First issue: Gameplay
The England team, expected to be one of the strong candidates for the EURO championship this time, started with 2 unimpressive results. Considering the overall strength of the team, the impressive qualifying achievements and the extremely stable performance in the past 6 years when reaching the semi-finals of the World Cup 2018, the runner-up of EURO 2020, the fact that Mr. Southgate and his team barely won 1-0 against Serbia and drew 1-1 with Denmark, the team that lost to them in the semi-finals of EURO 3 years ago, did not satisfy the fans. Although this 4-point achievement has guaranteed the England team a place in the round of 16, in terms of playing style, the Three Lions are actually causing many disappointments.
Bellingham surrounded by Danish defenders
Optimists say that England often start like that. They always have a certain deviation. But the further they go, the faster they will regain their position with the class that has been established for many seasons. Some even say that Mr. Southgate is even "hiding his cards", not needing to use all his firepower in the opening matches of the qualifying round but just playing and probing, not foolishly revealing his true form too early for the opponent to "read". But that is just to reassure public opinion because in reality, what England has shown is hard to believe that they will have a fresher and more creative face.
Looking at the way England played in the two matches they have played, it is really hard to find any bright spots. It is not that the Three Lions lack talent, on the contrary, when their billion-pound squad is something that many other teams dream of and desire. But the English played without any identity, poor in attacking thinking, very weak in their approach to the match and a clustered style of play, lacking strong pressing. In other words, they were like a collective without cohesion, poor coordination, at times it felt like they were "out of cards", individuals fumbled and became awkward in an incomprehensible way.
Harry Kane scored in the Denmark match, but overall still failed to help the attack rise
Seeing Bellingham score in the first match, many people had a glimmer of hope that this talented midfielder of Real Madrid would "breathe life" to lift the England team, but all expectations became hopeless when this number 10 of the Three Lions disappeared in the draw with Denmark. Or Harry Kane, besides the opening goal against the Nordic team, was also lackluster in the front line. He even made a bad cross leading to the Three Lions' equalizer. Many other stars such as Bukayo Saka, Phil Foden, Declan Rice... also did not play at their best. All seemed to be submerged in the soulless, emotionless playing style that Southgate built.
The England captain can blame the lack of a highly mobile Kalvin Phillips in midfield, and Alexander-Arnold's inability to replace him, making England very fragile. But that is his fault because he has not found the element to build a new Phillips with a brave style of play. Just as he only chose one left-back Luke Shaw, while the MU player was still injured, and had to bring in Kieran Trippier, a right-back to fill in the not-so-perfect position, showing that he lacks an effective plan to create an England team with the right players in the right places to play convincingly.
Location Issues: The Wrong People
Throughout the 2 matches, anyone who watched the England team immediately realized that the most unsuitable position was Arnold. Even though this Liverpool midfielder was tested and succeeded by coach Jurgen Klopp at the club as well as Southgate. This player, who originally came from a right-back position, often went up to score with long-range shots like "hammer". But in the last 2 matches, that quality was not seen in Arnold. He played a bit frantically, did not provide strong support in attack, and at times people felt like Arnold "disappeared" on the field.
Arnold (8) disappointed after 2 matches
This weakness of the England number 8 may be due to the fact that coach Southgate wants to keep him behind to support the central defenders, in which the new player Marc Guehi (replacing Harry Marguire) is still inexperienced. If that is true, then Arnold is right to lose the initiative in the way he plays.
But whatever the reason, Arnold did not show the confident and always wise way of playing as he did in the match he played in this role at Liverpool. From there, instead of actively applying pressure with abundant force, Arnold's "sitting" at home made the England midfield lose its flexibility.
Southgate's arrangement is also unreasonable in Phil Foden's position. At Man City, he plays well on the right wing or in central midfield. But when he plays on the left wing most of the time, Folden is pale. Only when he plays in the middle does the speed and dangerousness of the best midfielder in the Premier League last season come into play, including a shot that hit the post. Maybe Mr. Southhgate has set Bellingham at number 10 by default so he did not put Folden in, but the England team can completely play 2 attacking midfielders with Bellingham-Folden, reduce the role of Arnold who does not contribute much and add a left winger (Cole Palmer or Kobbie Mainoo of MU), so the strength of the England team on the 2 wings will be more formidable like Spain who owns quality players.
Phil Foden has not yet shown his full potential.
Unfortunately, Southgate has been quite rigid and, as many people have commented, a bit "conservative" in his leadership style. Now fans just hope that the 53-year-old captain will make more reasonable adjustments to not only lift the spirit of the England team but also bring a brighter image when facing Slovenia in the final match of the group stage. Remember, if England wants to go far, they need to avoid meeting the host Germany early because if they finish second in Group C in the knockout round, they will face Kimmich, Musiala and his teammates will have a lot of difficulties.
Source: https://thanhnien.vn/mo-bang-moi-van-de-cua-doi-tuyen-anh-soi-ky-tai-can-hlv-southgate-185240622173916136.htm
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