England mailbag: No Phillips replacement? Why no Palmer? Is Trent being misused? (2024)

Two games into their Euro 2024 campaign and it’s fair to say that England are yet to set the competition alight.

They are well placed to secure qualification to the last 16 but a scrappy 1-0 win over Serbia and a dire performance in the 1-1 draw against Denmark on Thursday have done nothing to appease the team’s growing number of sceptics.

After the Denmark game, we put out an appeal for your questions on all issues relating to England and the response was, maybe predictably, overwhelming.

There were far too many responses to answer them all individually but we have endeavoured to cover the biggest range possible, courtesy of The Athletic’s experts.

Thanks to all those who contributed.

What is it with England footballers for decades now whereby they can look like they’re playing on ice and with 20 stone backpacks on their backs? S.C

I agree with you, S.C. Fabio Capello used to talk about fear. He said it more than Ian Brown: fear of failure, fear of consequences. Along with the Iceland debacle at Euro 2016, the 2010 World Cup was the nadir in that respect. It was horrible, much worse than this!

The England jersey has looked lighter under Gareth Southgate’s management. But the last two games have been a throwback to the bad old days — and the concern is that, once the fear takes hold again, its grip tightens.

Oliver Kay

Does anyone agree with the manager that Kalvin Phillips is what’s missing? William P.

To an extent. England are struggling without the ball, desperately lacking intensity, and Phillips was so good at providing that alongside Declan Rice at the last European Championship. England’s balance never looks right without him.

What is harder to fathom is why Southgate’s response to not having someone like Phillips is to pick Trent Alexander-Arnold, a full-back whose profile is so different. Gallagher is surely a more like-for-like replacement.

Jack Pitt-Brooke

Why is Southgate not playing Anthony Gordon on the left to correct the imbalance in the side until Luke Shaw comes back in? This is the root cause of England’s problems. Joseph H.

Hey Joseph. England do appear very lopsided at the moment. Phil Foden naturally wants to drift inside and everything Kieran Trippier is best at offensively is diluted on the left, given he is right-footed.

Southgate’s unwillingness to use Gordon is puzzling as he is the antithesis of the reactive, sometimes ponderous style this England side have displayed. Gordon would help to stretch the pitch and give opposition defences both flanks to worry about, rather than just Bukayo Saka on the other wing. Gordon, 23, is direct, can go either way, scores goals and provides assists.

Gordon did miss Newcastle’s final game of the season with an ankle injury, so perhaps that has entered Southgate’s thinking.

I would be shocked if Gordon does not get game time against Slovenia, however.

Chris Waugh

What’s the answer to unlocking the left flank? When England are in possession, most of the build-up is going through the middle or through Kyle Walker/Saka — teams can just defend by clogging the middle and double-teaming Saka. Persisting with Foden at the expense of runners in behind like Gordon or Eze is part of it, but is Trippier also not the right fit? Artem K.

Hi Artem. Honestly, I don’t know. This isn’t a side that has the necessary components to function together as a unit, and I’m not convinced there’s a solution that gets England’s best players on the pitch while also providing balance.

Southgate has leaned towards the former — Alexander-Arnold and Foden in the side, out of position — so now I expect he’s going to do the opposite, bringing in Conor Gallagher and Gordon, neither of whom strike me as top-class players, but they might bring the structure needed.

I spent most of the last year thinking England would have to play Jude Bellingham in the No 10 position considering his form with Real Madrid. Then, about three days before the tournament, I suddenly changed my mind and thought Bellingham should play deep alongside Rice, a la Paul Pogba in 2018, and then move Foden centrally and bring in Gordon. Southgate will have considered that but maybe doesn’t want to move Bellingham, who was excellent against Serbia.

Trippier is not a perfect fit at left-back, and that means more need for some directness ahead of him. Gordon offers that more than Eberechi Eze, who is closer to the Foden mould, and who constantly turned inside after coming on yesterday.

Michael Cox

Why is there a code of silence regarding any criticism of Gareth Southgate in the media? Andrew C.

There isn’t, Andrew, but, speaking personally, this is the first time in eight years that I’ve felt he might be out of his depth, struggling to keep his head above water, faced with problems of a type he’s never faced before.

Over that same period, many others (including those in the media) have characterised him as the person dragging England down, as if they would otherwise win every tournament playing brilliant flowing football. I’ve never subscribed to that view.

And it does strike me that the main criticism of Southgate right now — trying to shoehorn all his best players into the line-up rather than picking a system that works — is the exact opposite of what he’s been criticised for in the past.

Oliver Kay

Most of the starting players play under Pep Guardiola, Jurgen Klopp and Mikel Arteta. Why do they look so bad with the ball/control and pattern of play? Pavan K.

That’s the million-dollar question, Pavan! There are familiar explanations: a lack of time to implement tactical models, an absence of automatisms between players who do not play together regularly. But these factors apply to all international teams.

The issues in patterns of play suggest there’s something inherently wrong with England’s tactical structure. The issue is through the centre of the pitch. Does Rice have the range of passing required when so much of the play funnels through him? Is Alexander-Arnold a central midfielder? Are Bellingham and Harry Kane an effective combination when they seem to operate in the same spaces?

The lapses in technique are much harder to explain. My best guess is nerves. The team will be fully aware things are not going according to plan.

James McNicholas

Is Kane the problem, or the team around him? Nick H.

Kane has played his best football for England with runners beyond him, especially Raheem Sterling or Marcus Rashford. The problem is that Southgate dropped Sterling after the World Cup, dropped Rashford before this Euros and now Kane is surrounded by team-mates who don’t get the best out of him.

I don’t think Kane is playing any worse than he did in the group stage of the last two tournaments, but he looks slow and isolated because there is no movement beyond him.

Jack Pitt-Brooke

What’s happening on the left is that Rashford is missing. People will get angry out of club allegiance and the ‘form’ discourse but England looked very good in recent tournaments and had made clear progress. A front three of Rashford-Kane-Sterling made some of the best defences panic. Jake S

The England attack is built to get the best out of Kane’s qualities, but it hasn’t included enough runners in behind to make use of his tendency to drop deep and provide long outlet passes. Foden is showing for the ball but his preference to receive to feet means defences have the game in front of them instead of turning around.

There could have been space for one of Rashford or Sterling (who had a phenomenal Euro 2020). This mailbag is full of discussion about Gordon and what he can offer on the left. It might be time for Southgate to make a swap and ask him to get full-backs sprinting back towards their own goal.

Carl Anka

Winning is a mentality and England should practise more composure throughout the 90 minutes. And why wasn’t Cole Palmer subbed in? Arul V.

Hi Arul. On the Palmer point, I am mystified. It does seem odd that when England were in desperate need of a player who is capable of doing something a bit out of the ordinary, that the young man who shone at doing just that for Chelsea every week was ignored.

Southgate clearly saw Jarrod Bowen ahead of the 22-year-old in the pecking order and in fairness to Bowen, he did make a positive impact off the bench against Serbia four days earlier. It was his run and cross which set up Harry Kane for a header which was tipped on to the bar.

Palmer has rarely played on the left in his career so I can understand why he wasn’t brought on to play there. Hopefully he will get some minutes against Slovenia instead.

Simon Johnson

When have we ever witnessed a thorough comprehensive performance from the Three Lions that the nation can be truly proud of? Even in the tournaments that they’ve progressed in, none of the performances were worthy of eight or nine out of 10. Dwight D.

I agree, Dwight. You don’t have to reach Brazil 1970 levels, but if you’re asking when was the last time I saw a great England performance at a tournament, I’d say the 4-1 win over the Netherlands at Euro ’96. Twenty-eight years ago!

Between 2006 and the Iceland debacle at Euro 2016, there was barely a tournament performance that merited five out of 10. In the Southgate years, it has probably been a stream of solid sevens. Teams have won tournaments playing less well than that.

But the last two games? I would say 5/10 against Serbia and 4/10 against Denmark. Not as bad as Algeria 2010 or Iceland 2016, but it feels like this England team is regressing and slipping into bad habits. Worrying.

Oliver Kay

What is Southgate’s plan in the build-up? What is the answer to break a press, even just according to the plan? Brian M.

Well, I’m not sure I can answer the question! The plan seems to be to bypass the press completely with Jordan Pickford hitting longer balls towards Kane and Bellingham, which in fairness is quite a handy front two from an aerial sense.

In mitigation, I thought the pitch was so bad yesterday that England were justified in going long. That’s not an excuse for their performance – Denmark are a better passing side, so it probably affected them more – and doesn’t quite explain why they were also direct against Serbia, but I do understand them being a bit more basic than before. But it’s something England aren’t doing well.

Michael Cox

Don’t you think England should be following the Arsenal blueprint to get the best out of Rice and Saka? Also how much of a regret is it now that Southgate alienated Ben White? Ground D.

It’s certainly true that the most obvious way to get the best out of Saka would be to select Arsenal’s Ben White as his supporting right-back. But at club level, Saka’s relationship with Martin Odegaard is just as important. Playing with a technically gifted, creative midfielder inside Saka might unlock another dimension to the winger’s game.

As for Rice, he’s operating in a different role at the Euros than the one he finished the season playing at Arsenal. Publicly, Rice insists his best position is as the No 6, the deep-lying midfielder — but Arteta seems more inclined to use him as a No 8 further forward. Introducing Adam Wharton could allow Southgate to release Rice further upfield, which would have the knock-on effect of improving England’s pressing capabilities.

James McNicholas

What is it about England that makes the comments so deranged? Marc Q.

Quite simply, everyone has an opinion on England.

Even though the national team unites club supporters from all over the country, it is hard to ignore the partisan element when a Chelsea fan, for example, is lamenting the fact that Palmer is yet to play.

Equally, you will have others — who may not be accustomed to watching England’s best players in the Premier League every week — seeing a lethargic display against Denmark, prompting them to berate the performance.

The England football team can unite and divide in equal measure. One commenter’s ‘deranged’ post could be viewed as fair comment by someone else. Best just to harness the passion!

Dan Sheldon

Who do we think would be an upgrade on Southgate? Would the panel swap him mid-tournament? Coben W.

After 12 years under English stewardship, is the FA willing to embrace a foreign coach again? If so, there are some attractive options on the market. Mauricio Pochettino, Thomas Tuchel and Jurgen Klopp are all of serious pedigree — but no manager worth his salt would be willing to inherit another man’s squad mid-tournament.

James McNicholas

Why is Alexander-Arnold playing in central midfield when the left side consists of a right-footer who doesn’t go forward and an attacking midfielder who cuts inside? And then the striker drops back to midfield. Who is he passing to? Daniel O.

This ultimately is the conundrum Southgate needs to solve, Daniel. The logic of moving Alexander-Arnold into midfield is understandable but less so when you step back and see that Southgate has shoehorned the best individuals he has into a starting XI without creating a setup that plays to their strengths individually or collectively.

Alexander-Arnold’s passing range is exceptional, but he is struggling to show it because of those ahead of him. Foden and Kane in particular, want the ball to feet and drop deep rather than causing defenders problems with movement in behind. When you compare them to the options he has at Liverpool — Mohamed Salah, Darwin Nunez, Luis Diaz and so on — they are much more suited to stretching the play.

There is much more to the midfield role than passing and Alexander-Arnold has looked like a player learning the position at times. He has been unfairly used as the scapegoat in some quarters, and regardless of how you think he has performed, when a team is set up which makes it hard for a player to thrive and show their best qualities, it makes things more difficult.

Andy Jones

Why are people complaining when we’re top of the table with four points and something to play for going into a game against Slovenia? Tom R.

Criticism is inevitable for any England team in a tournament, and four points from two games is where they were at the last Euros and World Cup too. But people are complaining because the performances have been so much worse than we are used to.

The Denmark game was as bad as England have played in a major tournament under Southgate and fans are understandably worried that the team is not currently functioning with or without the ball.

Jack Pitt-Brooke

(Top photo: Richard Pelham/Getty Images)