CHRIS SUTTON’S BIG MATCH ANALYSIS
OX IS NOT THE ANSWER
LAST night highlighted England’s problems in midfield and it’s clear that Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain is not good enough centrally. France carved through England in that area and Gareth Southgate’s men got done far too easily — it was embarrassing. Oxlade-Chamberlain has not done himself any favours with that display. England are short of options and it’s a worry. Jordan Henderson, absent due to injury, is looking more and more like a vital player for England, while we do not have anyone like Michael Carrick who, despite being 35, is still probably the country’s best option in midfield — especially with his passing.
STERLING STUFF
RAHEEM STERLING was a big positive for England. I can’t believe he didn’t start against Scotland on Saturday. Against the French he looked sharp and did brilliantly for England’s opener. It was a world-class goal started off by a great cross-field ball to Sterling from Dele Alli. Sterling’s clever back-heel found the onrushing Ryan Bertrand, who did well to pick out Harry Kane to tap home. The Manchester City man is a must in Southgate’s starting XI. If it’s a straight pick in the wide areas, he has to be the first choice ahead of Marcus Rashford and Adam Lallana.
STONES SHOCKER
YOU have to question John Stones’ display. He made mistakes and was poor in the build-up for the second goal. He was also careless at times in giving possession away. People talk about him as being a ball-playing centre half but he has to sort out the defensive side of his game.
RED HARSH ON VARANE
VAR (Video Assistant Referee) is going to cause more problems in the end with penalty calls which are subjective. But if you have the technology then you have got to use it. There was no call when Sterling went down at the end of the first half but it looked like a penalty to me. The referee had the technology, but why didn’t he use it? He awarded England a penalty shortly after half-time but I don’t think Raphael Varane deserved to be sent off, as the VAR decided. Yes, he brought down Alli but in my view a red card is only warranted for a deliberate pull or push in the box, which it wasn’t. You are into a subjective call over whether it’s yellow or red but it’s a huge call and I think he got it wrong. A yellow would have sufficed. VAR should only be used on clear-cut decisions such as offsides.
SLUGGISH SOUTHGATE
ENGLAND were slow to react to Varane’s red card. It took half an hour for Southgate to switch from a back three to a back four. It would have been nice to see England grab the game and move the ball quickly. When France went down to 10 men they looked more likely to win the game than England, which will be Southgate’s biggest disappointment. France were clearly the better team.