STAN COLLYMORE
Football’s ultimate maverick sounds off
I’D love to see Gareth Southgate play with one less holding midfielder against Andorra this evening.
Don’t get me wrong, there’s no issue with the partnership between Declan Rice and Kalvin Phillips.
They have been superb, they’re nice and easy on the ball, they get it and give it, and served us well at the Euros.
They are also more orthodox midfielders than perhaps we give them credit for, both having an ability to get forward at times.
But logic dictates that England, having reached two semi-finals and a final in their last two major tournaments, will go deep again at the Qatar World Cup next year and at Euro 2024 in Germany.
And against the very best teams you don’t want an orthodox midfielder, someone who first and foremost is defensively minded, carrying the can of being a creator.
Look at the best teams and they all have a player of that ilk.
Balance
And while I’d give this Three Lions team 9/10 for its balance and for getting to the semis and final at Euro 2020, I’d give us 5/10 for centre-spot to arc of the 18-yard box because I don’t even think we’re top 20 in the world at that.
I don’t mind which one plays out of Rice and Phillips, but you need someone in there who, yes, can do the defensive duties when required. But who will also pick the ball up on the halfway line and drive past a couple of players to get in a position where suddenly a picture is opening up in front of him of Jack Grealish, Harry Kane and Raheem Sterling moving into position.
There are plenty of options for Southgate in that role – he can play Phil Foden, Jude Bellingham or Grealish.
And Bellingham is possibly the man for the long haul.
But right here, right now, the man I’d love to see given a chance to show what he can do is Jesse Lingard, and I hope he gets the opportunity both in this international break and next month’s, too.
Lingard has matured, he’s no longer burdened by being ‘the kid’, he glides past people, he has step-overs in his locker, he plays one-twos and can up the tempo and the thought process of everyone around him.
He showed all that in his cameo at West
Ham last season and I see no reason why he couldn’t be
England’s joker in the pack for Qatar.
I’m not saying he is the answer to all of England’s problems.
But I am saying he has all the attributes to give us that one aspect of the game that I see as missing and that it will be up to him to take his chances and up to Southgate (below) to give them to him in the next five or six weeks.
I know people will point to the fact he isn’t getting a game at Manchester United but I like the fact he has shown the grit, determination and belief to stay at Old Trafford and fight for his place.
Dictates
Jesse’s matured he glides past people, ups the tempo. He could play left or right of a midfield three, or just behind Kane
And while club form usually dictates international selection, just like John Stones played himself back into Pep Guardiola’s plans at Manchester City with what he did for England, I see no reason why Lingard can’t give his United boss, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, food for thought.
He could play on the left or right of a midfield three, or just behind Kane, and we might have the catalyst for a better forward blend in the short term, while reminding such as Grealish and Jadon Sancho that there’s competition.
I know we won’t learn anything
about Lingard in a game against Andorra at Wembley but give him his head and at least there’ll be some food for thought going into Wednesday’s clash with Poland.