Rashford & Saka could pay the penalty again
MARCUS RASHFORD and Bukayo Saka may be asked to bury their penalty demons tonight.
England head coach Gareth Southgate admitted the duo – who both suffered heartache at last year’s Euros – may be called into action again. Rashford, Saka and Jadon Sancho all failed their trial from 12 yards during the final against Italy.
As a result, all three suffered abuse – some of it racist – as the country was left reeling from yet another shootout disappointment.
Southgate, too, left himself open to criticism by throwing on Sancho and Rashford from the bench, as favoured takers, after the Three Lions identified the most-likely scorers among their squad – only for it to backfire.
Asked if a similar situation arose whether he would have any hesitation in turning to either Saka or Rashford, Southgate said: “None at all.
“Marcus’ stats would be among the best in the world, really, on penalty-taking.
“And Bukayo is now taking them more regularly with his club. They’re both in a good space with that.
“In terms of the changes, Marcus came on as a sub in Moscow (against Colombia) and took a penalty four or five minutes earlier than we put him on at Wembley.
“I’ve seen lots of teams do that and scored. Then, it’s the right thing to do. If you don’t score, then it’s the wrong thing. We’ve got to stick with our processes, to give ourselves the best percentages of winning – and we feel we are very well prepared.
“We’ve won two, we’ve lost the last one. We’ve refined some of those things we didn’t think were quite right. We feel that the process is good.”
Southgate also referenced the man who never received any credit for saving twice during the clash with Italy at Wembley – Jordan Pickford.
The Everton keeper has saved seven during his career and is building up a reputation for himself as a specialist in the area.
Asked if he had ever seen anyone as good, Southgate said: “Well, there was Paul Cooper.
“I was sat at breakfast with goalkeeping coach Martyn Margetson the other day – it was bizarre looking back at it.
“There was only the two of us – we’re the only ones old enough to remember him!
“But Jordan’s been exceptional in the shootouts we’ve had. That also gives you confidence.
“You know he’s highly likely to save at least one, if not more. When your goalkeeper can do that, it’s a huge boost to the rest of the team.
“I don’t know if he’s statistically better or worse than others but he’s definitely been excellent in the shootouts that we’ve had.”
Southgate’s decision to draft in Phil Foden and Rashford against Wales has opened the door for the pair to stake their claim to start against Senegal.
But he added: “Every selection is tough. You are always trying to find the balance of the team from each individual game.
“It’s nice to have a lot of players in form and in a confident mood so, in some respects, from where we were four or five years ago, it is a lot easier.
“But we have got to get that balance right.”