It’s that time again. The rain seems slightly warmer, the clouds marginally brighter, and England are jetting off to a major international tournament. As ever, along with the open-toed sandals and (optimistic) shorts, the arrival of the footballing summer has brought with it the media storm that, with a sapping inevitability, accompanies any England squad boarding a plane towards disappointment and, intermittently, humiliation.
The furore surrounding Rio Ferdinand’s omission from the England squad in favour of Martin Kelly, coupled with the last minute injuries to Frank Lampard, Gareth Barry, Gary Cahill and John Ruddy has meant that preparation has been far from ideal. This England side is not one to inspire; it lacks flair, contains John Terry, and is missing its most influential player. It is, however, functional, and if the past few international tournaments have taught us any thing, it’s that functionalit y and rigid, disciplined systems work.
This year’s Euros will not excite the tactical anoraks. If, like me, you get far too excited by asymmetrical formations, three player back lines and marauding centre-backs then prepare for disappointment. We will have to make do with firm 4-4-2s, solid 4-2-3-1s, stifling 4-5-1s and retentive 4-3-3s. Holding midfielders will abound, James Milner will start on the wing, and the defence splitting ball inside the fullback will be shelved in favour of the quick shovel out wide. The key, as it has proven to be for the past few years, is not to concede.
The inclusion of Martin Kelly over Rio Ferdinand is an interesting one, but not for the same reasons that have everyone shouting and getting cross. Rather, Kelly’s inclusion takes the number of Liverpool players in this England squad to six, and is indicative of the modern international manager’s tendency to maximise domestic connections. The modern game is a fluid beast and the best sides are the cohesive sides. As international managers have little time with their players, they tend to focus on defensive positioning in order to make their team hard to break down.
This is reasonable, as a solid base is necessary to progress in a knock-out tournament, but it results in sides where – especially with teams playing 4-4-2 – the movement from back to front can break down. The Republic of Ireland, playing their final warm-up game against Hungary, were held to a 0-0 draw as their midfield withdrew to shield their back four and failed to adequately link up with the front men.
Quick movement from defence to attack relies heavily on cohesion and understanding between individuals, and as a result we can see a marked increase in the number of players in starting XIs who, while perhaps not the best individual players in the squad, play together in their domestic leagues. Six of Russia’s starting XI are drawn from Zenit St. Petersburg, four others are drawn from CSKA, and the Czech Republic side relies on a core of Limbersky, Rezek, Pilar and Jiracek, all of whom play, or played, for Victoria Plzen.
The same is true of Italy, built from the spine of this season’s unbeaten Juventus outfit, Spain (who rely almost exclusively on players from Barcelona or Real Madrid), and Germany, whose team is built around a base of Bayern Munich players. England have attempted to adopt a similar approach; pre-injury, three of the starting back four played for Chelsea and, depending on whether Carroll or Welbeck starts the first game, the front two can be drawn from either Liverpool or Manchester United. The inclusion of Andy Carroll, Jordan Henderson and Steven Gerrard in the squad is surely the only reason that Stewart Downing made the plane, as it allows for an offensive unit that plays and trains together week in, week out for the same domestic side. Given the reliance on club links, the championship itself could be decided by how well these connections translate onto the international stage.
As far as England goes, Roy Hodgson has adopted the correct approach for the tournament ahead. Hamstrung by an eleventh hour appointment, constrained by injury to Jack Wilshere (arguably England’s only player who fits the blueprint for the modern central midfielder) and hindered by suspension to Wayne Rooney, Hodgson’s task was and is to make England as hard to beat as possible.
As dire as it will be to watch, it may prove sufficient to progress past the group stage. With Parker sitting, Gerrard providing a link between the back five and front four, Milner tucking in to provide cover in central midfield and Ashley Young, Theo Walcott, Glen Johnson and Ashley Cole providing overlapping outlets, England have the potential to be a difficult, if dour, opponent.
Theo Walcott has 24 goals and 22 assists over the past two seasons, a far better return than any other English winger, and should start against Ukraine and Sweden. His defensive frailties may mean that Milner gets the nod on the right against France, with Downing slotting in on the left, but Walcott could prove key to England’s fortunes. Pace is an essential asset for any counter-attacking side, which England will have to be should they progress into the knock-out rounds.
Fortunately, with Young, Oxlade-Chamberlain, Walcott, Welbeck and Johnson, they have it in abundance. Hodgson’s tactics will be to soak up pressure with a compact defensive unit, before shifting the ball quickly forward and out wide in an attempt to stretch the defence and provide space for the strikers and Gerrard.
It won’t be pretty, but it could work. If pressed for a prediction, I’ll take Germany to win, Spain second, England to get through the group stages and lose in the quarters.
