Kane slump a lesson for Southgate
SOME time in what feels like the last century the country was debating whether Gareth Southgate was right to rest players in the group game with Belgium. After losing — which wasn’t his intention — it was widely decided that Southgate had got it spot on. England’s best players received excellent Yet Hazard and Courtois? These are huge players for the club. In the last two good seasons Hazard has played for Chelsea — he tends to take international tournament years off — they have won the league. Courtois’s performances earned the Golden Glove at the World Cup.
Yet the longer Chelsea drifted with Conte ostensibly in charge, and Sarri in a holding pattern above Stamford Bridge, the more rivals will have eyed an opportunity.
It is not true to say Chelsea have never sold a good first-team player anyway. Arjen Robben was an integral part of Jose Mourinho’s first title-winning side, and david Luiz was bought back having been sold to Paris Saint- Germain, so was clearly rated.
They have not sold the marquee names, though. They didn’t sell John Terry, Frank Lampard or didier drogba in their prime, though there must have been offers — and certainly were, from Manchester City, for Terry.
So this is a test of where Chelsea go. do they regroup under Sarri or slip away like Mr Orange? The answer won’t come quickly. We will know for sure by August 31. recovery time for their last-16 match and had fallen into the easier half of the draw. Yet one potentially harmful consequence has been overlooked. Harry Kane lost his momentum. He had scored nine goals in five games for club and country coming out of the Panama match, did not play against Belgium, and scored one thereafter — a penalty against Colombia. It was the only shot he had on target in England’s final four matches. We can never know if rest broke that spell but Kane’s Golden Boot was won in England’s first two games against lesser opposition. If the aim was to keep him fresh it did not work, either — Kane looked sluggish as the tournament wore on. Southgate has stood by his decision but one wonders if, privately, he would have acted differently with hindsight. England have a young team, but a young manager too. A tournament is a learning experience for them all.