Rating of England stars who beat Iceland

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At least Phil Foden had the right kind of icelandic fun this time…

JORDAN PICKFORD

Raved. He came out with a big punch early under a bit of pressure early in the first half. Raved. He kept another clean sheet. Raved.

KYLE WALKER

There’s something about the way Walker plays that he seems incredibly nonchalant. It is as if you feel that your rhythm can compensate for each and every mistake you make. It must be a real nightmare to live with as he just paces around without doing any chores before running headlong to the fridge as he hears the keys jingle and realizes that he has been home all day and hasn’t done housework. His reserve, backing up after running out of passing options, losing control of the ball and launching into a sliding tackle, was a case in point.

ERIC DIER

It happened almost exclusively to his companions this time. Well inside. He gave Walker and Maguire the license to roam free while he admired Gareth’s Golden Generation from afar. I honestly didn’t realize that I was doing much more, which is certainly a compliment in this context.

HARRY MAGUIRE

Well, someone had fun. Harry Maguire, the midfielder and midfielder hybrid, might not be a long-term role applicable to all opponents, but he made the most of the space and time he was given. Only once did he go overboard, yielding the ball about 30 meters from goal, but there was no risk Iceland would compromise more than one player beyond the midline to capitalize. He had very little real defense to do other than win headlines, which he did with all the poise, before throwing some guy on the billboards like they were the embodiment of greek civilization. He quickly apologized before returning to the issue at hand: showing a quality and distribution range that would leave Xabi Alonso weak on his knees. What a bloody performance.

TRIPPIER KIERAN

That was better. He didn’t have to do much as England concentrated most of their focus on Harry Maguire’s left flank ™, but waved his arms diligently in the air as everyone ignored the pass option. Trippier was at least responsible for the best instance of defense after tracking down to dispossess Gudmundsson and stop lightning in his path.

RICE DECLAN

He recognized the futility of lining up a defensive midfielder against a team that settled into its own penalty area quite early. Precious tribute to FIFA Street with his shoulder shot. He had very little real defensive work to do, but still managed the most interceptions of any player (3) to help England keep up the pressure.

MOUNT MASON

You can see precisely why managers love him. Mount would probably be the best player of this or any generation under Jurgen Klopp, such is the insatiable work ethic that marries technical excellence. His goal was really just a functional reward for a display filled with immense immeasurables – the pressure, movement on and off the ball, the clean and close control and the linking game were all sublime. That Mount-Foden-Grealish triumvirate looks awfully funny.

BUKAYO SAKA

In silence, he could have had the best international week of any player from England. It was a shame that he failed to finish the Grealish cut, as that would have been the climax of another excellent performance for his country. Saka was involved explicitly or in the background of most of England’s best moves, providing the center for Mount’s goal and the five-a-side wall that allowed Sancho to create Foden’s first. He barely missed a foot in defense and held his ground in Foden and Grealish’s one-touch passing and movement games midway through the game. The only thing he lacks is composure in front of goal, but he is 19 years old and can play practically everywhere at such a high level. Arsenal will break it in some way.

PHIL FODEN

He invited Iceland to return to his hotel room and gave them good care. That point in the 90th minute, when Foden controlled a high ball with a Cruyff spin, danced between two players and attempted a heel pass, took the penalty a little too far. Before that, he was a constant threat, assisting the former with a lovely free kick and being heavily involved in the preparation, then scoring both of his goals mercilessly. He could also have had a couple more goals. Foden’s combination game was sensational. His long stride was almost flawless. His dribbling was fascinating. It really is bedtime.

JACK GREALISH

It’s good that this is so now, that Jack Grealish is an England international who starts every game and thrives on the attention given to him. Those ties to Mount, Foden, and Saka have already been mentioned, but that first half particularly felt like Grealish couldn’t be wrong. Iceland was petrified to get close to him, and when he finally did, he conceded the free throw on which Rice scored. The run and pass to leave Saka’s opportunity on a plate a few moments later was wonderful. Whatever the training, just play with him.

HARRY KANE

He is funny. Imagine being a forward and having five shots with none on target, but still having a decent game. Kane was probably England’s best creative outlet once again, as he thrived with running backs willing to go beyond him and players desperate to take the ball rather than shirk responsibility. That effort when he was under pressure from about four players, completely unbalanced and running vertically to goal, but still sneaking a shot just off the post, it was ridiculous. He then intercepted a pass to create another opportunity that he really should have taken. This was like Gerrard vs. Chelsea in April 2014, but not entirely counterproductive or painful to watch.

SUBSTITUTES

TYRONE MINGS (delivered by Walker, 64)

It’s a good job, there’s video evidence of him playing because you’ll be forgiven for not realizing it.

HARRY WINKS (lit for Mount, 64)

He got an assist very much in the mold of the 1986 Héctor Enrique World Cup.

JADON SANCHO (in charge of Grealish, 76)

I got an assist in a lot of the mold of ‘that was a very good assist’. It was brilliant.

TAMMY ABRAHAM (replaces Kane, 76)

!

AINSLEY MAITLAND-NILES (to Trippier, 84)

He has five caps in an England run that is two minutes out of a total of 90.

Matt stead

England chased almost all the best Premier League players without limits. And only four of them were English.



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