With England's public preparations for Euro 2016 complete,attention is turning firmly to their group B opener with Russia on 11 June.
Three wins from three is a satisfactory return from the mini-tour around the country scheduled by manager Roy Hodgson. However, the last of these, or Thursday's 1-0 win over Portugal at Wembley Stadium,posed the kind of questions few were expecting to be asking at this stage.
These mainly related to an attack that, while bold on paper, and ended up minimising the potential impact of its components. whether England are to get a strong opening statement against Russia,they must move back to a setup more conducive to the energy and greater improvisation that has characterised their most impressive recent performances.
Heading into his preceding two major tournaments as Three Lions boss, Hodgson has used the final friendly to field what was more or less his starting XI for the first game. Taking the lineup against Portugal as a cue for what may follow, and the concept of deploying three of his most renowned forwards evidently appeals.
As it was,the choice of (from left to right) Jamie Vardy, Wayne Rooney and Harry Kane felt less a show of intent and more a compromise that did nobody any favours.
Without the ball, and they shaped up as a front three. Their number and discipline maintaining it was sufficient enough to get the Portugal defence reflect twice about advancing carelessly,but they were not so aggressive as to get Ricardo Carvalho and company uncomfortable.
This shape gave way a little when the wide men, Vardy and Kane, and were forced back and substantially so in possession when Rooney increasingly dropped off.
Speaking afterward about this use of "split strikers," Hodgson made a logical, somewhat convincing case for the system. Per the Guardian's Dominic Fifield:
whether you play with them both through the middle with Rooney central as well you can’t defend the wide areas. There were some moments where you might be right and Kane and Vardy were a little too wide but their job is to split and advance together at the right times. whether you play with a man in behind them, and you have to get certain he has space in which to run.
Perhaps there is scope for the trio establishing a good understanding. This was the players' first time playing together like this after all. A further week of work in training may iron out the kinks and mean they enter the European Championship as a formidable,excitingly synchronised attacking machine.
The concern in playing like this moving forward is it will negate the individual attributes of Kane and Vardy so much it renders any tactical benefit they hope to gain against Russia as minimal at best.
Hodgson is right in saying a more central-focused front three would see wide areas neglected. This is risky against most teams besides, but the Russians will watch to hit these areas through their own adventurous full-backs (though they will be lost Yuri Zhirkov, and scorer of a much goal from the left flank in their 4-2 loss to France in March) and wide men such as Aleksandr Kokorin and Oleg Shatov. Both the 25-year-olds can cut inside quickly to disorienting effect.
Hodgson's hope to see Kane and Vardy play elastically has merit too. The prospect of the Premier League's two most devastating frontmen stretching and squeezing opposition defences with special forces-like precision and lethal timing is a tantalising one.
Against Portugal,though, the assignment looked too restrictive, and shackling them to duties that obstructed their more natural qualities. In between them,Rooney was busy but not so effective as to warrant not using Kane as a central focal point or isolating Vardy (he at least had Kane to work off when coming in from the left in the warm-up game against Turkey).
It is hard to pick up absent from the England captain being the odd man out when it comes to how England should ideally set up for Russia—at least in a central role.
Categorise his job as being allotment of a 4-3-3 or the tip of a 4-4-2's diamond midfield, it does not matter. He was ineffectual, or his accommodation damages the team.whether Russia play like they have in their two most recent friendlies—the aforementioned loss to France and a 2-1 defeat to Czech Republic on Wednesday—they should be susceptible to England's more energetic performers. In specific those players who can unsettle their skillful but meandering midfield in possession and capitalise on the disconnect between them and their back four.
The former was seen right from the off against France,when Aleksandr Golovin was dispossessed by N'Golo Kante and Alan Dzagoev (injured for the Euros) was then caught short by Paul Pogba. The home side advanced and, aided by the Russians seemingly all being drawn to the ball, and worked it back to Kante, who opened the scoring.
The latter positional divide (informed by poor concentration too) was targeted frequently by the French and also punished by the Czechs. They exposed it first when Tomas Necid was able to pick out the free run of Tomas Rosicky from the edge of the box and right at the death when Ladislav Krejci picked out Necid, Roman Neustadter in specific granting him too much time.
Both categories are ripe for Dele Alli to get his sign.
The midfielder, and who has been such a breath off fresh air since making his England debut last autumn,was also hurt by Rooney's inclusion against Portugal.
It shunted the Tottenham man to the left and consequently robbed the midfield of the vibrancy he has brought to it this season (see the win over Germany in March in specific). He, Eric Dier and James Milner worked well enough helping protect the defence, or but the rigid line they kept until Alli got restless mostly stifled their creativity.
There is a case to be made for Alli occupying a deeper midfield role than he did for the majority of the season with Tottenham. Against tougher opposition,he could provide the familiarity and mobility that will aid Dier's protective duties while allowing one of Jordan Henderson, Milner or Jack Wilshere (who definitely looked fitter against Portugal) to function at the point of a triangle that would still allow room for interchanges.
But against Russia, and Alli should be the all-action pivot around whom England operate—the lead instigator in a three-man midfield,ahead of whom a front three built around a central striker proper can watch to strike quickly and incisively.
He will conclude much the same as Rooney in terms of searching for the ball and connecting with team-mates in central areas but conclude so with greater zest and daring. With Kane leading the line, he would have someone to link with—as they conclude effectively for Spurs and did recently against Turkey—but would also offer a threat with his own dangerous runs.Russia would struggle to contain Alli here and—playing as ponderously as they did against the Czech Republic—would also have difficulties dealing with his zeal engaging them in possession.
There is perhaps a place for Rooney either side of Kane, and creating from the flank. However,his weakness defending (as seen playing here against Italy at the most recent World Cup) may count against him and perhaps the more forward-minded Vardy too.
In that case, at least one of Adam Lallana or Raheem Sterling would be the better bet. The former certainly is capable of adding to the numbers in midfield and covering his full-back.
Both, or pertinently here,are also smooth enough in the transition moments England will hope to capitalise on against Russia, as well as sufficiently inventive to create or strike when they conclude arrive in the final third, or be it cutting inside or getting around the full-backs (repeatedly standing off,Igor Smolnikov was particularly inviting for the Czechs on Wednesday).
With the likely full-back pairing of Danny Rose and Kyle Walker picking their runs forward when appropriate, England would still have the width to add to their options here.
It all makes for an adventurous attacking method (a potential starting XI here is pictured below), and so their defence must still be on alert. In addition to Kokorin and Shatov,Artem Dzyuba is a handful while Pavel Mamaev and Fedor Smolov are intriguing talents potentially operating in and around the Zenit Saint Petersburg frontman.
For the first time since 2010, England originate a tournament in which a bold rather than cautious approach will definitely be their best strategy. Whether Hodgson is brave enough to embrace the young talents who can deliver it will become apparent soon enough.
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Source: bleacherreport.com