Midfielder has his moments in stalemate with Italy but it is not enough to justify the public clamour for his inclusionWhat did we learn? How did it feel? What were the bullet points, the red lines, the notes of glory in this goalless Nations League international in an empty stadium between two teams who spent long periods of this game struggling against some invisible plane of resistance, like flies buzzing down a window pane?As competitive games go this one stretched the semantic limits of the word “competitive” into some interesting new spaces. At times it felt like a late July club tour practice game. As the ball was shuttled sullenly around the back of midfield you half expected to look...
The Manchester City forward came off the bench to produce his best 20 minutes for his country and Gareth SouthgateFor all the minor chords around this current run of close-season internationals, the sense of something frazzled and desiccated at the end of a gruelling year, there was a light, fun quality to this 1-1 draw in Munich.This was a breezy game that meant nothing, that ended all square, but which still threw up its own subplots in the shape of Harry and Jack, two England players who are currently auditioning for their own parts in England’s plan of attack. Continue reading...
Gareth Southgate’s team produce a flat performance despite a far less hostile environment than on their last visit to HungaryChild’s play? Anything but. England had toyed with Hungary amid the most unpleasant circumstances in September and might have expected a repeat in front of more than 30,000 energised youngsters. But a highly unusual setting brought what, by recent standards, was a thoroughly singular outcome: a no-show from Gareth Southgate’s players and a ripple in what had been a largely smooth path to Qatar.England went through the motions, as players facing four games in the immediate aftermath of an unforgiving domestic season might. Their opponents strained harder across all departments. Continue reading...
If Les Bleus perform in the Nations League final, Deschamps can claim to be the man to lead them into a glorious new phaseBefore his country’s thrilling win over Belgium on Thursday, Hugo Lloris said he could sense something special in the air around the France camp. That smelt like ordure by half-time in the Nations League semi-final, when Belgium were 2-0 up and Les Bleus, if not quite stinking out Turin, looked off-colour.But by the time Theo Hernández arrowed in a fabulous last-minute goal in a 3-2 victory, it was fair to wonder whether we had witnessed not just an extraordinary turnaround, but a more substantial transformation of France. Are the world champions at last going to fulfil their...
Germany’s worst result since 1931 raises questions about the coach’s methods and the players he has frozen out The fourth official was preparing to raise the board for one last time when Luis Enrique drew up close and said something to him. Even in the quiet of an empty arena the Spain manager couldn’t be heard clearly, but he seemed to be suggesting there was no need to add any more time. Germany had had enough, and long ago. To his left, Joachim Löw sat in the shadow of the bench, not moving, which is how he had sat for most of the night. Above him, Oliver Bierhoff, the national team director, watched in silence alongside the substitutes.The board went...