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England’s 5-0 win over San Marino in World Cup qualification was so routine that manager Gareth Southgate won’t put too much weight on what he saw at Wembley on Thursday.
But while this was surely the most predictable outcome of this international round of matches, its importance is heightened by the fact that it comes two months before Southgate names his team for the delayed Euro 2020; in fact, the next time I announce a team it will be for the Euros.
Thus, a match that might otherwise have seemed nonsensical inevitably had additional meaning, particularly for those on the sidelines who were given a chance.
It means that there were still talking points to emerge from this formality of a game.
Can Bellingham break in?
Borussia Dortmund’s 17-year-old Jude Bellingham looked perfectly at home again after his second-half substitute appearance, displaying a running ability and a keen eye for goal, although he will know he should have scored. with a late goal. Opportunity directed off target.
The speed with which Southgate elevated the former Birmingham City youth to full international status shows how well the England manager rates him and the way he integrated teammate Jadon Sancho into the England squad showed that talent it means more than the date on a birth certificate. in the manager’s decision-making process.
Bellingham is showing no nerve and this is a player who is playing the Champions League for a Dortmund side who may be a stranger in their quarter-finals against Manchester City, but who will remain a threat.
Southgate will be following his progress closely, with both England and Dortmund, and if he makes the team this summer, he seems to have the temperament to cope, even at such a tender age.
Southgate told ITV: “He is a player who we believe will be international with England in the future.
“We believe that in that area of the field, although we are very happy with everyone tonight, we are a little short in numbers.
“For us to help him develop it, place it in the games and try it with the team, with the development that it is also obtaining in Dortmund, we hope to be able to participate in its rapid incorporation into the group.”
Former England defender Matt Upson on BBC Radio 5 Live: “Bellingham is an interesting prospect. I think he does something different than the midfielders we have.
“He has an almost leggy range in the way he runs and has the power to pass people with the ball – we saw that once or twice in this game.
“At his age, to have that kind of physique and ability to impact the game in that way, he’s a really exciting prospect. I’d love to see him at 20 or 21 years old.
“I’m so impressed, he seems quite mature. He could fall into a lot of different roles with his running ability.
“He could be defensive, we’ve seen him advance and his running time into the box is good and he’s playing with the best players week after week. When you put that together, he has a great learning ground.”
Did Lingard do enough?
Jesse Lingard did everything except scoring.
He was making his first appearance in England since June 2019 and it is a sign of how highly regarded by Southgate that he returned directly to his team based on enormously impressive form since signing with West Ham United on loan from Manchester United.
Southgate will be happy with much of what he saw, albeit against opponents who offered the flimsiest of challenges, but both the player and the coach would have wanted him to grab that elusive target.
Lingard put Dominic-Calvert Lewin’s second goal on a layup for the Everton forward with a low center and saw his own efforts thwarted by a superb goal from San Marino’s Elia Benedettini.
Lingard had nine shots, the most by an England player since Wayne Rooney scored 13 against San Marino in October 2014.
This was a lively reintroduction after so long away from the England scene and Lingard, a key component of the team that reached the semi-finals at the last World Cup, remains a Southgate player.
There is no doubt that he has now thought back to the Euro after his rejuvenation at West Ham and this was a timely reminder of what he has offered in the past and can do again.
Lingard, speaking to BBC Radio 5 Live: “I enjoy every minute of wearing the England jersey, it’s an honor and it’s been a long time coming.”
“I could have scored six or seven goals, but we won the game and that’s the important thing. I looked at the goalkeeper in the second half and said ‘you saved me three World Cups.’
“It’s about consistency. I feel like I’m not even in my prime yet – I haven’t played full seasons before, only half seasons.
“I wanted to bring West Ham form here. It’s brilliant to be back and I’m playing with a smile on my face.”
Southgate, speaking to BBC Radio 5 Live: “It is beautiful to see a young man who has had a bad time, go back to playing football with a smile on his face and play at a really high level.
“He’s a quality player. He works hard without the ball, he’s super smart to find spaces. His shot could have been better, but it’s great to see him back and it was a positive step for him.”
Upson: “I loved the way Lingard approached the game. He did it the right way, he had a lot of energy.
“If anything, he might have been too interested in shooting and you could tell he was desperate for a goal.
“It is the consequence of how he has been playing for West Ham and his resurgence since he left Manchester United on loan and has been entrusted to him. His confidence is growing.”
Is Mount becoming inescapable?
Southgate will have a wealth of riches to choose from behind his main attack when he selects his first team for this summer’s Euros, but Mason Mount strengthens his case to start each game.
Manchester City’s Phil Foden came on as a substitute in the second half and has looked irresistible at times for the club and the country this season, while Aston Villa’s Jack Grealish, injured here, is also pushing hard to start.
Leicester City’s James Maddison will be another hoping to bounce back from injury to remind Southgate of his quality.
But Mount, 22, goes about his business with increasing maturity and quality. He seems like a player who should start at the Euro Cup.
He has been outstanding at Chelsea this season and has become an integral part of Thomas Tuchel’s renewal at Stamford Bridge.
Mount only played 45 minutes here and this was international football’s version of an open goal, but he proved once again that he is a prodigious worker, a constant creator and a player who is developing at a rapid pace.
He created eight opportunities in open play in his 45-minute appearance. The last player to create more in a full match in a European World Cup qualifier was Spaniard Xavi, who managed nine against Bosnia and Herzegovina in 2008.
This is an elite company.
Mount will maintain a similar elite company when the Euro starts in the summer and his form for Chelsea and England suggests that this talented and versatile player will be perfectly at home.
Former England goalkeeper Rob Green: “I think Mount is becoming an increasingly important player. He is doing it for Chelsea and I thought he was brilliant tonight.
“He did it in such an unspectacular way. He kept it so simple when you looked at people and thought they could get carried away. He kept it fast and sharp and gave two taps at most.
“It just kept the ball moving and against a team like San Marino, that kills them.”
