England are on the verge of securing qualification to Euro 2024, but their perfect record in Group C is no more.
The Three Lions were denied a fifth successive victory in 2023 by a stubborn Ukraine side on Saturday evening, having to settle for a 1-1 draw in Wroclaw.
It’s not the first time that a contending nation will be stopped short in their tracks by a team considerably lower down the list of favourites. It’s certainly not the last time it’ll happen to England in particular.
Gareth Southgate’s sides have never been in danger of missing out on the tournaments they have qualified for to this point, and a passage to Euro 2024 is almost assured.
But this iteration of England is nearing their end, whether that be in a blaze of glory in Germany next summer or going down in flames like every time before.
Southgate has always had doubters in this job but results have been hard to criticise. Only Sir Alf Ramsey was more successful with the men’s senior team.
His England’s ponderous and streetwise (sometimes to the extreme) style has helped them progress to the latter stages of international tournaments, but their inability to kick back into gear when the going gets tough has prevented them from claiming silverware.
Southgate’s England took the lead in their 2018 World Cup semi-final defeat to Croatia. They took the lead in their Euro 2020 loss to Italy. Momentum was in their favour for long stretches of last year’s World Cup quarter-final exit to France but they failed to turn territorial advantages into chances and goals.
Too often do England seem happy to take games slowly. That’s natural in international football across all the major nations, but it’s hardly a trait that elevates those sides above all others.
England were punished for their lackadaisical start against Ukraine on Saturday, with Oleksandr Zinchenko notching them ahead midway through the first half, peeling away from his usually alert Arsenal teammate Declan Rice to find the needed space in the penalty area.
For the remainder of the first half, England seemed encouraged to play a quicker game by a sense of jeopardy, that this was now a match they could lose.
Minutes before the break, they found their equaliser. Harry Kane dropped into midfield and sprayed a perfect pass over the Ukraine backline for Kyle Walker to meet, finishing with coolness at the near post.
— England (@England) September 9, 2023
During the second half, Ukraine sought to build their attacks through Mykhailo Mudryk down the left flank, but Walker slammed the door shut in his face on every occasion, beating the spritely youngster for pace even at 33 years of age.
At the other end, England went closest to a winner through Bukayo Saka, who rattled the bar after swift shift of his feet to finally create a yard of separation from the many Ukrainian defenders who followed his every move.
And so pace became the common theme of the evening. England lacked it with the ball, and so they were caught out by it when without the ball.
Veteran duo Harry Maguire and Jordan Henderson, whose continued inclusions were heavily criticised pre-match, particularly looked off the pace physically, technically and mentally, slow to react to danger, slow to take their touches, slow to shift their bodies.
James Maddison’s inclusion as a winger felt wasted, particularly given his fine form in a more central role since moving to Tottenham Hotspur. As such, Kane was continually tasked with coming into midfield as opposed to occasionally.
Ukraine were resolute in their defending but they hardly parked the bus. Another fleet-footed winger would have given England another line-breaking outlet, one to ease the hefty pressure placed on Saka to almost solely provide that spark – that Walker scored the equaliser running in behind is further testament.
Another lesson for Southgate to learn from. If he’s to leave after Euro 2024 though, he’s running out of time to learn from them.
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