Jude Bellingham and Phil Foden are phenomenal. Gareth Southgate is a tournament specialist. But England were not perfect and Kylian Mbappe won’t be worried.
Do indulge in some player ratings whenever you’re ready.
1) England have never scored more goals at a major tournament than the 12 they have managed so far in Qatar. The only other time they have scored as many times at a World Cup or European Championships was at Russia 2018; Euro 2020 is level with the 1966 World Cup in third with 11 goals.
England have never had as many different scorers at one major tournament (8). They had never been the best-performing team in a World Cup group stage. They have equalled their biggest ever World Cup knockout stage win. They have equalled their record tally of victories against countries from different confederations in a single tournament. England have never had a manager with more victories at major tournaments, nor wins in knockout games.
England fans, at the very least of this generation and a couple prior, have never had it so good. Those calls for Southgate to leave mid-tournament or be forcibly removed because of a drab, functional draw with the United States seem even more ludicrous in hindsight than they did at the time. This is an optimised tournament team under the guidance of an ideal tournament manager. There is no-one who could have done a better job up to this point and it is difficult to envisage a coach who could pick up from here and improve things instantly. Thank you, Daily Telegraph.
2) His team selection was once more condemned before the inevitable vindication. It might ordinarily be fair to question a manager whose solitary change from the previous game involves rotating – or DROPPING, as one outlet had it – a player who scored two goals in a 3-0 win. But Southgate has perfected the art of squad tournament management and has earned enough faith for every England line-up not to be scrutinised within seconds of it being announced.
Having said that, the France quarter-final fume will be fun.
There has been an unfathomable rise in the number of suggestions that Harry Kane should be benched; he played, scored and was vital in the creation of another goal. Jordan Henderson retained his place and was excellent. Phil Foden and Bukayo Saka were picked from what Southgate himself described as “an embarrassment of riches” in forward positions – the Raheem Sterling call was taken out of the manager’s hands – and both rose to the…
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