Terry Venables, Glenn Hoddle, Kevin Keegan, Sven-Göran Eriksson, Steve McLaren, Fabio Capello and Roy Hodgson. That’s the list of England managers since 1993. All of them confident, knowledgeable, but narrow-minded. Instead of adapting to the players they had available, they tried to incorporate them into a specific scheme. No wonder England hasn’t got past the quarter-finals in a World Cup, coincidentally, since Italy 1990.
Even with footballers like David Beckham, Alan Shearer, Paul Scholes, Rio Ferdinand, Michael Owen, Ashley Cole, Frank Lampard, Steven Gerrard and Wayne Rooney, The Three Lions were never considered to be a top-class team. It was mostly because the style their national team played didn’t suit. It was always too traditional, too conservative, without enough player movement, without freedom. It is why regardless of which eleven were sent onto the pitch, sooner or later, they were outclassed and eliminated. Yes, luck, or lack thereof, had something to do with it, but still, my point is clear.
This Gareth Southgate squad is different. First and foremost, it is not a squad led by a few experienced stars who are in the starting lineup no matter what. This team is led by youngsters aged 22-28, while experienced players are there to provide stability and/or backup. That’s how it’s supposed to be. Second, Southgate is not some sort of a wise sage who found the recipe to success. No. He’s a former footballer who trained the England U21 team, thus knows a few of the players involved in the roster. That’s all. He has no reputation for great tactical innovation, but over time he has devised a structure that’s flexible towards his players’ strengths and pragmatic when considering possible weaknesses. As simple as that. When you have so many skilled talents, there’s no need to overthink. Instead of telling them what to do, it’s much simpler and smarter to adapt to them.
For those who want to make the argument that many of England’s 2018 World Cup players were part of the Euro 2016 team that was embarrassingly knocked out by Iceland in the Round of 16, bear in mind that they were “babies” in that tournament. Harry Kane had just broken onto the Premier League scene as a formidable striker. Despite winning the Golden Boot, he was nowhere near the complete, elite center forward that he is today. Raheem Sterling was playing for Manuel Pellegrini and was excessively misused. In the two years since, he has played under the guidance of Pep Guardiola. Sterling has gone from six goals and two assists under Pellegrini to 18 goals and 11 assists for Guardiola. He used to sit desperately in Manchester City’s dog house and now he’s ardently barking at opponents.
Dele Alli was only 20 years old, not to mention Marcus Rashford, who was a mere 18. All of them have grown up and are eager to change England’s perception in the football world. For many members of other national team selections, this is going to be their last World Cup bow, so they’ll want to go out with a bang. For England’s national team, this is just the beginning. Being that they’re so young, neither Southgate nor his players are under pressure to get far. Therefore, they can just go out and play. While they do that, they could make life miserable for some of the favourites.
If you’d like to see to see the odds for England in the World Cup click here.
