Slightly better but still more questions than answers for Southgate with the World Cup nearly upon us.
I realise Pickford is injured but have we seriously not got a better option than Pope who was the proverbial rabbit caught in the headlights?
Ramsdale and Henderson must be better surely?
McGuire has had his moments, notably in the last World Cup but it’s obvious to anyone he’s finished at this level.
Never particularly fast but he seems to have lost a yard he never had to give in the first place.
His distribution in fairness was always decent but as seen in recent matches that’s now a distant memory.
Waste of a plane ticket if he goes to Qatar,
This Nations league thing is the international equivalent of the Simod or Intertoto cups so why the likes of Tomori who’s had a blinding season at Milan wasn’t given a run out at centre back is baffling.
As it happens Southgate has now dug himself into a hole with this blind loyalty to McGuire.
The right back situation is just as baffling.
Southgate clearly doubts Trent- Arnold’s defensive capabilities but Walker and James have been all over the place during this run.
Trent - Arnold is probably the best attacking right back in the world and struggling to think of a better crosser of the ball too.
One positive from last night…. and I’ve never been a fan of fatty Shaw, but last night was his best performance in an England shirt, a proper left back, added real balance and some of his balls through to the frontman were superb.
Fair play to the lad.
Generally though it seems Southgate has tried different systems recently but may now have to revert back to his Insurance policy of playing with the two deeper lying holding midfielders which served him so well in the Euros.
More so with these calamitous defenders behind them,
I know I’m biased but it does seem that KP is a bigger miss than most will care to admit.
He was the glue that held it all together but you fear his current injury woes may mean him missing out.
Worrying times.