Big players produce big moments. There have been some seismic ones ever since I was old enough to remember watching England play. David Platt at Italia '90. Paul Gascoigne against Scotland at Euro '96. Michael Owen at France '98 and Wayne Rooney's entire European Championship in 2004. We can now add Jude Bellingham to that illustrious list of names who have produced a big moment in a big game for England at a major tournament.
Bellingham's spectacular bicycle kick against Slovakia saved England from a humiliating exit and perhaps more tellingly, saved Gareth Southgate's skin in the process. What happens to Southgate after the tournament, whether we are victorious or not, remains to be seen. It is probably a topic of in depth discussion for another day after the conclusion of the tournament where the forensic dissection can begin.
The 94 minutes that preceded Bellingham's goal were as turgid and lacklustre as it gets. I keep expecting an improvement game from game as the tournament progresses but that has simply not happened, for a multitude of reasons. Against Slovakia, the English players looked rudderless, uninspired and were unquestionably bereft of ideas as to how to play through a resolute and compact Slovakian side. They are struggling to adapt to a style of play that is an alien concept to them. Surely, Gareth Southgate can't be happy with what he is seeing at these Euros, can he? There was a 30 minute spell against Serbia in the first group game where England did play at a level somewhat approaching their best, but it has been far from plain sailing since then. Gary Neville felt the first half against Slovakia was up there with the horror show against Iceland in Nice at Euro 2016. It is hard to disagree with him. Somehow though, England survived to take on Switzerland in the last eight.
I think what it boils down to is that Gareth Southgate no longer knows his best XI. He probably thought he did when the Serbia game edged closer, but that had quickly gone out of the window after the draw with Denmark. The Trent Alexander-Arnold experiment simply had to end and thankfully it has done. Our midfield now has an extra midfielder in it, as opposed to a full-back. It is one less square peg in a round hole, but ultimately, the slow and pedestrian aspect to England's play has remained. Only Gareth Southgate can tell us if this is the blueprint that he has given his players. Tactically, Southgate has been left wanting. He isn't a reactive coach. His use of subs is a major issue, and to change nothing at the break against Slovakia was stark to say the least. The fact that he said he fully believed we would score is a tad misguided. Admittedly, he was right, England did score right at the death, but he simply cannot allow a game to play out like he did, hoping that one of his players will conjure a piece of inspirational magic to get us off the hook. England should be going after teams, taking the bull by the horns and dictating play.
I feel Southgate is also too loyal to a select core of players that have produced the goods in the past, but are not doing so currently. That has to change if we are to progress even deeper into Euro 2024. UEFA allow national sides to pick 26 players; we will undoubtedly see around half a dozen players who won't see any minutes in this tournament. There will be a few others who will make an appearance, albeit for a few minutes at the end of a game. We have to find a place for Cole Palmer in this team. We have to find a way of utilizing Anthony Gordon. Ivan Toney has had precious game time, yet when he has came of the bench, he set up Harry Kane for a priceless winner. Southgate's subs are rarely impactful. I want to see more from Eberechi Eze. Ollie Watkins has made one appearance. As has the aforementioned Gordon. You live and die by the decisions you make, particularly at this level of international football, and for Gareth Southgate to leave the likes of Jack Grealish, Marcus Rashford and Jadon Sancho at home was a big call. He obviously has faith in the players we have taken to Germany, otherwise they wouldn't have made it onto the plane. The fact that a lot of them have been used so sparingly, particularly attacking players, is a source of massive frustration.
After the Slovakia win, John Stones alluded to the fact that now is indeed the time to take the handbrake off during games. Gareth Southgate later countered those comments by stating that the handbrake has never been on in the first place. That to me, was a worrying statement from England's manager. We don't look like we have a plan and we don't look like we have a playing identity. Obviously, this has to change if we are to defeat Switzerland and progress to the Semi Final of Euro 2024.
We now know our destiny, and should we triumph against the Swiss on 6th July, England will come up against a Dutch side packed full of attacking quality, but one with frailties that have been highlighted during their group fixtures. Some of their players spoke publicly about the disjointed nature of their performance in the 3-2 defeat against Austria, with the squad collectively holding their own inquest into how poorly they'd played, particularly defensively. For many scholars, some of the Netherlands best players remain on the fringes of the starting XI, having been used sparingly up until now.
Alternatively, if Turkey triumph in what promises to be another enthralling encounter, they will be England's next opponents. Workmanlike, passionate, determind and certainly physical, they would be an altogether different proposition to the Dutch. Either way, England are in for a tough Semi Final. There is of course the small matter of getting there ourselves.
During the last Euros, somewhat arrogantly, I thought our name was already on the trophy. Big players continued to produce big moments. I was absolutely crestfallen after that shootout defeat to Italy. I'll probably never truly get over it! This time though, it feels different. England haven't yet got going. Their tournament hasn't yet ignited. We haven't got started. Against Switzerland on Saturday would be a good time to do so.
