England have a problem with Kane at corners again!

GARETH Southgate has transformed England’s football tactically, but what he might be guilty of is one tweak too many. At the World Cup last summer, playing three centre backs got England a foothold and respectability in international football.

They then successfully evolved into a 4-3-3 that aped the Croatia side who knocked them out in Russia, making them a possessionbased team — brilliant to see for any England fan.

They’ve looked far more promising when they try to play that way, with one deep-lying midfielder rather than two as we saw in Prague on Friday night.

Against the Czech Republic, Mason Mount was used as a No 10 in a 4-2-3-1, but he stayed too high alongside the front three and there were no passing options for the defence.

As a result, it looked like an oldfashioned English 4-4-2, players abandoned the ball and got caught out. They need to make it simple and go back to the system which worked well up until now.

Defensively they have to tighten up at set-pieces. The Czechs’ equaliser was the 12th goal England have let in from set plays in Southgate’s tenure, which make up 36 per cent of the total conceded. That’s the highest proportion for any England manager since Steve McClaren.

Southgate sets up with Harry Kane at the front post, Danny Rose on the back post and everyone else man-marking. Kane looks strangely detached in that frontpost role — he needs to be square on, looking more up the pitch rather than facing the corner taker, otherwise he’s blinkered.

I think a combination of zonal and man-marking — as they are trying to do — will work, but they need to help out Kane. It has to be a very good ball in to get over his head but if it does, who is challenging for it? That’s why Kane needs one more team-mate covering the space behind him.

In a zonal system, it can give your opponent a free run but if you man-mark, people can still get a run on you, as Jakub Brabec did to Michael Keane to make it 1-1 on Friday.

At Arsenal, halfway between the penalty spot and the side of the six-yard box was my zone. Someone would have the area in front of me, usually Emmanuel Petit, and Tony Adams would patrol the zone near the back post.

I went and attacked the ball, I had to make sure I wanted it. When the corner comes in, it comes down to desire and who wants to win it the most. I would never have a forward come back to defend a corner without a defender marshalling him. Often, forwards come back for a rest, but they play a key role.

You need to pair up a defender with a centre forward, talk him into position and get his body shape right. You need to have governors, people who dictate — the best communicators have to be in behind the front player.

Tonight in Bulgaria, England have to come flying out of the blocks with a clear direction from the manager.

Up until now this tactical evolution has been a really good story for England, what’s key is how they react now.

And Bulgaria aren’t world leaders in international football.