England are coming home following their 2-1 defeat to France in the Quarter-Finals of the World Cup yesterday. It was a disappointing end to the tournament, especially as we made the Semi-Finals in Russia 2018 and Finals at Euro 2020. However, we feel there are some reasons to positive. These include:
- The future is bright – Bukayo Saka and Jude Bellingham in particular were impressive. They will only get better with age and experience and we have a lot of other good young talent coming through. They have the hunger and are playing without fear, unlike previous England teams. Jude Bellingham is just 19 years old, which is easily forgotten. A future England captain?
- Quality and variety throughout the squad. In particular, in the front three. Either side of Harry Kane we had Phil Foden, Marcus Rashford, Raheem Sterling, Bukayo Saka and Jack Grealish who all played different roles, in different games, depending what was needed. They were given that platform due to our hard-working midfield. Different players were also under in Midfield and a Right-Back depending what we needed to achieve.
- Improvement in the back four. Not only were the fans pleased that we moved away from a back five (with two defensive midfielders in front) to a back four (with one defensive midfielder in front), to allow more positive attacking play, simply put, it worked. The back line of Shaw-Stone-Maguire-Trippier/Walker all played well, with support from Declan Rice, just in front of them. With one full-back given the freedom to go forward, the other would hold, making it a back three in defence, helping us overload the wings. Despite the questions over Maguire’s club form in particular he was solid throughout and always a threat from set pieces. Him and Stones in particular looked great throughout especially as they had far fewer one-to-one situations to cope with.
- Getting the best out of Harry Kane. This was the first tournament where we were not dependent on Harry Kane for goals. He still played a key role, often dropping deep to secure possession and hold up the ball for supporting runs. However, both Marcus Rashford and Bukayo Saka scored more goals (three each to Harry’s two). England had five different scorers in all (the last two being Jordan Henderson and Raheem Sterling).
- Defensive stability due to the high press. This created longer, more sustained periods of pressure throughout the period using the 4-1-4-1 block with a very compact back line. The narrowed full backs meant that our wingers bad to cover more blades of grass, but this was possible because of the dynamism of these players.
- We lost to a very good French team – who might even go all the way. OK they are without at least five of their key players, but they still have an incredible squad. That said Mbappé was in Kyle Walker’s back pocket for all but one run in the game.
Following our exit yesterday, the inevitable question which will now arise is will Southgate still lead us into the European Championships 2024? He is contracted until after that tournament, but should he stay, or should he go? England manager himself said he was “conflicted” about his future, having “found large parts of the last 18 months difficult”, he would “review and reflect” before deciding his future. “It’s too important for everybody to get that wrong.” The team are far better than when Southgate took over in 2016. What do you think?
Whilst many will see this as a regression compared to Russia 2018 and Finals at Euro 2020, there are reasons to be positive looking forward to Euro 2024.
If you or your children are interested in being the next Harry Kane, Jude Bellingham or Bukayo Saka, why not join our Soccer School or one of Our Teams? Please contact us today as we’d love to hear from you!