. Make no mistake, in front of partisan Ukrainian crowd, this will not be easy.
19.17Bit more from good ol' Twitter - Rio Ferdinand: "Come on Eeeeeeengland, 2 - 0, Rooney with a brace! Let's av iiiiit!"
19.14Worrying signs for Ukraine fans courtesy of Daily Mail reporter Matt Lawton on Twitter: "Can't even see Sheva warming up. Would suggest he's proper out."
19.12Yellow card alert! A booking for either Milner or Ashley Young this evening would rule them out of the quarter-final - should England make it! Their cautions will be wiped out after the second round.
19.08Having said all that, those tips have come from a man that backed Robin van Persie to be the tournament's leading goalscorer and Poland to win their group. *Gulps!*
19.07Those who like a longshot, Ukraine to be winning at half-time and England to win the match is 22/1 - you can thank me later!
19.06And how about Yevhen Konoplyanka to open the scoring for Ukraine at 14/1? The winger has had plenty of efforts on goal so far in this tournament.
19.05Rooney to score two or more goals at 15/2 looks extremely tempting. The frontman will be itching (in the words of Steven Gerrard) to do well.
19.03Right, I've held off long enough, here come some of my famous tips for the match!
19.01Forgot to mention earlier who awaits the top two teams in Group D in the quarter-finals. The winners will take on Italy, while defending champions Spain will take on the runners-up. Best finish top then!!
18.58On a personal level it's hard to believe that it was eight years ago that Rooney made his first major international impact in this competition. He tore France, Switzerland and Croatia to shreds and looked to be doing the same to hosts Portugal until a broken foot halted his progress. Can he have a similar impact this time around?
18.57...Former England goal machine Alan Shearer has been talking to BBC Sport about the striker: "The eyes of the world are always on Wayne Rooney and he's got to handle that. I've heard people say he is a shy guy, and I agree with that. I sat and interviewed him a few weeks ago and he is very shy, but he has unbelievable belief in his ability and so he should. He's world class. He's had to sit and watch the first two games. There's a bit of pressure on him to perform tonight, but he can handle that pressure."
18.56Back to that man Rooney, who is making his first appearance of the tournament this evening...
18.55The last time these two sides met was back during the qualifying campaign for the 2010 World Cup. England won 2-1 at Wembley, while Ukraine gained revenge thanks to a 1-0 reverse back on home soil.
18.52And breathe!
18.51Caphice? Hope so!
18.50Note that if England and France finish on the same points, the team with the superior goal difference will advance/finish top. Les Blues are currently one goal better of than England.
18.48However, if Ukraine win they will qualify for the final eight. England would be out unless France fail to beat Sweden in the other match.
18.47A draw will also allow England to progress, while also eliminating Ukraine. England can win the group in these circumstances if France lose to the Swedes.
18.46If England win they are through. They will also win the group if France fail to beat Sweden in Kiev, or there is a massive swing in goal difference.
18.45Right, with an hour until kick-off (how are the nerves/fingernails holding up?!) let me run you through the all the permutations this evening. I might need that hour!
18.42Here's a stat for you courtesy of Daily Telegraph reporter Paul Hayward on Twitter: "Shevchenko has 48 in 110 games for Ukraine. No other Ukrainian striker in this squad has more than eight international goals."
18.40So no Andriy Voronin in the Ukraine lineup either. Mind you, after his spell at Liverpool a couple of years ago I'm not sure whether that is a good or a bad thing!
18.38Ukraine team to face England: Pyatov; Gusev, Rakitskiy, Khatcheridi, Selin; Yarmolenko, Tymoschuk, Garmash, Konoplyanka; Milevsky, Devic
18.37Anyway enough of my opinionated ramblings! Here is the Ukraine team...
18.36Milner's selection also keeps Theo Walcott and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain on the bench. The pair possess the two things that Milner does not have - pace and trickery. No defender likes coming up against it, as highlighted by Walcott's appearance against the Swedes on Friday.
18.34Happy with that England team then? Have to say the continued inclusion of James Milner is a head scratcher for me! His passing has been poor so far and do not even get me started on that miss against France!
18.32BREAKING TEAM NEWS: While Rooney returns for England, there is not such good news for the co-hosts, who are without Andriy Shevchenko because of a knee problem.
18.31England's starting lineup: Hart; Johnson, Lescott, Terry, Cole; Milner, Parker, Gerrard, Young; Rooney, Welbeck
18.30BREAKING TEAM NEWS: What timing that is! Just as I type that about Welbeck, tonight's official team sheet confirms his presence in the starting lineup.
18.29But that begs the question: Who does he replace? Danny Welbeck and Andy Carroll did well against the Swedes and whoever drops out can count themselves unlucky. The word on the Tweet is that Welbeck will be given the nod to start, with confirmation expected shortly.
18.27The Manchester United man has served a two-match suspension and will start for the Three Lions this evening. Roy Hodgson has compared the striker to Pele in recent days (steady Roy!) Nevertheless, there can be no doubting that England are better side with the 26-year-old around.
18.25There can only be one place to start and that's with a certain Mr Wayne Rooney!
18.24Evening all. So here we are then, it's En-ger-land time! What emotions will Roy Hodgson's side put everybody through tonight? If it is anything like Friday evening against Sweden, it could be a roller-coaster evening.
Written by
Liam Apicella
Liam Apicella
