On the 11th of July 2018, English hearts broke. A defeat in the semi-final of the World Cup to Croatia caused pain and anguish for football fans up and down the country.
Though once English supporters had come to terms with the loss, a strong sentiment of positivity towards the upcoming European Championships was felt. Many saw the World Cup as a stepping stone to a brighter future under Gareth Southgate, and many will be upset that the Euros have since been cancelled. However, we are inclined to argued that the postponement of the Euros to 2021 will only aid England’s chances of success.
The extra season of preparation will be extremely beneficial. It will give Southgate time to fully consider some selection headaches, cater for the further development of a new wave of young players and allow those not 100% fit to return to an optimal level of sharpness.
One of the aforementioned selection headaches will be in the goalkeeper department. Jordan Pickford has played 24 matches under Gareth Southgate and was truly an excellent leader in the World Cup two summers ago. However, the Everton goalkeeper has not enjoyed a brilliant season, and has come under fire from fans and critics alike.
Many have called for the introduction of the likes of Dean Henderson and Nick Pope into the squad, both of whom have played very well in the Premier League this season. But, dropping a World Cup semi-finalist and a man with tournament experience (and confidence) is easier said than done. Pope has only ever played for England twice and Henderson hasn’t any appearances.
Had the Euros not been postponed, Southgate would have had to face the difficult decision of form vs experience. Both options would have drawbacks and be detrimental to the performance of whoever was to be put between the sticks this summer.
The extra year gives him time to monitor the form of Pickford, and also the development of Pope and Henderson (and perhaps an opportunity to award them with more international experience). Therefore, we must assume that a year from now the situation will be far clearer. Southgate should unquestionably have a first-choice keeper who would be able to go into the tournament with confidence. A 2020 European Championship would not have facilitated this.
In that historic semi-final, Southgate opted for a back five. In England’s two most recent matches he has stuck to a traditional four – something that we envisage will remain in the future. The only defender who featured in the Croatia game and the two November qualifiers against Kosovo and Montenegro was Harry Maguire. He is arguably nailed on as the first centre half, but another selection headache is presented to Southgate when choosing Maguire’s partner.
John Stones was a starter in the 7-0 victory against Montenegro last year, and he also started in the semi-final matchup that we will be discussing further in this post. However, he has only been in the fringes of Manchester City’s starting team this season. Form is everything heading into a tournament. It is unlikely that Stones – lacking in sharpness – would have been able to live up to high expectations this summer. So, who would Southgate start in his place?
The centre half with the next most appearances under Southgate is now retired Gary Cahill. After him, with ten, is (again out of form) Michael Keane – another somewhat unfavourable choice.
Joe Gomez has eight appearances under Southgate and is unquestionably an excellent centre-half – many would argue that he is currently England’s finest. He has again suffered an injury-stricken season and is a man you would want fully fit for such a big tournament. Another season before the Euros will only help the 22-year-old’s development, and perhaps by summer 2021 he will be one of the world’s best centre halves.
The delay of the Euros also caters for the development of Tyrone Mings and Fikayo Tomori; two young, talented centre-backs who could easily play a big part in a squad challenging for their first European Championship.
Subsequent to the World Cup exit, the two full backs have been seemingly nailed on. Leicester’s Ben Chilwell has played 11 times for Southgate. On the right-hand side, Trent Alexander-Arnold has played nine times. Both players undeniably possess attacking talent that will benefit any side they play in. Both players are still young too, so another season of development before a major international tournament is surely not a bad thing. They can spend the year consolidating a place in the national team, and be moulded by Southgate into the type of full back he desires. It is purely intuition that both Chilwell and Trent will be better players in a year’s time than they are now, meaning that an England side with them as full backs will be stronger in 2021 than it would be in 2020.
The midfield three in the semi-final defeat against Croatia was Lingard, Alli and Henderson. The latter of the three really is an asset to the national team and has been capped by Southgate 27 times.
The issues arise with Lingard and Alli. Neither player has enjoyed a particularly successful season – both have performed inconsistently and are far from the players they were two years ago. Again, form is everything heading into a major tournament. Though, it is tricky to drop two players who played so well in our most recent major tournament.
Southgate does not need to face this conundrum however. With the Euros being postponed for a year, he has another season to monitor how these two play. Additionally, an extra 12 months allows distance to be placed between the World Cup and the Euros. Three years is a long time in football, so Southgate could more justifiably drop either of these players if they continue to fail to perform to the standards required.
Another question arises here – if he were to drop them, who would take their places? Oxlade-Chamberlain has been in favour with Southgate as of late. He is a gifted player who would definitely strengthen a major tournament squad. 21-year old Declan Rice has been capped seven times by Southgate after switching his national allegiance to England. Again, another year for him to develop will only benefit a 2021 England squad.
Furthermore, excitingly, there is another wave of young attacking-midfielders coming through. Mason Mount, Todd Cantwell, James Maddison and Jack Grealish have all impressed in the Premier League this season, leading to many separate calls for all them to be given chances in the England squad. Obviously, Southgate could not have picked all four, which would have led to a very difficult decision-making process this Spring regarding who to pick for Euro 2020. Again, its postponement has spared Southgate of this potential headache, and will allow the England boss to closely monitor how these four players develop over the next 12 months. It also gives him further time to consider how to implement players of this kind into his team. They are all incredibly talented and would bolster any line-up, but Southgate so far has rarely deployed a centre attacking-midfielder in his teams. The extra year will allow him to try and test various ways of fitting these players in, as well as which one(s) to select.
Jadon Sancho has burst onto the international scene over the last eight months or so. His attacking adeptness is a spectacle, and (without sounding like a broken record) another season for him to develop his already copious skillset will further turn him into a player to be feared on the international stage. 2021 Sancho will be even better than 2020 Sancho, and therefore he will make more of an impact in Euro 2021 than Euro 2020.
Injuries this season to Sancho’s potential attacking counterparts Kane and Rashford meant that, in a competition occurring this summer, he may not have been able to link up with these two goal scorers (Kane has scored 27 under Southgate, and Rashford nine). This would be detrimental to England’s chances, therefore the potential of these two players being fully fit for the tournament now occurring in 2021 instead of 2020 is almost a blessing.
One final player worth noting is Callum Hudson-Odoi. He is a top-quality player, but has had his season cut short this year by various injuries – the most recent of which being one to the hamstring. A return to peak fitness in time for summer 2020 would have been a big ask. Now, he has another season to develop and the potential to enter into the Euros at the top of his game – a tantalising prospect for England fans.
The postponement of the European Championships caused upset across the continent – we all want to watch as much football as possible. International summer football is like nothing else. Many England fans would have seen the delay as something which dampened England’s chances of success – momentum and continuity from the successful World Cup two years ago would be lost. But two years is a long time. Highlighting some of the players from the semi-final against Croatia shows that a direct translation from 2018 to the Euros is not possible. An extra year therefore caters for the growth of a squad still learning under Southgate, and also importantly allows key players to return to fitness and enter summer 2021 at the peak of their abilities. Monitoring the development of young players next season will be important and exciting. If Southgate gets it right, maybe we can expect to go one further in 2021 than in 2018, something that could not have been expected in 2020
Though once English supporters had come to terms with the loss, a strong sentiment of positivity towards the upcoming European Championships was felt. Many saw the World Cup as a stepping stone to a brighter future under Gareth Southgate, and many will be upset that the Euros have since been cancelled. However, we are inclined to argued that the postponement of the Euros to 2021 will only aid England’s chances of success.
The extra season of preparation will be extremely beneficial. It will give Southgate time to fully consider some selection headaches, cater for the further development of a new wave of young players and allow those not 100% fit to return to an optimal level of sharpness.
One of the aforementioned selection headaches will be in the goalkeeper department. Jordan Pickford has played 24 matches under Gareth Southgate and was truly an excellent leader in the World Cup two summers ago. However, the Everton goalkeeper has not enjoyed a brilliant season, and has come under fire from fans and critics alike.
Many have called for the introduction of the likes of Dean Henderson and Nick Pope into the squad, both of whom have played very well in the Premier League this season. But, dropping a World Cup semi-finalist and a man with tournament experience (and confidence) is easier said than done. Pope has only ever played for England twice and Henderson hasn’t any appearances.
Had the Euros not been postponed, Southgate would have had to face the difficult decision of form vs experience. Both options would have drawbacks and be detrimental to the performance of whoever was to be put between the sticks this summer.
The extra year gives him time to monitor the form of Pickford, and also the development of Pope and Henderson (and perhaps an opportunity to award them with more international experience). Therefore, we must assume that a year from now the situation will be far clearer. Southgate should unquestionably have a first-choice keeper who would be able to go into the tournament with confidence. A 2020 European Championship would not have facilitated this.
In that historic semi-final, Southgate opted for a back five. In England’s two most recent matches he has stuck to a traditional four – something that we envisage will remain in the future. The only defender who featured in the Croatia game and the two November qualifiers against Kosovo and Montenegro was Harry Maguire. He is arguably nailed on as the first centre half, but another selection headache is presented to Southgate when choosing Maguire’s partner.
John Stones was a starter in the 7-0 victory against Montenegro last year, and he also started in the semi-final matchup that we will be discussing further in this post. However, he has only been in the fringes of Manchester City’s starting team this season. Form is everything heading into a tournament. It is unlikely that Stones – lacking in sharpness – would have been able to live up to high expectations this summer. So, who would Southgate start in his place?
The centre half with the next most appearances under Southgate is now retired Gary Cahill. After him, with ten, is (again out of form) Michael Keane – another somewhat unfavourable choice.
Joe Gomez has eight appearances under Southgate and is unquestionably an excellent centre-half – many would argue that he is currently England’s finest. He has again suffered an injury-stricken season and is a man you would want fully fit for such a big tournament. Another season before the Euros will only help the 22-year-old’s development, and perhaps by summer 2021 he will be one of the world’s best centre halves.
The delay of the Euros also caters for the development of Tyrone Mings and Fikayo Tomori; two young, talented centre-backs who could easily play a big part in a squad challenging for their first European Championship.
Subsequent to the World Cup exit, the two full backs have been seemingly nailed on. Leicester’s Ben Chilwell has played 11 times for Southgate. On the right-hand side, Trent Alexander-Arnold has played nine times. Both players undeniably possess attacking talent that will benefit any side they play in. Both players are still young too, so another season of development before a major international tournament is surely not a bad thing. They can spend the year consolidating a place in the national team, and be moulded by Southgate into the type of full back he desires. It is purely intuition that both Chilwell and Trent will be better players in a year’s time than they are now, meaning that an England side with them as full backs will be stronger in 2021 than it would be in 2020.
The midfield three in the semi-final defeat against Croatia was Lingard, Alli and Henderson. The latter of the three really is an asset to the national team and has been capped by Southgate 27 times.
The issues arise with Lingard and Alli. Neither player has enjoyed a particularly successful season – both have performed inconsistently and are far from the players they were two years ago. Again, form is everything heading into a major tournament. Though, it is tricky to drop two players who played so well in our most recent major tournament.
Southgate does not need to face this conundrum however. With the Euros being postponed for a year, he has another season to monitor how these two play. Additionally, an extra 12 months allows distance to be placed between the World Cup and the Euros. Three years is a long time in football, so Southgate could more justifiably drop either of these players if they continue to fail to perform to the standards required.
Another question arises here – if he were to drop them, who would take their places? Oxlade-Chamberlain has been in favour with Southgate as of late. He is a gifted player who would definitely strengthen a major tournament squad. 21-year old Declan Rice has been capped seven times by Southgate after switching his national allegiance to England. Again, another year for him to develop will only benefit a 2021 England squad.
Furthermore, excitingly, there is another wave of young attacking-midfielders coming through. Mason Mount, Todd Cantwell, James Maddison and Jack Grealish have all impressed in the Premier League this season, leading to many separate calls for all them to be given chances in the England squad. Obviously, Southgate could not have picked all four, which would have led to a very difficult decision-making process this Spring regarding who to pick for Euro 2020. Again, its postponement has spared Southgate of this potential headache, and will allow the England boss to closely monitor how these four players develop over the next 12 months. It also gives him further time to consider how to implement players of this kind into his team. They are all incredibly talented and would bolster any line-up, but Southgate so far has rarely deployed a centre attacking-midfielder in his teams. The extra year will allow him to try and test various ways of fitting these players in, as well as which one(s) to select.
Jadon Sancho has burst onto the international scene over the last eight months or so. His attacking adeptness is a spectacle, and (without sounding like a broken record) another season for him to develop his already copious skillset will further turn him into a player to be feared on the international stage. 2021 Sancho will be even better than 2020 Sancho, and therefore he will make more of an impact in Euro 2021 than Euro 2020.
Injuries this season to Sancho’s potential attacking counterparts Kane and Rashford meant that, in a competition occurring this summer, he may not have been able to link up with these two goal scorers (Kane has scored 27 under Southgate, and Rashford nine). This would be detrimental to England’s chances, therefore the potential of these two players being fully fit for the tournament now occurring in 2021 instead of 2020 is almost a blessing.
One final player worth noting is Callum Hudson-Odoi. He is a top-quality player, but has had his season cut short this year by various injuries – the most recent of which being one to the hamstring. A return to peak fitness in time for summer 2020 would have been a big ask. Now, he has another season to develop and the potential to enter into the Euros at the top of his game – a tantalising prospect for England fans.
The postponement of the European Championships caused upset across the continent – we all want to watch as much football as possible. International summer football is like nothing else. Many England fans would have seen the delay as something which dampened England’s chances of success – momentum and continuity from the successful World Cup two years ago would be lost. But two years is a long time. Highlighting some of the players from the semi-final against Croatia shows that a direct translation from 2018 to the Euros is not possible. An extra year therefore caters for the growth of a squad still learning under Southgate, and also importantly allows key players to return to fitness and enter summer 2021 at the peak of their abilities. Monitoring the development of young players next season will be important and exciting. If Southgate gets it right, maybe we can expect to go one further in 2021 than in 2018, something that could not have been expected in 2020
Written by: Ben Rowe
Edited by: 3-At-The-Back
Edited by: 3-At-The-Back