The Bayern Munich striker cut a frustrated figure in the Three Lions' Euro 2024 opener as the manager got his tactics wrong once again
Gareth Southgate's 100 percent record in major tournament openers in still intact, just about. England sit top of Group C after their 1-0 win over Serbia, and barring an unlikely collapse, should now go on to book a spot in the European Championship knockout stages.
But none of the tournament heavyweights will fear Southgate's side based on Sunday's performance. England looked toothless against Serbia, and only ended up with all three points because Jude Bellingham took it upon himself to carry them over the line.
It was the Real Madrid man's 13th-minute goal that proved to be the difference between the two sides, as he timed his run perfectly to meet a deflected Bukayo Saka cross and power home a bullet header. England were good value for the lead, and played a frenetic pace for the first half-hour of the game, but soon ran out of steam and went into retreat in the second half, which lead to a few tense moments. Serbia could well have snatched a draw had it not been for Jordan Pickford's outstanding reflexes.
It was the kind of safety-first showing England fans have become all too accustomed to in the Southgate era, and there will be more heartbreak on the cards if he doesn't change the habit of lifetime.
Harry Kane especially, won't want to endure another 90 minutes as a spectator. Getting the best out of the Bayern Munich man will be the difference between glory and failure for the Three Lions, but Southgate still doesn't seem to have learned from his past mistakes.
Getty ImagesNot England's Haaland
You could have been forgiven for thinking that Kane wasn't even on the pitch in the first half. The England captain was completely anonymous, as his total touches count of just two underlined, with Southgate asking him to pin the Serbia defence back so that the likes of Bellingham, Saka and Phil Foden could express themselves.
It wasn't until the 77th minute when Kane got a proper sniff, as he out muscled his marker to nod a cross from substitute Jarrod Bowen goalwards, only to see Serbia goalkeeper Predrag Rajkovic brilliantly tip the ball onto the bar. Kane worked hard in more of a target man capacity in the second half, and won a number of fouls to ease some of the pressure on England, but it was a very frustrating evening for the 30-year-old.
"Kane playing the [Erling] Haaland role," former England and Liverpool defender Jamie Carragher wrote on . Much was made of Haaland's lack of involvement in general play for Manchester City last season, and Carragher was baffled to see Kane taking on a similarly isolated role.
"Haaland strikes me as a striker who measures himself solely on the goal return, Kane does not," Carragher added in his Euros column for . "I’m not convinced playing as the old-fashioned battering ram against a physical centre-half is a role he enjoys or wants. He was not playing that way in the Euros opener because of selflessness. It was a compulsion, not a choice. The line-up demanded it from him."
Kane scored found the net 44 times in his debut season at Bayern, but he's more than just a goal-scorer. England need his creative qualities too if they are to go on and live up their billing as pre-tournament favourites.
AdvertisementGetty ImagesVictim of Southgate caution
Kane is a master of dropping deep and playing incisive passes, and those attributes go to waste when he is asked to play on the shoulder of the last defender. England were short on runners against Serbia as a result of Kane being stationed so high up the pitch, with Saka the only one to attempt to get in behind.
The Three Lions captain insisted he was happy to take one for the team, though, while suggesting that Southgate will tweak his line-up for each opponent as the tournament progresses. "I think each game will be different," Kane said to the when quizzed on his subdued display. "Today I stayed a little bit higher because they like to defend man to man, I wanted to keep them deep so Jude and Phil could play in the pockets, Trent [Alexander-Arnold] as well on the right side. Each game will be different, sometimes you will see me drop in and sometimes see me play higher up."
It was a diplomatic answer from Kane that didn't really ring true. Southgate has done a lot of good since taking the England reins in 2016, but few would describe him as a tactically flexible coach; he likes his team to be compact and tends to be reactive rather than proactive with his substitutions.
Southgate doesn't create an environment that is conducive to attacking flair and it wouldn't be a surprise if he picks the same line-up against Denmark on Thursday. He has the keys to the most talented squad in Europe, but the cautious way he uses world-class players like Kane brings to mind the famous quote from Zlatan Ibrahmovic on his time working with Pep Guardiola at Barcelona: "I'm a Ferrari, but you are driving me as if I were a Fiat."
Getty ImagesFix the imbalance
Kane was not the only player stifled by Southgate's system, though, as Foden lined up on the left side in front of Kieran Trippier. The Manchester City magician looked a shadow of his usual self and struggled to build any kind of rapport with Trippier, and consequently, England were far too reliant on Saka over on the opposite flank.
The midfield balance wasn't quite right either, with Alexander-Arnold flattering to deceive in both attack and defence. Even Bellingham, who was England's standout player and ran himself into the ground, struggled to influence proceedings as Serbia assumed control in the latter portion of the game.
Southgate has a difficult task on his hands to accommodate all of England's best attacking players, but he really should be more positive against Denmark. Foden could quite easily start in the middle alongside Bellingham and Declan Rice, with Anthony Gordon providing more natural width on the left.
In a simple 4-4-3 system, Foden can cause more damage floating between the lines with Bellingham on hand as support and Rice sitting in front of the defence, while Kane would have the opportunity to have a far greater impact in general play.
For the time being at least, Southgate should park the Alexander-Arnold midfield experiment. England limped over the line in their first game, and the better teams will tear them apart if significant improvements are not made.
Getty ImagesFailure to adapt
There were plenty of similarities to draw between England's display against Serbia and their Euro 2020 final defeat to Italy three years ago. On both occasions, Southgate's side burst out of the blocks and seized the initiative, only to rest on their laurels and allow their opponents to gradually take control.
Typically, it took until the 69th minute for Southgate to make a change in Gelsenkirchen, by which point England were already camped in their own half. Alexander-Arnold finally came off for Chelsea's Conor Gallagher, who helped to shore up the midfield before Saka made way for Bowen, while Kobbie Mainoo came on for match-winner Bellingham in the dying minutes.
In other words, 'Mr Conservative' lived up to his nickname. Gordon, Ollie Watkins and Cole Palmer were all left twiddling their thumbs on the bench as Southgate refused to take any risks. Even Kane really should have made way, if for no other reason than to give England a fresh injection of pace in the final third.
“We had control of the game, but we expended a lot of energy in the first half,” Southgate admitted. “We also didn’t keep the ball so well in the second half, we had less control.”
If Southgate could see his players were tiring, why on earth did he wait so long to act? Elite managers always have a Plan B, and even a C,D and E; they can put out fires and adapt to setbacks. Eight years into his tenure, Southgate's in-game management is still letting him down, which doesn't bode well for England's hopes of finally ending almost 60 years of hurt in Germany.