Three games, nine goals scored, two conceded, seven points collected and a meeting arranged with Senegal in the last 16, this was a promising group-stage overall for England. Gareth Southgate has also seen six different scorers find the net in Qatar so far, the only ‘forwards’ to have not registered on a scoresheet yet? Callum Wilson and Harry Kane.
When England take to the field at Al Bayt stadium on Sunday evening, Kane, the England captain, will be there leading the team out. The striker may still be waiting for his first goal of the World Cup, but he has provided three “important” assists during England’s two wins and looked sharp.
From a goalscoring perspective, Kane will surely want to edge closer to Wayne Rooney’s record of 53 England goals, but as Southgate himself acknowledged, Kane started slowly at last summer’s European Championships before delivering in the knockout phase and scoring the crucial penalty in the semi final. The goals will come.
Therefore, there is no doubt Kane will start, but who accompanies the captain in attack will be a question that rattles around Southgate’s brain for the days to come. The England manager rotated his forward line for the final group game with Wales partly to rest players who had started two successive games in a short period of time as England’s progression was all but sown up.
However, with four full days between that match and the clash with Senegal, Southgate must recalibrate his attack and ascertain the best combination of the players at his disposal.
Will he restore his preferred starters, Raheem Sterling, Bukayo Saka and Mason Mount? Or keep faith with those fundamental to the 3-0 victory over Wales, the goalscoring duo of Marcus Rashford and Phil Foden. Certainly, Rashford’s impact in the early stages of this World Cup suggest that it would be a big call to drop the Manchester United forward.
Rashford is currently on three goals for the tournament and is the joint-leading scorer. He looks back to his best in terms of confidence and appears to be in the best physical shape of his career to date.
Southgate heard the clamour surrounding Foden after the dull goalless draw with the United States and his decision to hand the Manchester City attacker his first start in Qatar was rewarded as he won the free-kick which Rashford used so devastatingly and then quickly doubled England’s lead with a sharp run and tap-in.
Therefore, the prospect of Rashford and Foden being dropped just as they delivered for England would be particularly harsh. However, five into two won’t go and Southgate is a manager who values loyalty. He naturally favours Mount and Sterling, who he consistently selects for England’s biggest games.
Happy dilemma for Southgate
Yet, the question has to be asked: Do Mount and Sterling get into the lineup on current form? Probably not. Sterling may have scored in the 6-2 thrashing of Iran but has been fairly quiet otherwise. He was substituted in both of England’s first two games and didn’t make it on at all against Wales. But Sterling’s knack of scoring when the moment calls may sway Southgate’s thinking.
Mount’s challenge comes in the form of Foden and also Jack Grealish but the Chelsea player’s ability to lead England’s press is a reason why Southgate backs him. England are likely to see plenty of the ball against Senegal, who in their crucial 2-1 defeat of Ecuador had only 39 per cent possession.
The ability to spark England’s attack against a tight defence is one reason why Foden will again be pushed by fans for a starting berth, but now that the ‘big business’ is upon England, Southgate may develop a layer of pragmatism when selecting his XI.
Saka’s pace and willingness to run at defenders was a key feature in both the opening stages of the matches with Iran and the US. There is the expectation that he could be brought back in on the right flank with Rashford positioned to the left of Kane.
In midfield, Jordan Henderson come on in the US game to see through the draw and then the Liverpool captain started against Wales as Southgate sought a strong foundation and element of calmness in his midfield. Whether England need three in midfield at the expense of a forward for the meeting with Senegal is debatable.
Of course, Southgate has the option to revert to a back five, as he tends to against more formidable foes, but there is a hope that he will remain committed to attack, will stay on the front foot, and continue with the back four that has conceded only two goals and has England’s player of the tournament so far, Harry Maguire, at its heart.
There is plenty to ponder as Southgate builds his attack to take on Senegal.