England hit by Harry Kane conundrum to add to Foden dilemma and cannot win Euro 2024 unless it is fixed, says Carragher
ENGLAND must get the best out of Harry Kane in order to win Euro 2024, claims Jamie Carragher.
The Three Lions skipper was a peripheral figure for large spells of his side’s 1-0 win over Serbia last night.
Kane, 30, touched the ball just twice during the first half – playing on the fringes of the match.
He eventually finished with 24 touches, one of which was a 77th minute header from substitute Jarrod Bowen‘s cross, which was tipped on to the crossbar.
In his column for the Telegraph, Carragher compared Kane’s output against Serbia to that of Erling Haaland at Manchester City.
But the former England defender, 46, reckons that Gareth Southgate and Co will need more from Kane if they are to go all the way in Germany.
He also raised the issue of Southgate having to try to accommodate both Phil Foden and Jude Bellingham behind the Three Lions captain.
“If Southgate persists with the same system for the rest of the tournament, his No9 will be heavily compromised,” wrote Carragher.
“Possibly too much. Having come into the Euros with a Phil Foden conundrum, after one game Southgate has a Kane one.
“In the first half, Kane registered just two touches of the ball. For a player of his class, that is deeply worrying.
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“By full time that had risen to 24, showing that he was more involved in the second half – ironic given that England were less dominant in possession.
“There is a tactical curiosity that when England played well, Kane was not involved at all. When they didn’t, he nearly scored and had more possession.”
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Foden was deployed off the left flank, with Bellingham occupying the main space behind Kane.
This worked to good effect for England’s winning goal, with Bellingham crashing into the box to head home Bukayo Saka‘s deflected cross after 13 minutes.
Carragher went on to explain how in previous tournaments, Kane has dropped deep to pick up the ball before swivelling to look for pacey runners in behind including Saka, Raheem Sterling and Marcus Rashford.
This time around, however, only Saka is in the team to try to dart in behind.
Carra went on to suggest that the likes of Anthony Gordon or Ollie Watkins could have been introduced from the bench to offer that kind of speed.
While he also suggested that the inclusion in midfield of Trent Alexander-Arnold, in addition to the likes of Bellingham and Foden, left things too congested.
He did, however, point to one famous example of an international boss making a comparable conundrum work – albeit with some of the world’s greatest, most experienced players.
Carragher went on: “Southgate’s situation with this profile of the England squad reminds me of the decisions facing Vicente del Bosque with the legendary Spanish side which followed its World Cup success by defending the Euros in 2012.
“Del Bosque had several players who all occupied the same position, and somehow had to accommodate Xavi, Sergio Busquets, Andres Iniesta, Xabi Alonso, David Silva and Cesc Fabregas.
“His solution was to pick them all, Spain winning the final without any recognised striker. Great players made it work.
“England have a long way to go to warrant comparisons with one of the greatest international sides ever, but it is an example of how managers will ultimately be lured to ensuring they get all their best players on the pitch at the same time.
“Short-term, I would expect Southgate to persist with Sunday night’s plan. But going forward, getting the most from Kane is the only way in which England can win the competition.”
The Three Lions will return to action on Thursday at 5pm, when they face Denmark in Frankfurt.
Trent showed he's a central character for England... he deserves to keep spot, says Wilshere
THIS game felt a bit like an audition for Trent Alexander-Arnold in centre midfield, writes SunSport columnist Jack Wilshere.
I think he passed it and deserves another chance to show all the qualities that he can bring to the role.
I was pleased when I saw Trent in the starting line-up.
It’s a little bit braver than we have normally seen from Gareth Southgate and I like that.
It was: ‘Go on, go and play!’ It didn’t necessarily work out like that but that wasn’t Trent’s fault.
Southgate was experimenting with him in there, seeing if it worked.
If we get later in the tournament against the big teams, you will need someone who has played in there a few times and understands the position a bit.
The combination between Trent, Kyle Walker and Bukayo Saka is a promising one.
You see Trent naturally drift over to that right side and receive it almost like a full-back.
It’s interesting what happens then with Walker.
He was still getting involved in and around the outside, which was good to see, and it was Walker who got forward to help create the Jude Bellingham goal.
That link-up is something we need to exploit more. We should probably have used it more last night as well.
At the start, he was a little bit shaky. He gave the ball away a couple of times, and one of them led to that decent chance for Aleksandar Mitrovic.
When he plays for Liverpool he comes inside. But it’s different when you’re in there from the start. It’s 360 degree pressure, from all sides.
I always found international football that bit quicker. You’ll often receive it with your back to the game and you’ve scanned, but you need to get more on the half turn to see what’s coming.
But it was difficult for Trent, especially in the first half, for him to show his range of passing. When you’re playing against a back five, with four in front, and they’re stubborn and just waiting . . . it is very hard.
There’s no space in behind, they’re very tight and organised.
And when the ball is going over your head, your job then becomes jumping on second balls, disrupting and trying to shield the big two up front.
Trent’s positioning was good and he made some good interceptions. I think he can — and should — hold on to the ball a bit more, draw the pressure, and then play the ball forward.
If someone comes to him, that frees up space for someone else. And he and Declan Rice have the ability to find Bellingham and Phil Foden through the lines. I would like to have seen more of that. As the game opens up, Trent is a player who can pick the right pass.
Especially in transition, like he did with a lovely one down the side for Saka in the first half and another early in the second.
It was also good to see him get forward for a decent long-range shot.
But Trent was not helped by England’s performance in the second half. We weren’t aggressive enough, we didn’t press well enough.
Trent’s audition lasted just under 70 minutes in the end. I believe it is something Gareth should persist with.
He is more than intelligent enough to work it out. And as the tournament goes on, I’m sure he will be fine in there.