It took Mason Mount being forced into isolation, but England fans finally had their way. A Jack Grealish start. Next on the checklist of the chronically dissatisfied, for whom Gareth Southgate will probably never have enough answers, is Jadon Sancho.
The Borussia Dortmund forward’s exile is officially over. Well, sort of – he was given six minutes of regulation time, though that is six more than he was afforded against Scotland, when he was an unused substitute. In the 1-0 win over Croatia, he was left out of the squad altogether.
But meanwhile, enter Bukayo Saka. Southgate’s faith in the 19-year-old – the latest English wing wizard who makes Sancho seem like a veteran – was vindicated at Wembley on Tuesday night, his five take-ons injecting life into an England side whom statistics suggest are one of the most stagnant teams at the tournament. Indeed, according to Opta, they have progressed the ball up the pitch less than any other side.
So Saka will surely be in contention again in the knockout rounds, shunting Sancho further out of the reckoning. If anything, that tells us that the Manchester United target – who could be forgiven for being a little distracted with a deal reportedly on the cusp of completion – is jostling for arguably England’s strongest position. Raheem Sterling can hardly be dropped either, as the only player who has actually scored any goals.
There is no ill feeling towards Saka. “Too happy for this guy,” Sancho wrote on Instagram, accompanying a photo of the Arsenal youngster with his Man of the Match award. “Took his opportunity like I told him to!”
Roy Keane is among the pundits who feel the 21-year-old has not taken his opportunities, with the Irishman raising questions over his “end product”.
“He’s showed some nice touches but needs to do a little bit more to force his way into the England team. When he’s in a wide position, his job is to go past people.”
There can be no doubt that England possess the depth in those wide areas, particularly with both Grealish and Saka on the flanks. So however popular Sancho’s introduction might be, what would it change?
Quite possibly, not a lot. While there are an abundance of reasons this England side are not exactly striking the fear of God into the rest of Europe, those factors are to be found elsewhere.
Even more centre-mids
Southgate, quite understandably, started out with caution. It was Croatia, the World Cup finalists. It was Luka Modric, who with the outside of his boot and thunder in his calves showed Scotland that class is permanent. So England had little choice but to mitigate his influence in their opening game by deploying two defensive midfielders, Declan Rice and Kalvin Phillips.
The return of a fit Jordan Henderson makes it even more likely that Southgate will want his midfield lying deep. How, if England are pitted against France, will they cope with a rampant N’Golo Kante? If it’s to be Germany, how do you contain Ilkay Gundogan? Sancho may be a luxury they simply cannot afford.
More misery for Kane
After the goalless draw with Scotland, Ian Wright told ITV that it was “very disappointing” that Sancho was left on the bench when England had struggled all night to create – hence a horror show from Harry Kane. “[Sancho has contributed] 15 goals and 20 assists a season – and he doesn’t even get on,” Wright said.
Yet against the Czech Republic, Kane did get his chances, though two of them were hit straight at goalkeeper Tomas Vaclik. The striker needs runners ahead of him à la Son Heung-min, but he had them in the final group game. Bringing in Sancho would be no miracle cure for the Tottenham star’s woes.
A lack of understanding
This year alone, England have used 30 different players in eight games. Now, there have been two friendlies in that period which, granted, would have been the perfect time to experiment. There are representatives of 16 different clubs in this squad. They have come from Arsenal and Atletico Madrid, from Leeds to Liverpool and a pair of them even from Dortmund.
It all speaks of a lack of cohesion between players who have had little chance to get acquainted with one another.
Full-backs, wing-backs and back to basics
Kyle Walker and Reece James both have pace, but neither showed much attacking intent in their outings so far. With Saka, who can play as a left wing-back, Southgate essentially had three full-backs on the pitch but, for all his speed, Walker offered little going forward and most of the threat came from the combination of Saka and Luke Shaw down the left.
Amidst all this, Sancho is one of the unfortunate casualties. There may yet be a role for him to play – if ever a reminder was needed that tournaments are ever unpredictable, it was Chilwell and Mount’s absence – but even if England are to harness their attacking pool to the full, there are no guarantees he will be a part of it.
More from i on Euro 2020
- What the Premier League could learn from Euro 2020’s controversy-free referees
- 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/35L1vKL
Post a Comment