Southgate on toes despite win
TRUE ASSESSMENT New England manager wants team to play quick and entertaining football
his programme notes England boss Gareth Southgate spoke of a desire to create a team that has fans ‘on the edge of their seats’. A noble target but on Sunday’s evidence against Lithuania one that may take some time.
England delivered a 2-0 qualifying victory that keeps them firmly on course for next year’s World Cup finals but a large Wembley crowd were hardly enthralled by the fare on offer.
In Southgate’s defence a limited Lithuania side spent most of the afternoon camped inside their own half, working diligently to disrupt England’s over-deliberate passing.
Goals in each half by the returning Jermain Defoe and Jamie Vardy ensured the three points which maintained England’s grip on Group F but Southgate was honest in his assessment of his first competitive game since being named fulltime coach.
“Going forward we need to ensure we are moving the ball a bit quicker and making more runs in behind,” the former under-21 manager who replaced the sacked Sam Allardyce initially on a caretaker basis last year, told reporters.
“We have individual players who will play better than they did today. There are times when you know you’re going to win the game and perhaps don’t reach the levels we did against Germany.
“We would have liked to have scored more. It’s difficult when a team comes to pack the defence but credit to us we kept pushing. We were adventurous in looking for a third.”
England enjoyed 72 per cent of possession against Lithuania and had 21 goal attempts to the visitors’ four, but struggled to open up a side they beat 4-0 and 3-0 in qualifying for Euro 2016.
Raheem Sterling set up the lively Defoe’s opener but failed to really spark, Adam Lallana produced some telling passes while Dele Alli struggled to make an impact. Vardy and Marcus Rashford did offer some extra impetus when they were introduced in the second half. after missing the Germany friendly, Manchester City winger Raheem Sterling added some much needed poise and pace to the England attack.
open the massed Lithuania defence, Sterling took matters into his hands with a scintillating raid down the left and delivered a perfectly-placed cross that Defoe finished off with aplomb. to prise
since November 2013, Jermain Defoe made up for lost time by netting the opening goal in typically ruthless fashion.
14 Premier League goals this season, the 34-year-old Sunderland striker was at the sharp end of all England's most threatening attacks and Southgate will be satisfied he has a solid alternative while Tottenham forward Harry Kane recovers from his ankle injury.
said he saw no reason why Defoe can’t make it to the final World Cup squad. replacement for Defoe, Jamie Vardy took just six minutes to stake his own claim for the prized role at the head of England's attack. of the season with Leicester, Vardy has emerged from his slump in recent weeks and he maintained that revival with a master-class in the striker's art.
was about to slip a pass in his direction, Vardy was quicker to react than his markers as he beat the offside trap with ease and guided a cool finish past Ernestas Setkus. plaudits for his team's effort against Lithuania and the England manager would be foolish not to realise there is still a lot of improvements needed.
in danger of an embarrassing setback against a side ranked 107th in the world, he should be alarmed by the way his team was easily held at bay for long periods.