Cry for help: England manager Fabio Capello berates his players during the friendly with Japan in Graz

Same old story for England. In their final friendly before flying out to World Cup 2010 in South Africa Fabio Capello’s team were spared embarrassment by two Japan own goals, once again failing to rediscover their qualifying form.

After a grim first half in which Japan led from the seventh minute, the England managed made five changes and an improved performance put Japan under pressure, both their centre backs turning into their own net.

Amid torrential downpours and some noisy travelling support England failed to convince but, just as against Mexico, came away with the win. First Marcus Tanaka headed Joe Cole's cross past his goalkeeper and then Yuji Nakazawa turned an Ashley Cole cross into his own net in the closing stages. Inept stuff.

Japan had caught a flat England cold. With seven minutes gone Yasuhito Endo’s low corner was steered in by Tanaka. The England defence were static – but that was the running theme of the half. Japan, playing neat approach football, breezed through the England midfield too easily.

England were restricted to long range shots for the most part, with one Frank Lampard free kick panicking goalkeeper Eiji Kawashima while Aaron Lennon also went close after scurrying on to an excellent Wayne Rooney pass. Rooney himself went close with an improvised flick from a Tom Huddelstone pass just before the break.

An angry Capello sent on Joe Hart, Jamie Carragher, Shaun Wright-Phillips, Steven Gerrard and Joe Cole at the break as he tried to shake somke life into his team. It worked, to a degree, as Gerrard provided far more drive in midfield and Joe Cole some spark going forward. Japan still offered sporadic threats, though, and Keisuke Honda was twice denied by fine Hart saves.

Ten minutes into the second half and England won a penalty after Lampard’s free-kick struck a Japanese arm in the wall. Having missed a penalty in the FA Cup final, Lampard stepped up but his effort, low to his left, was saved by Kawashima. Capello might want to promote Rooney to that job.

England finally got their equaliser on 72 minutes after a sustained spell of pressure, Joe Cole getting down the right and putting in a cross to the near post that was flicked in by the otherwise excellent Tanaka. Eleven minutes later and Japan somehow did it again.

There was still time for Emile Heskey to head wide a Gerrard cross with the goal gaping and Yuke Abe to hit the top of the bar with a cross. Capello had been animated and angry throughout the second half. Once again he had to give his players what foir at half time and he comes away with more questions than answers.

England (4-4-2): James (Green h-t); Johnson (Carragher h-t), Ferdinand, Terry, A Cole; Walcott (Wright-Phillips h-t), Lampard, Huddlestone (Gerrard h-t), Lennon (Heskey 75); Rooney, Bent (J Cole h-t). Subs: Green (g), Dawson, Upson, King, Warnock, Baines, Parker, Carrick, Milner, Johnson, Crouch, Defoe.

Japan (4-1-4-1): Kawashima; Konno, Tanaka, Nakazawa, Nagamoto; Abe; Honda, Hasebe, Endo, Okubo (Matsui 70); Okazaki (Miramoto 65). Subs: Narazaki (g), Kawaguchi (g), Komano, Iwamasa, Uchida, Yamamura, Sakai, Nakamura, Inamoto, Nakamura, Matsui, Kagawa, Tamada, Yano, Morimoto, Nagai.