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LONDON – Iceland offered so little resistance at Wembley that Gareth Southgate was able to learn little about his England players beyond demonstrating his pre-match claim that this group wants to play for their country no matter the circumstances. The Three Lions ran smoothly with the winners 4-0 to sign the calendar year, seizing the opportunity to express themselves with nothing to play for after missing out on qualifying for the UEFA Nations League finals by losing in Belgium on Sunday. past.
Southgate now has a four-month hiatus before England’s next game and plenty to consider before next summer’s belated Euro 2020.Here are the areas the 50-year-old needs to clear up before England tries to end a wait. 55 years old by a great international. trophy.
Shape
Southgate has faced persistent questions about whether England are dangerous enough in their preferred 3-4-3 system, for which they will have been grateful for their power against Iceland.
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Phil Foden, Mason Mount and Jack Grealish were the standout players, as the home team took control of the game early on, putting Iceland on the edge of their own box for long stretches. Iceland have already dropped out of Group A2, lined up a weakened team in boss Erik Hamren’s last game in charge and played the final 36 minutes with ten men, but it was nonetheless encouraging to see that trio combine so efficiently throughout. Bukayo Saka and Kieran Trippier helped England stretch Iceland across the field, and a notable benefit of this system was seeing Harry Maguire loiter forward as a central defender overlapped on the left.
Supporters of a 4-3-3 return will not be silenced by this, but Southgate’s conviction in this current system will be strengthened by how much they dominated here.
Advance line
It’s been just over a year since a debate erupted over whether Raheem Sterling, Harry Kane and Jadon Sancho were the best three forwards in world football. Had Euro 2020 taken place when it was originally scheduled, the only uncertainty would have been whether Marcus Rashford would replace Sancho given his continued rise at Manchester United, but now the conversation is markedly different.
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Southgate may have changed their formation, but England still play with three ostensibly attacking-minded players, albeit with a different profile than the pace and power of Rashford and Sancho.
Grealish and Mount lacked the rhythm to support Kane when England tried to break out against Belgium and were more threatening when Southgate’s team controlled possession. And so it turned out here again, with the cunning of Foden and Grealish the right tool to unlock a notoriously disciplined and organized defense. Foden capped off a performance that should go a long way toward repairing the damage caused by his indiscretion in the reverse game in Iceland with two superbly scored goals, the second a fine long-range shot five minutes from time.
There are an exciting array of options at Southgate’s disposal, which should give England the ability to tailor its approach to specific challenges, but that in turn increases the pressure on the coach to do well when it matters most.
An injury alone would deny Kane a spot in Southgate’s preferred starting lineup, but it will irritate the Tottenham Hotspur striker who has already gone six games without a goal, without scoring for his country in a certainly truncated 2020 schedule.
England was barely tested in Iceland’s 4-0 Nations League loss on Wednesday. NEIL HALL / POOL / AFP via Getty Images
Southgate named a stronger lineup than many anticipated given the low stakes. Indeed, the inclusion of Kane, Grealish, Mount and Eric Dier, among others, could be interpreted as the fact that the England manager signals to all Premier League clubs that he will not be imposed on him with regard to team selection. , whether surreptitiously or not. He claimed that certain players were under pressure not to play international soccer in order to minimize the risk of injury, and so many key players here felt like a message to certain people, most obviously Tottenham manager José Mourinho, who had previously expressed his concern about Kane’s performance. treatment.
He’s likely had a low opinion of Kane staying for 76 minutes here, as did Aston Villa manager Dean Smith, given that Grealish played a role in all three England games this month, one of only three players. in doing it. Southgate has asked the game’s stakeholders to collectively think about the well-being of the players (the return of five substitutes in the Premier League is a popular notion across all), but he will have to collaborate with his club counterparts in the coming months to score against exhaustion when the final comes.
England worked hard to ensure their players physically peaked in Russia two years ago after hitting a series of tournaments that handled widespread fatigue. This season’s condensed schedule will only add to those concerns.
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Central midfield
Declan Rice got England going with his first international goal after 20 minutes, inadvertently using his shoulder to watch Foden’s free kick, but arguably more important in helping Mount recycle the ball quickly and efficient in central areas.
One of England’s weaknesses is the absence of a metronome in midfield, a playmaker capable of making England work under pressure in the mold of the Croatian Luka Modric or the Dutchman Frenkie De Jong. Rice is not that player, but his combination with Mount allowed England to maintain absolute dominance over the game. Against better opponents, Southgate has opted for Jordan Henderson to provide more defensive protection, and with Harry Winks making another encouraging contribution, there are several players vying to deliver the right balance. Central midfield remains arguably England’s biggest uncertainty in the coming months.
Goalie
Jordan Pickford entered this international hiatus facing increasing calls to be replaced, but Southgate continues to support the Everton goalkeeper. They never put him to the test here, Iceland failed to get a single shot on goal all night but were not to blame for either goal in Sunday’s 2-0 loss to Belgium and still have the No. 1 jersey on their face to the New Year.
Nick Pope and Dean Henderson kept a clean sheet in the half they played against Ireland last week, with the former in particular appearing to be Pickford’s closest rival. The Toffees No. 1 will need to improve his club-level displays in the second half of the season to keep Pope at bay.
Source: espn.co.uk
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