WEMBLEY STADIUM — Jack Grealish started, Jadon Sancho proved he was still alive with a walk on part and England secured the victory that sent them into the last 16 as group winners. So a better night all round for Gareth Southgate but not yet a sense that England are close to top gear.
The changed selection did not alter the shape of the team sufficiently to bring Harry Kane into the game as much as Southgate would have hoped. As a result, goals remain stubbornly hard to find.
Southgate has a week to fathom an answer before England return to Wembley to face one of France, Germany or Portugal. You imagine all three will fancy a knock against this English attack.
Grealish at No 10 satisfied a nation’s yearning for the Aston Villa slickster to take control of the orchestra. The return of Harry Maguire was also a benefit since it gave England the capacity to play out from the back with greater assurance.
As Southgate put it, the inclusion of Grealish was in part a risk-free exercise since England had already qualified. That being the case it might have been an opportunity to let loose Jude Bellingham on this competition as well, not to mention Sancho. Both featured but without the opportunity to reshape the pattern of the match.
Instead we had the retention of Kalvin Phillips and Declan Rice in midfield and the introduction from left field of left-footed Bukayo Saka on, well, the right. As puzzling as that was, it proved one of Southgate’s better moves with Saka one of the real gains on a modest night.
Raheem Sterling had the ball against a post one minute and 50 seconds into the contest. Now if that had been Saka on his left foot. Stop it. Too early to hit a negative note. The crowd was certainly up for it, England’s absolute command of possession initiating an early rendition of “Football’s Coming Home”.
Southgate had obviously done a Pep Guardiola refresher course since the draw against Scotland. In possession the England defence would frequently morph into a back-three with at least one full-back taking up an advanced position, or both should Declan Rice drop deep between Stones and Maguire.
All very fetching, and rewarding when Saka cut a swathe through the Czech midfield, exchanged a one-two with Phillips and crossed to the back post where Grealish headed inside to Kane. The ball was quickly returned to Grealish with an invitation to attack the byline. And how. Grealish made his defender disappear before floating a pin-point cross for Sterling to head home.
The assist king ????????????????????????????????… and #ENG lead! ????
— ITV Football (@itvfootball) June 22, 2021
Incisive run from @BukayoSaka87
???? @JackGrealish puts it on a plate
???? @Sterling7 does the rest#CZEENG | #ITVFootball | #Euro2020 pic.twitter.com/rqIApvGwAE
Twelve minutes gone. Easy peasy. Except it was the Czechs that stepped up, finding it far too straightforward to breach the English midfield. For a sizeable spell the red shirt did a passable impression of Croatia, even drawing Pickford into the game with a fine save from Tomas Holes.
England produced arguably the move of the half, Maguire picking out Kane with the kind of pass that made an icon of Bobby Moore. Kane gathered it up with glee, turned his man and brought an acrobatic stop from Tomas Vaclik in goal.
If the crowd wanted entertainment they were getting it. The Czech sense of adventure turning England into a counter attacking unit. Saka, Grealish and Sterling are made for the rapid raid and raised the temperature the instant they tore across the halfway line.
The issue for Southgate was the gap developing between attack and defence. Phillips was frequently the only hand on the pump when the Czechs regained possession. A 1-0 lead in such circumstances amounts to an assault on the nation’s collective ticker.
The first part of the solution was the introduction of Jordan Henderson for Rice at half-time. The Liverpool skipper is a natural connector of parts. His absence has hurt England in this tournament. Phillips dropped back into the deeper role he enjoys and a greater sense of proportion was restored if not yet cutting edge.
The appearance of Marcus Rashford and Jude Bellingham on the touchline hinted at the manager’s thoughts. With the hour up they were given their instructions and on they went for Sterling and Grealish. It must be said that Sterling left the pitch looking happier than his teammate. Grealish at least walked into a hug from Southgate.
With the team now featuring three players from Manchester United, Wembley was beginning to acquire the flavour of Old Trafford, the home team dominating the ball but without a clear idea of what to do with it.
Perhaps the match was battling against circumstance. With both teams assured of their place in the last 16, the absence of jeopardy had begun to tame the spectacle. Southgate hooked John Stones with 10 minutes to protect against mishap while trusting Tyrone Mings to snuff out any danger.
More from i on Euro 2020
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- The football nomad who became a hero for his role in saving Eriksen’s life
- How Ronaldo’s Coca-Cola stunt could change the face of football sponsorship
- In praise of Emma Hayes, the best pundit at Euro 2020 so far
- How to watch every Euro 2020 match on TV and online in the UK
from Football – inews.co.uk https://ift.tt/3gTfsvr
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