England v Ukraine - As It Happened

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Fact of the match: Steven Gerrard is now the oldest player to ever be sent off while playing for England at 32 years and 104 days.

FULL-TIME: ENGLAND 1-1 UKRAINE

90 minutes + 4: Free-kick is too close to Hart and the follow-up cross comes to nothing.

90 minutes + 3: Free-kick just outside the left-hand side of the box. Yellow card for Glen Johnson.

90 minutes + 1: England continue to push but Pyatov punches clear again.

88 minutes: England captain Steven Gerrard sent off. Second yellow, looked harsh.

87 minutes: And he duly buries it. Absolutely smashed that in.

86 minutes: PENALTY TO ENGLAND Hand-ball in the box, and Lampard steps out.

85 minutes: Ukraine go straight up the other end and nearly score. A deft flick by Garmash slips a whisker wide of the far post.

84 minutes: Danny Welbeck is brought down in the box but the referee tells him to get up.

82 minutes: A Lescott ball in breaks so kindly to Welbeck, but he hits the post with the goal gaping. What a miss.

80 minutes: Gerrard swings it in, but Pyatov punches clear under pressure from Phil Jagielka.

79 minutes: Shocking pass from Gerrard concedes possession, but Lescott wins it back and England now have a free-kick about 20 yards from goal...

76 minutes: Jermain Defoe turns and shoots from long range but it screws wide.

James Milner gets booked for a soft foul.

England substitutions: Ryan Bertrand on for Leighton Baines.

71 minutes: Ukraine free-kick 25 yards out flies into the middle of the wall.

69 minutes: And Johnson attacks again, this time he cuts inside and shoots with his left foot but saw his shot  brilliantly saved by Pyatov. Corner comes to nothing again.

67 minutes: Johnson sends a low cross into the box, another England corner...

65 minutes: Ukraine are holding out well and look a real threat on the counter-attack. They have a throw-in deep into England territory...

62 minutes: England substitution: Danny Welbeck on for Tom Cleverley

60 minutes: Defoe finds space down the left but his team-mates take far too long to support him.

58 minutes: A great chance for Ukraine as Zozulya narrowly fails to get to a low ball in and Lescott clears just over his own cross-bar.

57 minutes: A poor delivery by Gerrard is easily cleared and England have wasted yet another opportunity.

56 minutes: Milner is taken down just outside the right side of the Ukraine box and England have a free-kick in a very good position...

54 minutes: Gerrard concedes a free-kick in the centre circle

53 minutes: England continue to waste possession as the ball flies out of play again...

51 minutes: England are almost caught by a Ukraine attack down their right, but Garmash's cross is put behind by Johnson for a corner...

49 minutes: Johnson gets free down the England right yet again, but his low cross is deflected behind for a corner... and nothing comes of it.

48 minutes: no changes so far for England, who have started the second period on the front foot.

Second half under way...

So the first half was dead for 30+minutes but a belter from Konoplianka and three glorious missed chances from Cleverley have thrown the match into life.

Half-time: England 0-1 Ukraine: And there is the half-time whistle - Ukraine hold a deserved 1-0 lead against an uninspiring England team.

45 minutes +1: And Cleverley shoots again!! Found in the box by Milner and it was almost third time lucky for the Manchester United man, but his shot strikes the outside of Pyatov's near post.

45 minutes: Frank Lampard pulls back brilliantly for Tom Cleverley arriving late but he completely fluffs his lines again. Completely screwed right foot shot well wide.

England still probing but without success, maybe some substitutions should be made. Maybe debuts for Sterling and Lallana??

England fans made silent, but the away end at Wembley is bouncing. To be fair Ukraine fully deserve their lead after an excellent first half. Their game plan has been spot on so far. This might be their time to avenge their 1-0 defeat only 3 months ago.

GOAL!! England 0-1 Ukraine: and what a goal it is!! Konoplianka cuts in from the left and curls an unstoppable strike into the top-fight-hand corner of Hart's goal! England behind...

37 minutes: England seeing plenty of the ball again but are still struggling to break the Eastern European side down...

34 minutes: England finally create a clear-cut chance but it is horribly missed by Tom Cleverley when faced with an almost open goal manages to hit the keeper from no more then 2 yards...

29 minutes: Gusev crosses for Garmash who just about reaches the cross only to see the ball fly high and wide.

27 minutes: From the resulting corner Jagielka gets free but sees his goal-bound header blocked...

26 minutes: Johnson has been England's most threatening player so far but apart from that England are not doing much... as I say that Milner is released into the box by Gerrard but has his shot blocked.

21 minutes: England are having a lot of the ball at the moment but are struggling to create anything. Chamberlain threatens to get away down the left before Gerrard almost finds Milner with a raking diagonal ball.

Meanwhile across the qualifiers, the home nations are struggling with Serbia beating Wales 3-1 and Scotland 1-0 down at home to Macedonia.

14 minutes: Yarmalenko finds Rotan but his shot brilliantly stopped by a diving Steven Gerrard on the line with Hart well-beaten.

13 minutes: Oxlade-Chamberlain almost gets into the box but his control lets him down and the ball goes out for a goal-kick

10 minutes: Jermain Defoe hits a thumping strike from the edge of the box past Pyatov at his near post but it is ruled out for a push on Yarmolenko.

9 minutes: Garmash gets forward down the Ukraine left and his cross finds Konoplianka but he has the ball swept away at his feet by the onrushing Joe Hart.

6 minutes: Johnson is attacking this time as he dances into the Ukraine box he scuffs his shot and its cleared...

5 minutes: Nazarenko causes havoc in the England box but Glen Johnson slides to clear...

4 minutes: Corner is cleared but Ukraine have started much better and have had plenty of the ball so far.

3 minutes: Deflected cross looks destined to beat Joe Hart but it bounces off the outside of the post and out for a corner...

England to kick-off...

The teams are out and the Ukraine national anthem is being played...

There has been a big build-up to this game after England's 5-0 win over Moldova on Friday and the surprise call-ups of Liverpool winger Raheem Sterling, Southampton midfielder Adam Lallana and Tottenham Hotspur centre-mid Jake Livermore, all of whom start on the bench tonight.

Welcome to live text commentary of England's World Cup qualification game at Wembley against Ukraine.

England line-up: Hart, Johnson, Lescott, Jagielka, Baines, Gerrard, Lampard, Cleverley, Oxlade-Chamberlain, Milner, Defoe.

Ukraine line-up: Pyatov, Gusev, Khacheridi, Rakitskiy, Selin, Tymoschuk, Rotan, Yarmolenko, Garmash, Konoplianka, Zozulya.

Ukraine Desperate for England Scalp in Hostile Donetsk

When the Ukraine national football team was reformed after the break-down of the Soviet Union in 1994 they struggled to compete at the highest level. Despite there being many talented Ukrainian players like Andrei Kanchelskis, Sergeu Yuran and Oleg Salenko; most of them chose to play for Russia after it was named the official replacement for the USSR. As a result the national team failed to put their stamp on the world game.

In the years that followed they improved rapidly as players of the calibre of Andriy Shevchenko, Anatoliy Tymoshchuk and Serhiy Rebrov emerged. Surprisingly though they failed to reach the finals of a major tournament as they lost in play-offs for World Cups 1998 and 2002 and Euro 2000. After a disastrous Euro 2004 qualifying campaign current coach Oleh Blokhin took over at the helm. After his appointment results immediately improved and they qualified for the 2006 World Cup where they made a great run to the quarter-finals. They beat Tunisia and Saudi Arabia to reach the last 16 where they overcame Switzerland on penalties after a 0-0 draw. Their run was ended in the last eight by eventual champions Italy as they fell to a 3-0 defeat.

However the Yellow-Blues were well accepted after the World Cup and went on to reach a record high of 11 in the FIFA World rankings the following Autumn. As their top players like Shevchenko and Voronin started to lose form Ukraine started to slip down the footballing ladder; narrowly missing out on Euro 2008 before losing in yet another play-off, this time to Greece, for a place in World Cup 2010. They did beat England in that 2010 campaign in Dnipro after goalkeeper Rob Green was sent off. Despite Shevchenko missing the resulting penalty the Ukraine scored through a deflected Sergiy Nazarenko strike to claim a 1-0 win.

Tonight they face England again in what is probably the biggest match in Ukrainian football history. As co-hosts for Euro 2012 they stunned Sweden in the opening game, coming from behind to win 2-1 with goals from all-time record goalscorer Shevchenko. Despite a 2-0 defeat to France a win tonight would ensure qualification. Many of the players have big tournament experience as players like Shevchenko, Tymoshchuk and Voronin played in Germany in 2006. However now they have other dangerous players in their side such as Nazarenko and Dynamo Kiev duo Yarmolenko and Aliyev.

This evening England are sure to face a hostile reception from the Donetsk crowd in their search for the point that will give them a place in the last eight. They will also be facing a talented group of players desperate to reach the knock-out stages of a major competition for the second time and make up for all those play-off defeats of the past. For many of the Ukrainian players it could be a last hurrah and they will certainly make the most of it.

Group Of Death Nears Thrilling Conclusion

Four of Europe's biggest footballing nations meet again today, but for two of them it will be their last involvement at these championships. Portugal are the only side in Group B without a Euro title, although they have an array of footballing talent in their current squad. A win today against the Netherlands would seal qualification and eliminate their opponents. For the 1988 champions victory against Portugal, coupled with a Germany win over Denmark would see them progress despite losing their first two matches. All three-time winners Germany need is a point against their Scandinavian rivals, while a Danish win would see them go through. The only way the 2008 runners-up can be eliminated is if they lose to Denmark and Portugal beat the Netherlands. If this happens it would come down to goal difference in matches between these three teams. 

Germany have won a record three European Championships and reached a record six finals. Their last win was in England in 1996 when they beat the Czech Republic in the final, adding to previous wins in 1972 and 1980. As Europe's most successful team and in good recent form they are one of the favourites for this tournament. They have sealed two very good wins against Portugal and Holland so far with all three goals scored by striker Mario Gomez, underlying their status as one of the championships's biggest threats. However all their good work could be undone today with a shock defeat to Denmark, who have already sprung a surprise in beating 2010 World Cup runners-up The Netherlands. 

The Oranje were hoping to bring 'sexy' football and flair to this year's Championships and to evoke memories of Marco van Basten's famous strike that sealed Euro glory back in 1988. That year they beat West Germany to reach the final and the Soviet Union 2-0 in that famous encounter. This month they arrived in Ukraine with high hopes of repeating that success, ranked number four in the FIFA World rankings and with some of the world's most celebrated players. However they have struggled to find the goals required to win games and have looked shaky at the back. Despite this other results have worked in their favour and with nothing to lose they can go out tonight and really attack Portugal from the off in an attempt to save their campaign. Rafael van der Vaart could start as well as Eredivisie's top scorer Klaas-Jan Huntelaar in an attempt to blow the Portuguese away. 

Although they are the only side in this group to have never won the European Championships, Portugal have one of the most feared sides in the world. Two-time World Player of the Year winner Cristiano Ronaldo is yet to set the tournament alight but everyone knows what he is capable of and could well be the man to make the difference when it matters most. Manchester United winger Nani always looks a threat and they have strength at the back in Pepe and Jose Bosingwa. After the dramatic 3-2 win over Denmark in their last game Portugal will be confident of qualification needing only a point providing Germany dispose of Denmark. 

However Denmark will have plenty to say about that. The shock 1992 winners are ranked at nine in the FIFA rankings and have a good squad that are always difficult to beat without lacking in quality. Striker Nicklas Bendtner scored twice as they came back from 2-0 down against Portugal and veteran winger Denis Rommedahl has always been capable of something out of the ordinary. Captain Daniel Agger is one of the world's top defenders and was immense in their opening 1-0 win over Holland. They will go all out to make life difficult for the Germans tonight as they need just a point to qualify if the Dutch beat Portugal. The Scandinavians should not be written off and could well go deep into the knock-out stages.

This evening should prove to be a footballing feast as all four teams hold realistic hopes of claiming a quarter-final spot. Last night's action could be tough to follow but this group's conclusion is sure to be a great spectacle with plenty of the world's best players going head-to-head.