MANAUS, Brazil -- Mario Balotelli scored with a second-half header Saturday to give Italy a 2-1 win over England at the World Cup. The Italy striker was left free by his marker Gary Cahill and nodded a cross from Antonio Candreva past goalkeeper Joe Hart in the 50th minute. Claudio Marchisio scored first for Italy, sending a long shot through a crowded area and past a diving Hart in the 35th. Daniel Sturridge equalized for England two minutes later, tapping in a cross from Wayne Rooney. The win puts Italy in a strong position to qualify for the second round, and leaves England with plenty to do in its remaining two matches. In the other Group D match, Costa Rica beat Uruguay 3-1, giving the 2010 semifinalists a similarly difficult task to advance. Balotelli nearly scored another in first-half injury time, running deep into the area and enticing Hart to come off his line. The Italy striker stopped, looked toward goal and sent a chip over the keepers head -- only for Phil Jagielka to clear by heading the ball over the bar. Englands attack-minded lineup made frequent runs into the Italy area throughout the match, and came close to scoring several times. The best of the chances came in the 24th when Danny Welbeck sent the ball across the front of goal but Andrea Barzagli was able to slide in and tip the ball up in the air. Raheem Sterling, who had been running in from the left, jumped for the header but couldnt reach it, letting the ball go past him as he tumbled into the net. Italy played without the injured Gianluigi Buffon. The 36-year-old Italy goalkeeper, who can play in his fourth World Cup if he is able to recover from an ankle problem, was replaced by Salvatore Sirigu. The PSG keeper stepped up and made several good saves, but the best may have come in the 77th when he dived to his left to block a free kick from Leighton Baines. The match was played in the Amazonian city of Manaus, the most exotic of the 12 World Cup venues for this years tournament. According to FIFA, it was 30 degrees C (86 degrees F) with humidity at a relatively low 61 per cent for the match. While none of the players appeared to be affected by the heat, there was an injury on the England bench when team physio Gary Lewin dislocated his ankle while celebrating Sturridges goal. England and Italy were playing each other at the World Cup for only the second time. They also met in the third-place match at the 1990 World Cup, with the Italians also winning 2-1. Oakland Athletics Shirts . Now comes an off-season of questions about manager Matt Williams decisions and a handful of key roster choices, including what to do about Ryan Zimmerman, whether to sign Jordan Zimmermann and Ian Desmond to long-term deals, and how to upgrade an offence that fell flat in October. Fake Athletics Jerseys .com) - The Columbus Blue Jackets rewarded starting goaltender and pending restricted free agent Sergei Bobrovsky with a four-year contract extension on Friday. https://www.cheapathleticsonline.com/.4 seconds left and dribbled up court, weaving through Pitts defence. Athletics Jerseys China . Harrison Barnes had 15 points and Reggie Bullock scored 11 for the Tar Heels (17-3, 4-1 ACC), who took the court for the first time without starter Dexter Strickland. The junior guard tore his right ACL last Thursday at Virginia Tech and will miss the rest of the season. Stitched Athletics Jerseys . Bilbaos first victory in four rounds lifted it four points clear of Real Sociedad and kept it in command of Spains last Champions League berth for next season. In contrast, Betis was left 11 points from safety after a dismal performance that at times bordered on self-destruction amid some questionable refereeing decisions.Denver, CO (SportsNetwork.com) - The Colorado Avalanche could be without top defenseman Erik Johnson for up to two months after the 2015 All-Star underwent arthroscopic knee surgery on Monday. Johnson, who was unable to take part in this past weekends All-Star festivities in Columbus due to the injury, is expected to be sidelined anywhere from 3-to-8 weeks. The 2006 No. 1 overall pick has alreadyy set a career high with 12 goals through just 47 games, tied for the most in the NHL by a defenseman this season.dddddddddddd Johnson leads the Avalanche in average time on ice (24:25) and blocked shots (107) as well while recording 23 points thus far in 2014-15. The 26-year-old is the first Colorado defenseman to be named an All-Star since Hall of Famer Rob Blake during the 2003-04 season. ' ' '