It’s a classic case of the English football team since the victorious year of 1966. They seize the advantage, only to lose grasp of the game nearly surrendering to Serbia and Denmark. Harry Kane not only netted a goal but also contributed to the Danish equaliser before he was substituted by team manager, Gareth Southgate, during the Euro 2024.
It’s only fair to acknowledge Morten Hjulmand for a remarkable finish, though Kane’s cross-field kick could have seen a young player under 14 removed without a second thought. In a previous article, it was discussed that Southgate might have reached his limit with team England. His overly defensive tactics seemed misplaced during the crucial tournament against Germany.
His laundry-list of shortcomings now includes ludicrous pretexts. Highlighting the absence of Kalvin Philips from the central midfield, partnering with Declan Rice, as the root cause of these failing performances, must have been a source of amusement for managers like Julian Nagelsmann, Roberto Martinez, Didier Deschamps, and Luis De La Fuente.
Coaches of Germany, Portugal, France, and Spain comprehend their task: settle for a strategy and select suitable players to deliver. While flexibility is essential, decisiveness should be the core. It’s the essence of management.
Citing Philips, who hasn’t made many appearances for England since 2021, clearly signals to Adam Wharton and Kobbie Mainoo that their manager lacks confidence in them. Starting and subsequently removing Trent Alexander-Arnold in the games against Serbia and Denmark, exposes Southgate’s lack of strategy. Surprisingly, he didn’t shy away from admitting this in the aftermath of the game, framing it under the guise of “experimentation”.
Spain and Germany, in contrast, utilised the pre-match period for trial runs before they put their final tactics into action, mainly modelled after Deschamps; selecting a striker like Morata/Havertz/Fullkrug and supplementing with some of the game’s promising young wingers.
Despite having a comparable pool of talent, it appears the current tournament is already dominated by Spain’s deadly pair, Nico Williams and Lamine Yamal, along with Germany’s emerging starlets, 21-year-olds Jamal Musiala and Florian Wittz.
The question about using Jude Bellingham may be solved with reference to how France utilises Antoine Griezmann and Germany uses İlkay Gündoğan. Bellingham’s success depends on his potential to shine in the ‘false-10′ position, a part we know Phil Foden excels at, given his top performances for Manchester City.
The situation reflects the historic shortfalls of England’s past “golden generation”, given Southgate’s failure to outwit his strategic maze. The glaring fact is evident now: Kane, Bellingham, Foden, and Saka are ineffective as a front four; reminiscent of how Scholes, Gerrard, Lampard, and Beckham used to hinder each other.
James McClean hits the nail on the head when it comes to Declan Rice. The former Republic of Ireland midfielder doesn’t share the same sphere of expertise with Toni Kroos and Rodri. Rice’s performance against Denmark was far from impressive. His explanations for his incompetency of ball control and distribution under minute stress was disappointing. Given this, the £100 million transfer fee Arsenal paid to West Ham for him seems unjustifiable.
Despite England leading Group C with four points from two games, one can’t ignore the apparent decline under Southgate’s leadership. Consider the final team against Denmark which could induce laughter or tears (depending on viewpoint): comprising Pickford, Walker, Stones, Guehi, Trippier, Gallagher, Rice, Eze, Bellingham, Bowen, and Watkins; it is far from anyone’s prediction.
From an English standpoint, Cole Palmer and Mainoo languishing on the bench highlight the tragedy of this Euros. Despite their fantastic Premier League performances, they remain sidelined. On the other hand, distribution from Rodri and Kroos inject energy into the tournament, with Williams and Musiala’s generally flexible and unstoppable gameplay.
Previous squad selections by Southgate, the strategist, based on cornerstone players such as Jordan Henderson, Marcus Rashford, Jack Grealish and Raheem Sterling, were later dropped due to their mediocre club performances. This decision now looks unwise as it seems to forfeit England’s alternative strategy. Rashford or Grealish’s proven efficiency is missed on the left flank.
Southgate seems to be doubting his own decisions, even undermining his purported prowess at strategy.
After an unexpected and thrilling progression to the semi-finals of World Cup 2018, England made it to the Euro finals at Wembley in 2021. However, the nation’s collective psyche was laid bare for the world to see. An early goal from Luke Shaw promised victory but this soon faded as the team’s morale plummeted in front of the nation’s horrified gaze. Italy seized the opportunity, leading to a penalty shootout win courtesy of Gianluigi Donnarumma.
Fast forward to the World Cup in Qatar, 18 months prior, Southgate’s England squared off against France in the quarter-final. They fought bravely but ultimately lost to an excellent goal from Aurélien Tchouaméni.
It was then that Southgate should have stepped down as manager. Instead, he chose to restructure the team which was, until then, comfortable with a rigid formation in place for eight years.
A minor blunder leads to a match against Germany on June 29th in the last 16, yet hope is not extinguished. A possible game plan could involve pairing Bellingham with Rice against Slovenia, positioning Foden in the 10 spot and placing Palmer in the starting line-up while shifting Saka to the left instead of Trippier.
WATCH Spain’s match against Italy following their initial goal. Observing their relentless pursuit of victory, particularly Williams’ efforts to defeat Donnarumma, could serve as a valuable lesson. Even though the Italians remained in the game due to the slimmest of margins, it’s crucial to remember that a team cannot score without possession of the ball.