Daily Mirror (Northern Ireland)
GARETH’S READY TO ATTACK, ATTACK, ATTACK!
FROM JOHN CROSS in Doha UPBEAT England manager Gareth Southgate is ready to let the shackles off and go all-out attack in his team’s World Cup opener today.
Southgate is considering switching to a back four against Iran which would be a major departure from his tried-andtrusted formation with three defenders.
The Three Lions boss did suggest that he will rotate the team through the tournament, and the sweltering conditions could also make it vital to make use of substitutes with five allowed during each match.
The 52-year-old said: “There is always some luck involved in injuries – but we have to make sure we manage people correctly and make sure we minimise the difficult situations we could face.
“We have a lot of players in different physical moments.
“Some have played every game for the last couple of months. Some have played very few. Some are coming back from injury. So we are managing the training sessions individually for every player so they all get across the line.
“So we have had to push them for a couple of days, get them used to the heat,” added Southgate (above, with skipper Harry Kane).
“We will have to continue to do that through the tournament and that is where the squad is so important.
“There is a slight condensed programme in the first four days and we have to make sure we take advantage of the squad we have got.”