Luke's Football blog

England came into the tournament as favourites to top their group comfortably, but with a loss to Iceland before the tournament started, some doubts were raised a bit. In the first game against Serbia, they started off strong and had a hold on the game, and it soon paid off with an excellent cross by Saka that was nodded home by Bellingham to give England the lead in the game.

After the goal, England decided to sit back and allow Serbia to put pressure on the side, with England not having a good balance in the middle of the park and Trent being experimented with in midfield. The lack of balance in midfield led to Serbia creating many chances, but the defence and Pickford stood strong. One shining light from that game was Marc Guehi, who was replacing the injured Maguire in the side, and he managed to look calm and composed, leaving the people doubting that he could fill the boots of Maguire in shock. Overall, it was a solid performance to start the tournament with, but things needed to change.

The next game was against Denmark. Southgate decided on an unchanged eleven with Trent once again playing in midfield, and once again England started off bright and dominated the ball, and it would soon lead to an early goal with Walker pounding on Kristiansen, who was caught napping, before playing a cross that would eventually fall to Kane, who tapped it into the net. Once again, however, England sat back, thinking they would be able to defend the lead, but just before halftime, disaster struck as, in the thirty-fourth minute, after a poor throw in by Kane, the ball would eventually fall to Hjulmand from thirty yards out, who fired it into the bottom left corner, leaving Pickford with no chance.

This is something Southgate has not faced yet, but it was always coming, as Denmark are a strong and technical side, and with the balance England have in the middle of the park, something was always going to end up happening. Trent was taken off early in the second half, which sparked the end of the Trent midfield experiment for good. Denmark were the most likely to score, but there was excellent defensive work again by Marc Guehi, who has been the most consistent performer for England so far in this tournament. Both sides couldn’t find the goal to win it in the end, as they both settled for a draw. 

England came into the game already through to the round of sixteen on four points; however, topping the group would’ve meant avoiding the likes of Germany, Spain and France, as they are on the other side of the draw. Southgate opted for Gallagher to partner Rice in the middle of the park, with Trent dropping to the bench for the final group game. 

England did have most of the possession in the first half, but the same thing that has halted them this tournament is their lack of control in midfield. Southgate must have thought he had sorted it out with Gallagher starting, but once again, it didn’t work.

Gallagher for Chelsea has played as a ten or an eight and has been successful there, but playing as a six in a pivot is something he is not used to, and it showed. England did have the ball in the net with Saka, but Foden was offside in the build-up. The second half started with Gallagher being hooked at halftime, with Mainoo given the chance to impress in the six role, and he did manage to add some balance to the midfield, which Gallagher didn’t show in the first half. 

England created some chances, but they were mostly half chances, with the best one coming from Cole Palmer, who looked very lively with Antony Gordon coming off the bench; however, it wasn’t enough to break down the Slovenian defence, and it ended in a bore draw. 

These performances have invited criticism on Southgate and the players, as the fans and pundits feel he ain’t getting the best out of these players, and from a fans perspective, you can see that. Going into a tournament trying to experiment with something is always going to be a risk, especially with the problems he has already with no fit left back at the moment with Shaw still battling the injury that has kept him out for most of the season. 

Trent is an exceptional footballer and has one of the best passing ranges in world football, but switching him to midfield reduces his capability to use his passing range. As for his club, he operates on the right-hand side as he has for the past seven years, which has led to him winning so many trophies and accolades for his side. It has been something he’s tried to do for a year, and it has worked on some occasions, but it’s not the right thing to try in tournament football. 

The attack has been another problem, as they have looked lethargic so far, only scoring two goals throughout the group stage against Serbia, Denmark and Slovenia. Foden, Bellingham, Saka and Kane look like a fierce attack on paper, but when you see them play, nothing really clicks. Foden is playing out of position on the left, and as much as he can play there, his best position is the number ten role, which he has played under Pep this season as they swooped to the title on the final day. 

Bellingham is the one currently occupying the number ten role, and he did have a good start to the tournament with a goal, but the past two games he has looked very quiet as he has not been able to get into the game that well. I feel that with Bellingham, he would be more suited to playing as an eight for England, as it will allow him to get more involved in the game and will help England progress up the pitch.

I feel that with England, there is a lot of work that needs to be done before Sunday’s round of sixteen game, especially if they are playing a good-quality Netherlands side who can hurt England a lot with the bundle of talent they have to choose from. Southgate knows his side needs to do better, and he will want to put out a statement to the people doubting him at the moment.