Welbeck play to take scoring pressure off Kane
FOOTBALL is a science as well as an art these days, with statistics playing an increasingly important factor.
Yet, as a striker, ‘goals scored’ was the only stat that ever mattered to me... which is why I believe Gareth Southgate HAS to find a place for Danny Welbeck in his starting XI tomorrow night.
You look at this England side, and they have pace, trickery on the ball, strength at the back and youth on their side. But do they have goals? For me, so much – maybe too much – falls on the shoulders of Harry Kane (inset).
Don’t get me wrong, they are broad shoulders. He’s scored eight goals in his last seven internationals, 13 in 24 appearances for his country.
That’s the record of a true world-level player, and I can see exactly why England have to build a team around him. But so can all the other nations at the World Cup.
You look at Southgate’s team over the last year, and it’s obvious – stop Kane, you stop England.
And there will be plenty of defenders out there like Sergio Ramos who know a thing or two Welbeck is in for his goals, AlexanderArnold for his delivery, especially because three centre-halves give cover in the channel where he is inexperienced. Rose is naturally left-footed which will be important in service to Kane, and Cahill (right) gets the nod for experience and his set-piece threat – that’s where England score a lot of their goals.
about stopping strikers. I’ve looked at the goals from England, and Jamie Vardy has done OK, considering he comes off the bench quite a lot.
He can be a threat late on in matches, using his pace and instinct. Yet the stand out is Welbeck.
He’s actually the top scorer in the squad, and his 16 goals in 39 appearances for a player who often starts out wide is seriously impressive.
For me, he’s one of those players who just fits international football.
I don’t think you can ignore a proven goal record at any time but with this England squad, Southgate has got to look at the data given to him by his backroom staff. One thing
stands out like a massive flashing red light with a klaxon blaring – not enough goals.
Look at the rest of the attacking players.
Raheem Sterling has two goals in 38 appearances, and hasn’t scored since October 2015 – almost THREE years. Dele Alli also has only two goals, in 25, and not scored since October 2016. Jesse Lingard one goal in 12, Marcus Rashford three goals in 19. Southgate is really taking only seven players with attacking instincts to the World Cup, and only three of them have any sort of scoring record.
Throughout the team, there are not many goals.
Jordan Henderson has never scored for his country, and four of the five centre-halves have never scored either, which means the set-piece threat falls completely on the shoulders of Gary Cahill.
All of that is not to be pessimistic. I like this England squad, I like the youth and optimism they have, and I also believe that Kane deserves to be rated up there alongside some of the world’s best goalscorers, with his record.
Looking at the stats though, one stands out more than any other.
Between them, Kane and Welbeck have scored 29 goals in 63 appearances.
For the rest of the squad, the other 21 players, they have scored 30 goals between them. In almost 450 appearances.
I’ve worked at Liverpool for the past few years, and one thing I noticed when Jurgen Klopp came in, he was desperate to bring goals in from his attacking players.
Every signing, they HAD to have goals in them. Everyone who left, not enough goals.
So it’s a no-brainer for me. Welbeck should be in there, taking a bit of the weight and pressure off Kane, and giving England a wider goals threat.
If we can score goals, we can do better in this tournament than many expect.