Strange one, this. Very strange. From the atmosphere inside the Khalifa International Stadium, which bordered on the lunar, to the sight of Jermaine Jenas trying to get to grips with the peerless Kaká, this was a surreal occasion, one afforded an air of respectability for England by an entirely misleading scoreline.

A single-goal defeat at the hands of Brazil can be heroic, as the fascinating reruns of the 1970 World Cup quarter-final in Guadalajara testify, but this was not a worthy addition to the archives of one of international football’s more evocative fixtures. Brazil 1 England Reserves 0 — and nothing like the moral victory that the slender winning margin may suggest.

This, after a remarkable succession of injuries and withdrawals, was an England XI from beyond the fringe. Darren Bent’s greatest achievement was getting his hands on Lúcio’s shirt at the final whistle, but, as he left the stadium, he stated that he had “loved every minute”. All 54 of them, that is, before he was unceremoniously hooked by Fabio Capello, his World Cup prospects having all but disappeared.

It was not hard to pick out the tourists among the England squad. Along with Bent, Joleon Lescott, Wayne Bridge, James Milner and Tom Huddlestone, who made his debut as a late substitute, left with whichever Brazil shirt they could get their hands on.

Nobody got close to the elusive Kaká. As a microcosm of a spectacle that was far removed from Spain’s compelling and fractious tussle with Argentina in Madrid, it was quite apt.

Lescott, in fairness, had enhanced his claim for a place in the World Cup squad, as the most impressive of England’s makeshift back four. Milner, likewise, put in a decent shift in midfield. But opportunities for the most part were not grasped by those, such as Shaun Wright-Phillips and Bent, who had most to gain. When Capello said that he had “learnt about the level of some players”, it did not sound like the discovery that he had been hoping to make.

The match merely affirmed what Capello suspected, which is that, if England are to have any chance of overcoming top-class opponents at the World Cup finals in South Africa in the summer, players such as Rio Ferdinand, John Terry, Ashley Cole, Frank Lampard and Steven Gerrard have to be there, fully fit and on top of their game. The back-up players, in those positions at least, are not in the same class.

Take the best players out of any team and you can expect a drop in standards, but there is a sizeable gulf in class and perhaps also in character between England’s elite players and those who make up the numbers in the squad. It was telling that the latter seemed content with their performance against the mighty Brazil, whereas Wayne Rooney, given the England captaincy for the first time, called it a “disappointing” experience.

It was not quite a masterclass from Brazil or Kaká, but it was sufficiently one-sided to leave you wondering how many goals they might have scored if they had been in the mood. In the end, they settled for the one by Nilmar, who got between Wes Brown and Matthew Upson to beat Ben Foster with a looping header early in the second half, but, with Luís Fabiano missing a penalty and Lúcio crashing a shot off the inside of a post from 30 yards, another goal or two would not have flattered them.

It is nothing to see an England side outpassed and outclassed by Brazil, but the worry these days is that, with Dunga having assembled a team full of strapping six-footers who know the game inside-out, the South Americans may now be superior in every department. Their Achilles’ heel is traditionally in goal and in the centre of defence, but Júlio César, an excellent goalkeeper, was given total protection by Thiago Silva and Lúcio.

Speaking afterwards, Capello suggested that Brazil would be the strongest team in South Africa. “It is the first time we have played against a team who are so physically strong, fast and good technically,” he said. “Spain are really good technically and they play a lot of passes, but they are not as strong. Brazil defend very well.”

So if we are applying labels — Spain technically gifted, Brazil strong and technically gifted — how would Capello characterise his England team? “We have to find the middle,” he said. “We have to be good technically and strong enough. Tonight we were not strong enough to play against Brazil. We need to be stronger physically and in the tackle.”

And this is the concern. England have rediscovered many qualities under Capello — most notably a sense of tactical discipline and a fluidity in their attacking play — but neither Gareth Barry nor Lampard is the type of tough-tackling midfield player that Capello is looking for. Unless Owen Hargreaves, after 14 months out, recovers full fitness and form, which cannot be taken for granted, England will have to take on teams such as Brazil and Spain without the kind of attritional figure who can stop the defence being overrun.

It would have been far worse for England had Brazil been more ruthless in front of goal. Brown was a weak link at right back, losing track of Nilmar for the goal and making an alarming lapse that was followed with Nilmar being felled by Ben Foster. The goalkeeper should have been sent off, as he admitted, and when Fabiano struck the penalty over the crossbar, it felt an almighty reprieve.

In the end, perhaps the atmosphere, or lack of it, was not conducive to a slaughter. It did not promote top-class football, either, but the edge had already been taken off this game by the loss of so many England players to injury. A hush descended on the stadium at the final whistle. Capello looked impassive on the touchline. It was a long way to travel to find out what you already knew.

It was strange. Very strange.

Referee: A Abdou (Qatar) Attendance: 50,000