Wayne Rooney and his England team-mates were upset by the sloppy , uninspired way they started in Italy on Tuesday night . Nine months on from meeting at the World Cup , the Three Lions faced the Azzurri once more in a glamour friendly at the Juventus Stadium . Hopes were high after seven straight wins but Roy Hodgson 's men struggled in the first half , deservedly falling behind to a Graziano Pelle header in Turin . England captain Wayne Rooney issues instructions during the 1-1 draw against Italy on Tuesday night . Rooney said he and the rest of the England players were upset by their first half performance . However , half-time brought with it renewed enthusiasm and England dominated the second period , levelling in style through Andros Townsend and going close to turning a 1-1 into an away triumph . 'We have ( moved on from the World Cup ) and I think that 's why we were so disappointed with the first half , ' England skipper Rooney said . 'We know we 're better than that . Even though we had a lot of changes , we know we are a better team than what we showed first half . 'We were upset , I 'll be honest , in the dressing room after the first half . Everyone was upset with the way we performed . Rooney and the rest of the England squad arrived back from Italy on Wednesday after their flight was delayed . The squad were supposed to fly home on Tuesday night after the match but a technical fault caused delay . 'It showed great character from everyone to go out in the second half to put in the performance we did , to get back in the game and were unlucky not to go on and win it . 'Italy are a great team and I think one of their biggest strengths is seeing the game out . 'We worked hard , we pushed the ball well , showed a lot of composure on the ball and created chances . 'On another night we might have scored another goal , but I think overall probably a draw for both teams was a fair result in the way the game went . ' Graziano Pelle opened the scoring as England deservedly went behind in the first half against Italy . Andros Townsend equalised for Roy Hodgson 's side during a much-improved second period . Things certainly ended positively for England , with Rooney dovetailing well with full debutant Harry Kane as Hodgson 's second-half introductions stated their case . Ross Barkley was one of the stand-out performers , with the second-half substitute showing flashes of the form which impressed so many last summer . 'Ross is a terrific player , ' Rooney said . 'He is a terrific young player and I think he can have an impact when he comes on . 'He did that , he took the ball , he ran at the Italian defenders and made it difficult for them . 'Hopefully , he can kick on now for the rest of the season . '
England drew 1-1 against Italy in friendly at Juventus Stadium on Tuesday . Graziano Pelle gave Italy a deserved lead as England struggled in first half . TL;DR England beat Italy 1-0 to qualify for Euro 2012 finals with win over Italy.