Saturday reflections on England losing to Iceland
Gareth Southgate faces more questions than answers after such an underwhelming display against Iceland - who deserved their fine victory at Wembley
Happy Saturday.
Or is it?
I spent Friday evening covering England’s 1-0 defeat against Iceland at Wembley Stadium.
Let’s be clear. It was a woeful performance - even if Iceland fully deserved to win.
(As an aside I spent a tremendous birthday week in Iceland with my wonderful partner two years ago, so I do have a soft spot for the country, and its people - more below including snaps).
But in purely football terms it was an extremely concerning evening for the England manager.
What made things worse was the fact that with the team’s first game in Euro 2024 looming large, Gareth Southgate picked a strong side in a bid to firm up his thoughts on who will be representing the nation against Serbia in Gelsenkircken a week on Sunday. And his starting XI flopped. Flopped badly.
They failed against a lively Iceland side ranked 71st in the world. One place behind Jordan. Two behind Montenegro and two in front of Bosnia - who England eased past 3-0 on Monday evening in Newcastle.
Of course, rankings don’t mean anything. Not a jot.
It what’s you do on the pitch that matters. And England failed their final mock exam before the summer’s real tests start next week.
It was ironic that the pre-match talk on Friday from certain misguided souls was of replicating the 6-1 victory over Iceland in England’s final game before Euro 2004. Whereas, for me, and many others, the searing memory of Iceland humiliating England at Euro 2016 was the match at the forefront of our thoughts.
And so it came to pass that Iceland beat England again.
Åge Hareide’s side were deserved winners at Wembley. They looked lively and troubled England’s backline throughout. On another evening they could have honestly scored four.
Southgate’s defence - a back four that will surely be the same vs Serbia, with Kieran Trippier on the left, Kyle Walker on the right with John Stones and Marc Guehi sandwiched in between - looked all at sea.
Worryingly Stones was forced off with an injury at half time. Leaving no experienced centre-backs in the squad. (Even if I wholeheartedly agree jettisoning Harry Maguire was the right thing to do).
In midfield, Declan Rice as a No6 and Robbie Mainoo failed to dovetail as well as expected, even if I have high hopes of the pair working well together in Germany.
Despite a raft of genuine attacking options, England were laboured on the ball. Ponderous without it. Lacking in inspiration in how to beat Iceland’s effective low block. The balance and shape was wrong everywhere you looked, as was the positioning at times, while pressing was virtually non-existent.
Although, it has to be said, Cole Palmer certainly gave food for thought. I’ve covered a lot of him this season and I love him as a player, with his quick feet and creativity, not to mention a temperament that oozes confidence, unsurprisingly given his talent and technique. While Phil Foden - another player I admire greatly - had an evening to forget. As for former Spurs striker Harry Kane - who missed an excellent chance to equalise - let’s just say he’s saving his goals for next week.
So, where do we go from here?
An underwhelmingly disjointed display when we should be firing on all cylinders given the quality of the squad as well as the searingly excellent form shown in qualifying - two victories over Italy, anyone - leaves us with serious fears over just how well England will do in Germany.
Although, in light of such a bad performance on the eve of a big tournament, perhaps tempering such high expectations could be a good thing.
We’ll certainly find out this month.
…….
I love Iceland
Can I just say I absolutely love Iceland as a country. A wonderful place to visit. Wonderful people, along with incredible sights.
When we’re in a quieter period I’ll share my take on a country that everyone should visit.
In the meantime, here’s a few images I shared before kick-off last night.
……….
Daily List:
Today I will mostly be having a few beers with old schoolmates over a spot of cricket. Can’t wait.
PS:
Player Ratings: England 0-1 Iceland
Player Ratings:
Aaron Ramsdale: 5/10 - Should have prevented Thorsteinsson's winner
Kyle Walker: 4/10 - Disappointing. Caught out of position for the goal and switched off again when Thorsteinsson fluffed his gilt-edged chance in the second half to double the vistors' lead
John Stones: 4/10 - Looked off the pace. Failed to get close to Thorsteinsson for the winner. Hooked at half-time, prompting injury fears
Marc Guehi: 6/10 - Struggled at times against a lively but limited forward line but was solid and full of physicality. A bright spot on a disappointing evening
Kieran Trippier: 5/10 - The 33-year-old was unimpressive at left-back but will Luke Shaw be back for the group stages?
Declan Rice: 6/10 - Will play so much better next week from the No6 position next week against Serbia - you can be sure of the fact
Kobbie Mainoo: 6.5/10 - A bright spark amid a poor team effort and looked like he belonged in only his second start
Antony Gordon: 5/10 - Tried hard but mostly ineffectual
Phil Foden: 3/10 - For a player of his talent his performance was utterly abysmal
Cole Palmer: 5/10 - Started brightly but faded badly
Harry Kane: 2/10 - Terrible. Should havae scored with first half chance following Palmer's cross but lifted the ball over when well-placed
Substitutes:
Trent Alexander-Arnold: On for Walker: 4/10
Joe Gomez: Replaced Trippier: 4/10
Ivan Toney: Swapped with Kane: 4/10
Bukayo Saka: Came on for Gordon: 5.10 - Easing his way back to match fitness after a busy season. Another who will be infinitely better against the Serbs in Gelsenkircken a week on Sunday
