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People are questioning the discipline levels of England’s players, but at the same time several others are bringing smiles to the faces of the nations.
The message from the head of England, Gareth Southgate, was clear; Tammy Abraham, Jadon Sancho and Ben Chilwell fell short of the standards expected of their players.
By attending Abraham’s birthday party last week, the three had broken the blocking rules used to help fight the spread of the coronavirus in the UK. And all three were omitted from the call for Thursday’s friendly with Wales.
Southgate also decided to publicly point out that his most recent additions to his team don’t have the same “bank credit” as those who served him so well at the 2018 World Cup in Russia.
“They have to prove themselves and they have to remember that it is an honor to play for England,” he told reporters.
In Southgate’s view, it was necessary to remind Abraham, Sancho, and Chilwell what it means to represent one’s country, as did Phil Foden and Mason Greenwood before them.
The teen duo made their international debut against Iceland last month, but were removed from the team for the next League of Nations clash with Denmark after it was discovered that they had violated Covid-19 isolation protocols by carrying the minus one guest to his hotel room in Reykjavik.
Consequently, five of England’s most promising young players were omitted from the team to face Wales. Missing a friendly may not be considered the harshest punishment, but the fact that they weren’t lost should worry Abraham, Sancho, Chilwell, Foden and Greenwood.
Indeed, several of the newcomers were noted for their absences on a very encouraging night for the Three Lions at Wembley.
Dominic Calvert-Lewin had a debut goal, Conor Coady went off the mark in his second England appearance, teenage Bukayo Saka quickly took on Chilwell’s side role after a nervous start, twice international Kalvin Phillips was a guaranteed midfield presence, while Jack Grealish was man of the match in his first start for his country.
It was Calvert-Lewin who broke the deadlock, with the Everton striker heading home with a cross from Grealish. The 23-year-old now has 10 goals in just seven appearances for the club and the national team so far this season.
Everton are league leaders, at the top of the goalscorer charts and now on top of the world after scoring their first goal for England.
“Doing it on my debut is a dream thing,” Calvert-Lewin said in his post-game interview at ITV Sport. “I’ve worked really hard to get here. It feels like a long road, but I’m very happy to be here and to have the opportunity.”
Southgate and his staff were delighted to provide him with that opportunity. In fact, the technical team was not only impressed with Calvert-Lewin’s ability to lead the line, but also with his positive attitude since joining the team.
There is a feeling that at 23, Calvert-Lewin, who is now a viable option to start alongside Harry Kane up front, fully appreciates the importance of playing for England and is very happy to follow the code of conduct that Southgate demands.
The coach is also confident that the 25-year-old Grealish has reached that point too.
Southgate was long criticized for overlooking the talented attacker, but there were concerns about the Birmingham native’s temperament, which only escalated after his own violation of Covid-19 regulations in March.
Now seemingly fully mature, Grealish was entrusted with a starting spot against Wales and underscored his potential as a regular first-team player with virtuous display.
Of course, the competition for places in England’s attack is intense. Sancho, Raheem Sterling, Marcus Rashford, Callum Hudson-Odoi and Mason Mount are all viable candidates for the starting spots in next year’s European Championship.
However, Grealish, who has such a free role at Villa, couldn’t have done much more to dispel any doubts about his ability to adapt to tighter tactical restrictions. In fact, even the captain of Wales, Ben Davies, was impressed.
“I thought Jack Grealish was taking excellent positions and he was really hurting us,” the left-back told reporters. “When you play for a real quality team, that quality shines through.”
Wales did what they could to stop Grealish, he was the most fouled player on the pitch, but he was irrepressible. In addition to creating the Calvert-Lewin goal, he also created several other opportunities and wowed with his flawless passing.
Now it’s hard to imagine a future England team without him. In a boost for other offenders like Foden and Greenwood, Grealish has shown that it is possible to go back to the good books of Southgate, and Sancho, Chilwell and Abraham could all appear in Sunday’s Nations League clash with Belgium.
However, by making the most of his opportunity to shine, Grealish also underscored the depth of quality that Southgate now has at his disposal.
“Every time we give someone a chance, it’s time for them to take their place or move up the hierarchical order,” explained the manager. “Several did that against Wales, so now there is a lot of competition for places, and not just within the group but also outside of it.”
Southgate’s message is really clear: if you lose your place in this England team, you may not get it back.
