Yep, me too. Loftus Cheek for the injured Delle, Rose for Young and Rashford for Sterling. Don't be surprised if Southgate retains Sterling though, as Panama may be a good opportunity for him to restore confidence.
Switzerland have been poor, but I fancy Shakiri to make something happen for them in the second half.
I thought she plays for Columbia. I think we will be in deep trouble if Vardy gets a kick, or so far ahead Southgate wants to give people a chance to say they played at the World Cup. He’s a very good player in a certain formation, which England don’t play. And kudos to Kieran Trippier, sporting an Edward I hairdo. About time the Plantagenet look came back.
****ing hell I’m all over the place tonight. More wine required. It’s cheap stuff as my daughter is expecting mates round to preload before they go to a nightclub so I stocked the fridge with stuff which requires no palate. Not offensive, they Better make it soon or there will be none left. Underserved equaliser but good strike.
I agree that Southgate’s preferred setup doesn’t suit Vardy, but I do believe it’s correct to shake things up when they’re not going right for you. Not necessarily deep trouble, though. Against Tunisia there were long, long periods in the second half where they’d run out of ideas. Kudos to Southgate for bringing on Loftus-Cheek and Rashford, particularly the former (in my opinion). But it was interesting (to me, at least) that Col responded to my calls for Vardy by saying that Sterling should be the make-way, yet Rashford was the one that replaced him instead. I just think there’s value in Vardy’s pace on balls through the defence or over the top for him run onto. There’s a time and place for that in matches, but not just as a response to being in deep trouble. He can unlock defences with his pace, but of course needs decent service.
I agree that it’s good to be able to mix it up, but Vardy’s style requires a complete change to what Southgate has been trying to do, and he’s already said that though the personnel might change the shape won’t. We are trying to play with the ball in the opponents half, rather than sending the ball quickly from deep. We’ll see. yep, that Chaka Khan is looking lively.
Vardy would have to be the 2nd striker, as I don't think he can play as one of the advanced midfield players imo. Also, he would struggle to get much space against International defences, especially ones that sit deep. In that scenario we need a 2nd striker to link play or at least come deep and run at teams. That's not his game imo. For all the criticism of Sterling and I agree that he struggled at times on Monday, he does link the play well between the lines. Southgate really likes his movement, along with Lingard's, as, along with Delle, they move teams around and create space. I thought that, as the 2nd half wore on, although England struggled to create much, they did at least continue to pass the ball well, looking for an opening. The England against Iceland two years ago simply couldn't do that!
If that’s the case then what’s the point of having him in the squad? May as well have selected Heather Mills.
