The race to see who will be Kane’s back-up for England at Euro 2024
FIGHT TO THE ENDRICK
With the buildup to England’s match against Brazil having been dominated by an often deranged debate about the colours of an inconspicuous rectangle adorning the collar of the men’s team’s shirt, finally we have the distraction of the actual football to discuss. Not much of a game, mind, given that the loudest cheer at Wembley on Saturday was reserved for whoever it was that managed to almost wing Fabrício Bruno with a paper aeroplane launched from the middle tier of the stands. In terms of accuracy and precision, the Brazil midfielder’s young teammate Endrick went one better, with the 17-year-old scoring his first goal for his country to consign Gareth Southgate’s brave boys to a defeat that doesn’t really matter in the cosmic scheme of things.
Only Southgate and his staff will know if they learned much from this contest although one of the main media takeouts from a largely dreary encounter seems to be that Ollie Watkins didn’t do himself many favours in the race to see whether he or Ivan Toney will earn the right to sit on the bench at Euro 2024 in the role of backup to Harry Kane. Forced to survive on scraps against a preposterously inexperienced Brazil defence, the Aston Villa striker missed one half-decent chance that certainly wasn’t as easy as some Sunday and Monday morning quarterbacks would have you believe. Against Belgium, Toney will be given his chance to impress and one suspects the Brentford frontman will back himself because some jokes, however lame and predictable, just write themselves.
While Kyle Walker and Harrys Kane and Maguire have left the England camp with minor knack, there was sad news for reserve goalkeeper Sam Johnstone, who faces what could be a season – and presumably Euro 2024 – ending spell on the sidelines after suffering elbow-ouch during training. James Trafford has been called up from the under-21s and has useful recent practice at looking on from the bench, having been dropped by Vincent Kompany for Burnley’s last game before the international break. An unused substitute in England’s defeat at the hands of Brazil and one of the brightest prospects in the Premier League, Trafford’s fellow Cumbrian Jarrad Branthwaite will be hoping to make his England debut in the absence of Maguire. Seen by many as a future England regular, the Everton defender, in common with Burnley’s goalkeeper, has had plenty of practice when it comes to honing his craft this season.
After last week’s palaver over a minor adjustment to England’s shirt, the kit being worn by Southgate’s players against Belgium is likely to come under very close scrutiny from folk with far too much time on their hands. A similarly expensive dark raisin number with sesame logos and multicolour panels in a variety of hues that are bound to upset somebody, the shirts worn in the second half won’t feature player names in an initiative that is part of the FA’s partnership with the Alzheimer’s Society.
“We hope to not only encourage fans to donate towards our early diagnosis research but also to support their loved ones just as much as they support their football team,” said the charity’s CEO, Kate Lee. “This means taking crucial first steps in seeking a diagnosis if they suspect someone they care about may be affected.” It should go without saying that this small but significant gesture on the part of the England football team has already been dismissed as a pointless waste of time by a mercifully small minority of weirdos who have clearly never had to deal with the heartbreak of being forgotten by a loved one living with this awful disease.
QUOTE OF THE DAY
“It was a bit of a whirlwind – it feels like a lifetime ago. My debut was an out-of-body experience but they were the best moments of my career. Being in the squad and exposed to a club that size was incredible. I wouldn’t change that minute for anything” – former Manchester United midfielder James Weir gets his chat on with Will Unwin about those early days under Louis van Gaal at Old Trafford, spells in Hungary and Slovakia, and how injuries led to retirement at 28.
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