The new Uefa Nations League has not had much of a reception in England but Gareth Southgate is thrilled by the prospect of playing in it over the autumn.
England fly back from Russia today but Southgate is already turning his attention to the new season and how to take his team to the next level. He knows that as well as his side did, reaching their first semi-finals since 1990, that there is still plenty of work to be done, and some serious issues in his team. Especially – though he has not said this explicitly – how they play in midfield and how they cope with teams who are technically better than them.
That was the story of this World Cup campaign, where England won four games, but also lost twice to Belgium and once to Croatia. Both of whom could boast more quality on the ball than England could.
Belgium vs England World Cup player ratings
1/22 Belgium: Thibaut Courtois – 7 out of 10
Had little to do and was most threatened by his own player’s touch on a free kick that he gathered with minimal fuss
AP
2/22 Toby Alderweireld – 7 out of 10
A brilliant off the line clearance denied England an equaliser before Belgium’s second. Solid when called upon after little to do in the rest of the match
Getty Images
3/22 Vincent Kompany – 7 out of 10
Had little to do and coped well with the pace of Raheem Sterling that has given many a defence problems this tournament
AFP/Getty Images
4/22 Jan Vertonghen – 7 out of 10
Other than a shaky moment that lacked communication at an England set piece, he had little to do against a tired Harry Kane.
AFP/Getty Images
5/22 Thomas Meunier – 8 out of 10
A real threat for Belgium going down the right flank and got on the scoresheet for the opener. He was a big miss for Belgium in their semi-final
REUTERS
6/22 Axel Witsel – 7 out of 10
A physical presence in midfield that allowed time and space for De Bruyne. An impressive World Cup for a player plying his trade in China
REUTERS
7/22 Youri Tielemans – 7 out of 10
An exciting young talent that caused England’s midfield all kinds of problems. A star of the future gaining valuable experience on the world stage
REUTERS
8/22 Nacer Chadli – 7 out of 10
Made a bright start to the game and assisted Thomas Meunier’s opener, before picking up a hamstring injury, the latest in a string that have held back his career
Getty Images
9/22 Kevin De Bruyne – 8 out of 10
A constant thorn in England’s side and given far too much space to pull the strings, created Meunier’s opener and looked a class above
EPA
10/22 Eden Hazard – 8 out of 10
His pace and power caused problems, and were it not for a flying block from John Stones, he could have easily found the net in the first half, and eventually did in the second
AFP/Getty Images
11/22 Romelu Lukaku – 6 out of 10
Had some chances to increase the scoreline for his side but was one touch away from a goal. A bit like Kane has struggled towards the end of the tournament
Getty Images
12/22 England: Jordan Pickford – 7 out of 10
Looked assured for the most part, but Meunier’s shinned effort did take a touch off of the ‘keepers leg, leaving him wishing he’d moved the slightest touch to the left.
Getty Images
13/22 Phil Jones – 6 out of 10
The weaker of the defenders and less comfortable on the ball. Contributed to the first goal by committing too early and leaving his teammates with a huge area to mark
AFP/Getty Images
14/22 John Stones – 7 out of 10
Assured on the ball and confident Stones has had a World Cup that reasserts his talent and his place at a leading Premier league club
EPA
15/22 Harry Maguire – 7 out of 10
Solid in defence and at time played well coming into midfield. He had a couple of half-chances from free kicks and always won his headers, looking for someone to capitalise on the knock downs
AFP/Getty Images
16/22 Kieran Trippier – 8 out of 10
Offered great deliveries from set pieces once again, and despite the quality of Belgium, looked up to the task. Lacked the energy of his teammates to react to his deliveries
PA
17/22 Eric Dier – 6 out of 10
Left with a lot to do in midfield against De Bruyne and co, and had an awful start, but did improve towards the end of the game and managed to find more balance in his play
REUTERS
18/22 Fabian Delph – 6 out of 10
Found himself with some space in midfield going forward and scuffed a couple of shots – not his strong point. The struggled to help Dier in a holding role leaving De Bruyne with acres of space
REUTERS
19/22 Danny Rose – 6 out of 10
Looked a shadow of his form last season, and was rightly second choice compared to Ashley Young this tournament. Replaced at half-time.
AP
20/22 Ruben Loftus-Cheek – 7 out of 10
The dangerman for England, he offered pace, trickery and a fearlessness to beat his man. On this performance he should be given a chance to fulfil his potential at Chelsea
Getty Images
21/22 Raheem Sterling – 6 out of 10
Despite his impressive movement and pace, he took too long on the ball and was replaced at half-time
AFP/Getty Images
22/22 Harry Kane – 6 out of 10
Looked short of pace and energy and had a really good chance in the first half. Looks to have ran out of steam but can look back on a successful World Cup
Getty Images
1/22 Belgium: Thibaut Courtois – 7 out of 10
Had little to do and was most threatened by his own player’s touch on a free kick that he gathered with minimal fuss
AP
2/22 Toby Alderweireld – 7 out of 10
A brilliant off the line clearance denied England an equaliser before Belgium’s second. Solid when called upon after little to do in the rest of the match
Getty Images
3/22 Vincent Kompany – 7 out of 10
Had little to do and coped well with the pace of Raheem Sterling that has given many a defence problems this tournament
AFP/Getty Images
4/22 Jan Vertonghen – 7 out of 10
Other than a shaky moment that lacked communication at an England set piece, he had little to do against a tired Harry Kane.
AFP/Getty Images
5/22 Thomas Meunier – 8 out of 10
A real threat for Belgium going down the right flank and got on the scoresheet for the opener. He was a big miss for Belgium in their semi-final
REUTERS
6/22 Axel Witsel – 7 out of 10
A physical presence in midfield that allowed time and space for De Bruyne. An impressive World Cup for a player plying his trade in China
REUTERS
7/22 Youri Tielemans – 7 out of 10
An exciting young talent that caused England’s midfield all kinds of problems. A star of the future gaining valuable experience on the world stage
REUTERS
8/22 Nacer Chadli – 7 out of 10
Made a bright start to the game and assisted Thomas Meunier’s opener, before picking up a hamstring injury, the latest in a string that have held back his career
Getty Images
9/22 Kevin De Bruyne – 8 out of 10
A constant thorn in England’s side and given far too much space to pull the strings, created Meunier’s opener and looked a class above
EPA
10/22 Eden Hazard – 8 out of 10
His pace and power caused problems, and were it not for a flying block from John Stones, he could have easily found the net in the first half, and eventually did in the second
AFP/Getty Images
11/22 Romelu Lukaku – 6 out of 10
Had some chances to increase the scoreline for his side but was one touch away from a goal. A bit like Kane has struggled towards the end of the tournament
Getty Images
12/22 England: Jordan Pickford – 7 out of 10
Looked assured for the most part, but Meunier’s shinned effort did take a touch off of the ‘keepers leg, leaving him wishing he’d moved the slightest touch to the left.
Getty Images
13/22 Phil Jones – 6 out of 10
The weaker of the defenders and less comfortable on the ball. Contributed to the first goal by committing too early and leaving his teammates with a huge area to mark
AFP/Getty Images
14/22 John Stones – 7 out of 10
Assured on the ball and confident Stones has had a World Cup that reasserts his talent and his place at a leading Premier league club
EPA
15/22 Harry Maguire – 7 out of 10
Solid in defence and at time played well coming into midfield. He had a couple of half-chances from free kicks and always won his headers, looking for someone to capitalise on the knock downs
AFP/Getty Images
16/22 Kieran Trippier – 8 out of 10
Offered great deliveries from set pieces once again, and despite the quality of Belgium, looked up to the task. Lacked the energy of his teammates to react to his deliveries
PA
17/22 Eric Dier – 6 out of 10
Left with a lot to do in midfield against De Bruyne and co, and had an awful start, but did improve towards the end of the game and managed to find more balance in his play
REUTERS
18/22 Fabian Delph – 6 out of 10
Found himself with some space in midfield going forward and scuffed a couple of shots – not his strong point. The struggled to help Dier in a holding role leaving De Bruyne with acres of space
REUTERS
19/22 Danny Rose – 6 out of 10
Looked a shadow of his form last season, and was rightly second choice compared to Ashley Young this tournament. Replaced at half-time.
AP
20/22 Ruben Loftus-Cheek – 7 out of 10
The dangerman for England, he offered pace, trickery and a fearlessness to beat his man. On this performance he should be given a chance to fulfil his potential at Chelsea
Getty Images
21/22 Raheem Sterling – 6 out of 10
Despite his impressive movement and pace, he took too long on the ball and was replaced at half-time
AFP/Getty Images
22/22 Harry Kane – 6 out of 10
Looked short of pace and energy and had a really good chance in the first half. Looks to have ran out of steam but can look back on a successful World Cup
Getty Images
On Wednesday night at the Luzhniki, England gradually had the control of midfield wrenched from them by Luka Modric and Ivan Rakitic, turning an early 1-0 lead into a 2-1 extra-time defeat. England’s response under pressure was to start hitting the ball long and they never had anyone to play patiently or keep the ball in midfield.
Then, on Saturday in St Petersburg, England could not lay a finger on Kevin De Bruyne, who dropped into the space between England’s defence and midfield, playing killer passes that England could never stop. England could have lost by far more than they did, again raising questions about whether they can handle themselves in midfield against the best.
When Southgate was asked after the Belgium game if he needed a better class of player in midfield, he did not go into specifics, but did say that his hands were tied by the type of player that he has available to him. Clearly Jordan Henderson, Dele Alli and Jesse Lingard themselves cannot be blamed for the midfield failings against Croatia.
(PA)
“We’ve tried to maximise the players that we have and their individual profiles,” Southgate said. “It’s not club football and we can’t go and buy players so for me the players that have been here have acquitted themselves brilliantly for their country and I couldn’t have asked more of them.”
But Southgate knows that heading into the next cycle, England need to improve in midfield. But rather than the usual autumn of low-pressure friendlies and qualifiers against modest teams who will simply try to dig in and defend, England have an exciting novelty to look forward to: competitive games against good teams as soon as the season starts.
The new Uefa Nations League has Europe’s 12 top-ranked sides put into League A, divided into four groups of three. The four winners will then play off for the inaugural trophy next summer. England have been drawn with Croatia and Spain, meaning that they will get to face off against arguably the two best midfield teams in Europe sooner than they may have expected.
England’s first competitive game of the season is less than two months away, hosting Luis Enrique’s Spain at Wembley on 8 September, going up against Isco, Thiago, David Silva, Sergio Busquets and the rest. Then England travel to Rijeka on 12 October for a game that should be a glorious homecoming for Croatia, their first competitive home game since the World Cup, but will in fact be played behind closed doors. Then in October England travel to Seville, for Spain away, in November they host Croatia at Wembley. It makes for the most competitive and exciting autumn programme for any England team in memory.
“We now have some big fixtures in the autumn, playing the likes of Spain, Switzerland [in a friendly] and Croatia,” Southgate said. “Those are great opportunities for us to develop, improve, try things, look at players. We have to try to constantly evolve and improve. We’ve done that, particularly over the last eight months. And we’ve ended up having a brilliant adventure here. Every member of our party, players and staff, have enjoyed it immensely. That’s what we keep have to do: review how we play; how might we improve; what we can get better at. That’s what we will do.”
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