The two sides of Southgate’s England
Within a few days, two sharply contrasting results for the England football team.
First, a dull and unimpressive display in Prague, where two arguably avoidable goals were given away and the incentive of an early penalty lead was squandered.
The Czechs, with adventurous fullbacks, used the flanks well, but their second goal was an embarrassment for the England defence.
The subsequent match in Bulgaria, who had been comfortably defeated at Wembley, was a sharp and productive contrast. This time the home side gifted England with surprisingly abundant space which was largely put to good use. The arrival in central defence of the 6ft 3in Tyrone Mings filled what had been an embarrassing weakness.
The lack of a valid playmaker had been all too obvious in Prague but in Sofia one was scarcely needed. There still seems to me a good case for giving a chance to Aston Villa’s Jack Grealish, who should surely have been at least in the squad for the previous couple of games. Now that his team are in the Premier League he will surely be at least given attention.
If you are going to use a number 10 it should be a genuine creator; something which cried out to be remedied in the defeat in Prague.
Sooner rather than later we should surely be seeing the impressive and precocious Callum Hudson-Odoi back in a senior England squad.
Very much a Chelsea development, born not far away in Wandsworth, he turns 19 in November. Last season he made just 10 league appearances, but this season he has begun to come into his own. One more natural English winger with a bright future before him.
Read Brian Glanville’s weekly online column at worldsoccer.com