Lionesses Beat US Women at Wembley – International Friendly

Football fans don’t usually look forward to friendlies, but this has been a mouth-watering fixture ever since it was set a few months ago. England – champions of Europe, versus the Yanks – reigning world champions and global powerhouse for 25 years. The two best teams in the world, currently. While it’s true that both sides were missing some usual starters, there were still enough regular starters out there for both teams so as to be able to gain some kind of takeaway from it. A sold out Wembley stadium roared with delight as the match got underway, and the atmosphere was buzzing. This match was attended by a number of celebrities as well, including the cast of the popular football show “Ted Lasso” and NFL quarterback Aaron Rodgers. Having their presence at the match brought even more attention to the women’s game, which is what today was all about.

The first 45 minutes were absolutely frenetic. High intensity and more action than one would expect from a friendly. England dominated the possession in the opening 15 minutes, and they were rewarded with a goal on 10 minutes from winger/forward Lauren Hemp. England broke down the right wing via all-world winger Beth Mead, who did well to find Hemp with her pass along the ground into the box. The American defender made a meal of her challenge, and Hemp was able to tap the ball just to the right of keeper Alyssa Naeher. Wembley erupted and the flag of St. George’s Cross was raised behind the goal. England had done well to possess the ball and play their game, but I wasn’t expecting a goal on ten minutes.

It wasn’t all sunshine and daisies though, as the Americans got an equalizer on 28 minutes via striker Sophia Smith. The Lionesses attempted to play the ball out from the back after a goal kick, but the Americans were alert to it and pressed up on England’s center backs. After an American attacker won the ball, it was played to Smith who made no mistake with her finish. It was a goal almost from nothing, but it just goes to show what the Americans are capable of if you give them a chance. It was a frustrating goal to concede as things had gone so well for England up until that point.

England found themselves 2-1 up just after the half hour mark though, this time from the penalty spot. The Americans tried to clear a high, bouncing ball, but England right back Lucy Bronze took a boot to the face in the process. Initially the referee did not give a penalty, but VAR got into her ear a few minutes later and she was required to go over and check the video monitor on the sideline. Replays showed clear contact with Bronze’s face from the high boot, and a penalty was given. Midfielder Georgia Stanway stepped up the spot and dispatched the penalty past Naeher with ease. All credit to the VAR official for getting this one right.

Of course, as soon as VAR gets one right, there is controversy soon to follow. The Americans thought they had found another equalizer via winger Trinity Rodman (daughter of American basketball icon Dennis Rodman), after a neat move down England’s right wing. Even though the referee awarded the goal, VAR stepped in and disallowed it due to a potential offside in the build-up to the goal. From my perspective it was a call that could have gone either way, so of course there was plenty of complaining and remonstrating after the goal was disallowed. There was no more major action in the half and both teams hit the locker rooms with the score 2-1.

The second half was decidedly less entertaining, but there was a rhythm to it nonetheless. England would build possession and create a half chance, while American winger Megan Rapinoe was trying to hit England on the counter-attack with long passes onto forward runners. Neither team fashioned quality chances until late on though, when the Americans were denied a penalty by VAR. No controversy in this call, though. The ref awarded a penalty as she adjudged the ball to have come off of Hemp’s hand in the box, but replays clearly showed the ball actually hit her in the rear-end, which is of course not a penalty in any way. With no VAR, this would have been a very harsh decision on England indeed. Stanway also fashioned 1-2 half chances with shots from outside the box, but the continuous substitutions by both sides really slowed down the flow of the game. The match ended 2-1 and England beat the Americans for only the third time in the past 11 meetings, and for the first time at Wembley.

I’ve never seen the US Women overrun in midfield like they were today. The Americans are usually the ones to dictate possession and the pace of the game. Today though, that was England. Stanway and fellow midfielder Kiera Walsh were excellent in possession, while Mead and Bronze were causing problems on the wings all night long. Manager Sarina Wiegman set up the team perfectly to counter the US’s pace and power. All credit to England’s back four as well, as they were on hand time and time again to clear away a cross or snuff out a break.

The big question for today was this: England are the best team in Europe, but can they compete with the best team in the world? The conventional wisdom before the match was that USWNT are just head and shoulders above everyone else in terms of talent, and that there’s no one who can really test them. But England did that today and more. Rapinoe looked off the pace (dare I say old?), and while the Americans are stacked with individual talent, they didn’t really look like a team today. Their chemistry was off and they never really got into a flow.

While today was only a friendly, the victory sends a message to the Americans and the rest of the world – the Lionesses may not have won a World Cup just yet, but watch out for us at the tournament in 10 months’ time. The Americans need to reset and re-think their tactics as well if they want to defend their world title next summer in Australia/New Zealand. They’re still ridiculously good and anything short of the final would be a disaster for them, but the level of competition is higher than it was in recent years. England, Brazil, Germany, and France will all be gunning for them. What a match today, though! If you want to be the best you have to beat the best, and England did that today.

Three Lionesses on the Shirts!

I Hate That I Have to Care About the Nations League

First things first, it feels weird that football is being played in a non-tournament summer. These players need time off. It’s not long that the club season is off each year, so for there to be international matches with some degree of value being played is odd to me. There’s 3 months of club season and then a World Cup coming. Let them have June and early July off, as is tradition. Their bodies need it to keep performing at the highest level. It won’t happen though. Not as long as UEFA and the respective football federations want to keep making money. It’s all about the money!

I’m also pissed off because England suffered their worst defeat on English soil in almost a century today, losing to Hungary 4-0 at Molineux in Wolverhampton. I watched the most tepid draw I’ve seen in years versus Italy at the weekend, and I expected more of the same today. That did not happen though. England looked toothless in attack for most of the match, and the defense went to shit when center back John Stones was (controversially) sent off after a second yellow card late on. Just a very bad outing overall.

What’s going to be even worse than the loss though is the reaction from the press and social media. It’s a long summer with few fixtures, and one of England’s worse losses under manager Gareth Southgate will give them plenty to chew on. In all four of England’s Nations League games this month, he has been criticized for a conservative style of play that has so far only netted two points and 0 (zero) goals from open play.

I dare say that the seat under Southgate may be starting to heat up. Had England just gone out and played to another dull draw, this match probably would have been forgotten about as soon as the final whistle blew. But a 4-0 loss at home to a frankly inferior team attracts attention. A 4-0 loss at home makes people ask questions. What’s wrong with England? Are they crap again? Is Southgate the right man for the job? The questions mount easily.

Now it’s going to be an endless debate over the summer about whether Southgate should manage England at the World Cup in November. It’s true these results are not encouraging, primarily because Southgate does not want to seem to adapt his game plans to whoever England is playing. He hasn’t learned his lesson, as he plays the same way each time. Sometimes it works, but it frequently does not work against talented opposition.

The other side of the debate is that Southgate is (perhaps sadly) the most successful England manager in 50+ years. He took us to the semifinals of the World Cup in 2018, the semifinals of the Nations League in early 2020, and the final of the European Championships in 2021. Despite his style of play, he wins matches at tournaments. No other England manager, aside from the legend Sir Alf Ramsey himself, can really say that. Factor in as well that he has been experimenting with the team selection in the last few matches and they simply haven’t worked. There’s also the fatigue factor for the players, as mentioned above.

Yes, a 4-0 loss at home is bad. Very bad. But I think once the reactive takes and opinions calm down a bit, cooler heads will prevail. Southgate needs to deliver a win to make everyone feel better and get some confidence back in the team. There are at least two more matches to do that in September, and they are against quality opposition in Germany and Italy. I think the FA will also schedule a friendly fixture or two against smaller nations so that England can use them as tune-up games. I would not feel confident about England’s chances if the World Cup were starting this week like it usually would, but given that we are still 5 months away, there is time to fix things. I think Southgate should be given the opportunity to do so.

But I ask – no, I implore – him to try being a bit more adventurous with his tactics. We have glorified friendlies coming up along with some actual friendlies most likely – so push the edge of the envelope a little! The matches mean next to nothing, so take a few risks and let the lads play a little bit. The Three Lions have an array of depth in attack, and we need to use it!

England Cruise to Victory Over Ivory Coast – International Friendly

England played their second of two international friendlies during this break earlier today when they hosted Côte d’Ivoire (Ivory Coast) at Wembley. England don’t usually play many African sides, but today they faced a side full of players with Premier League/European top flight experience. Serge Aurier, Eric Bailly (from Manchester United!), Nicolas Pepé, Franck Kessié, and Sebastién Haller are all incredibly talented and play important roles at their clubs. I like seeing unusual match-ups because it’s a good idea to play teams from all around the globe, so England can see different tactical approaches to the game and be ready for anything during a tournament. The Ivorians are ranked much lower in the FIFA world rankings than previous opponent Switzerland, but this could easily be a difficult test for the Three Lions. Manager Gareth Southgate made an array of changes to his starting XI from the Switzerland match, including benching Harry Kane and starting Raheem Sterling, Jude Bellingham, and striker Ollie Watkins. As has been said before on this blog, the name of the game in friendly matches is to figure out all the different ways you can potentially win a match, and what players deserve a shot in the final World Cup squad.

Thankfully, England abandoned the back-3 in defense that did not really work against the Swiss in favor of a traditional back-4. And from the start, England were all over the Ivorians. They were pressing well, forcing the opposition into errors, winning free kicks in dangerous areas, and creating chances to score. Sterling looked particularly lively in his familiar second-striker/attacking midfielder role, and he seemed to be the catalyst behind all attacking play. Bellingham was also in fine form playing on the right side of a midfield-3. His intelligence and creativity both on and off the ball are amazing to watch. He was unfortunate to see a shot deflected onto the post when it seemed almost certain he was going to score after a very clever run into the box. Winger/midfielder Jack Grealish also went close with a low shot at the near post that was barely held onto by Ivorian keeper Ibrahim Sangaré.

England did get the opener however on 30 minutes, thanks again to the creativity of Sterling. A loose forward pass from Grealish was recovered by Sterling in the left channel, after which he dribbled it into the box with the Ivorian defender giving him far too much space to operate in. He spotted Watkins making a run to the back post, and he played a rather simple cross along the ground that none of the defenders or keeper decided to clear. Watkins had a tap-in from 2 yards out and it was 1-0 England. A simple goal in the end thanks to poor defending, but credit to Sterling for his persistence and creativity and a congratulations to Watkins on opening his England scoring account. England deserved the goal for their dominance in the first 20-25 minutes.

Surprisingly, the Ivorians were down to 10 men on 40 minutes after right back Aurier was shown a second yellow card and given a subsequent red. He had been booked on 32 minutes for a pull on the shorts of Grealish, but his second one came after he visibly disagreed with a non-call from the referee. Once play had stopped, the ref came back to him and showed him a second yellow for dissent. You don’t see many sending-offs in friendlies and it’s perhaps a tad harsh on Aurier, but Tottenham supporters will tell you that a red card in a match is not a huge surprise for Serge Aurier. As a professional though, he has to know that he can’t go mouthing off to the ref once he’s already been booked. He’s asking for trouble there, and he got it. The West Africans were then required to play with only 10 men for the final 50 minutes or so.

And England cashed in on that advantage right on the stroke of halftime with a very pleasing to watch team goal. Center back Harry Maguire played a long pass forward to Watkins, who’s quick and deft touch-pass found Sterling on a run just off to his right. Sterling then carried the ball to just inside the box before firing off a high and powerful shot with his left foot, but it was blocked away by Sangaré. The rebound however fell straight to Grealish on the left side of the goal, and he simply played it back to Sterling low and along the ground. Sterling stuck out his right foot and deflected the ball into the back of the net. Good vision from Maguire, excellent touch and pass from Watkins, and some unselfish play from Grealish to go right back to Sterling. At 2-0 in a friendly with the opposition down to 10, the second half felt more like a formality than a requirement.

And as is often the case in friendlies, the pace of the game slowed down significantly in the second half. Ivory Coast were determined to keep the score at 2-0, as they came out in a very defensive shape and spent most of their time trying to clog up the middle of the pitch. England still had a few good chances to get a third, but it seemed like it wouldn’t quite come off for them. Southgate made the majority of his changes on 60 minutes, swapping out four players including Watkins for Kane. I’m sure Kane was chomping at the bit to get on the pitch, given that the opposition looked a little suspect at the back and they were down to 10. It was a golden opportunity for him to reach 50 England goals. Again though, England could not find a way through and it seemed destined to end 2-0.

All formalities were concluded when England did manage to get a third goal, late into stoppage time via center back Tyrone Mings. England had a corner on 92 minutes, and the ball was played into the box high up by substitute Phil Foden. Mings jumped highest to reach it, although the ball seemed to come off the front of his face more than the usual crown of the head. In any event, the ball went down into the ground and bounced into the goal with Sangaré unable to get near it. The whistle went shortly after that, and England were 3-0 winners.

So takeaways then? Well, Bellingham needs to be a starter for England if he continues playing like he is. He was easily Man of the Match today. The Ivorians had no answer for his runs into the box or his ability to find the right pass in the right situation. He has all of the natural talent in the world and the footballing brain to match it. But does his creative and attacking style of play have a routine place in Southgate’s conservative approach? That remains to be seen. Southgate likes to play Mason Mount or Foden in Bellingham’s place usually. No denying the talent of those players, but against a tough defensive side in a closely contested tournament match, Bellingham’s abilities could be the deciding factor. He’s only going to get better, too. I say he needs to start at the World Cup if he stays in this kind of form. Sterling and Grealish were phenomenal today as well, although their places in the squad are fairly solidified. Perhaps Watkins, Mings, and left back Tyrick Mitchell had the best days though, as they all laid down fairly significant markers to be included for World Cup 2022. It will be difficult for Watkins to unseat Kane as the starting center-forward, but having him on the bench would be a welcome addition.

Oh, and one more thing, England fans need to stop booing Maguire. He was booed during his first touches today and that is disgusting. It’s true he hasn’t had the best season at United and he isn’t the most popular player off the pitch, but he always plays well in an England shirt. Moreover, booing him will not help him improve. Players low on confidence do not need their confidence lowered any further by idiot supporters. I am happy Southgate has condemned the fans’ behavior in this regard.

England will have tougher tests than this though before the World Cup gets underway in December. The UEFA Nations League matches this summer against Germany and Italy will be much tougher tests for England. At this stage of things though, you have to feel that England are among the favorites to do very well next winter. I will at some point do a post about this upcoming World Cup and some of the controversies involved with it.

Manchester United and the Premier League return to action next Saturday, with the Red Devils hosting Leicester City.

England Victorious over Switzerland – International Friendly

The national teams are all in action for the next week or so, with many countries still attempting to book their place for World Cup 2022. England has already qualified, so the next few matches will be centered on manager Gareth Southgate deciding who he wants to take on the plane with him. Switzerland have already qualified as well, so they were in a similar mindset. When your team qualifies from their group outright and you don’t have to worry about a tricky playoff fixture, you have the luxury of focusing on different tactical formations and player lineups. Today’s match at Wembley was an example of both sides trying to figure out what works best for them.

England had some injury issues at the back coming into the match, which forced Southgate to play a back three of Connor Coady, Ben White, and Marc Guéhi (on his England debut). After this match, I don’t think Southgate will be eager to go back to that formation with those specific players. The Swiss aren’t known as a dominant attacking side, but they were very strong in the first half and found a lot of space on the wings behind the wingbacks. Indeed, it was Swiss legend Xerdan Shaqiri who found a bit of room on the right-hand edge of the box for a cross that led to the opening goal for the Swiss. Shaqiri wasn’t closed down properly, and he was able to get in a left-footed aerial cross that found the head of striker Breel Embolo. Embolo redirected the ball back across goal, and England keeper Jordan Pickford had no chance to get to it. Shaqiri should have been closed down on the edge of the box, and White was too far away from Embolo to get to the cross first. 1-0 to the Swiss and England couldn’t really complain about it.

England were lucky to not be down 2-0 shortly after that, after a shot from Shaqiri struck the hand of Pickford and rebounded off the underside of the cross bar. The Three Lions woke up a bit after that though, and finally started making some runs forward consistently and causing problems for the Swiss at the back. England and Crystal Palace right back Kyle Walker-Peters (not to be confused with Kyle Walker, it’s two different guys!) was causing problems down the right hand side. He was combining well with Chelsea loaned-Crystal Palace winger Connor Gallagher, and the Swiss weren’t sure how to mark them properly. Their pressing led to a giveaway from Swiss defender Fabian Frei, as Walker-Peters was able to block his poor clearance straight into the path of Gallagher. Gallagher played the ball along the ground, with midfielder Mason Mount letting the ball roll across his path. England and Manchester United left back Luke Shaw was on hand to strike the ball directly at the goal, and it was a sumptuous strike into the left side of the goal that gave deputy Swiss keeper Jonas Omlin no chance. Shaw doesn’t score many, but he did well to be in the right place at the right time. The Swiss hadn’t made many mistakes up to that point, but England punished them nonetheless.

The second half was nowhere near as fluid as the first, likely due to the litany of changes brought by both managers right around the hour mark. Both sides were defending well, but neither side was creating many dangerous chances. England had shifted to a back-4 with White moving out to right back, a change which seemed to suit him well. The Swiss could maintain possession, but they couldn’t find that final dangerous pass.

England got their second goal and eventual winner from talisman striker Harry Kane on 78 minutes from the penalty spot. A cross came in from the right wing that England headed towards goal, only to see it blocked by the raised arm by Swiss midfielder Steven Zuber. The ref did not award a penalty at first, but after a lengthy VAR check it was decided that a penalty was to be given. By the letter of the law it probably was a handball, although in the past under different iterations of the rule, it may not have been. Zuber had his back to the ball and knew nothing about where it was, but he had his right arm extended out from his body when the ball made contact. Any time an arm is in an “unnatural position” that helps the defender cover more space, there is always a chance a penalty will be awarded.

Kane stepped up to the spot and buried the ball in the left side of the net. Omlin actually guessed correctly and went to his right to save it, but the power and placement of the shot made the ball very difficult to save. Kane now has an astonishing 49 goals for England on just 48 caps, and he is now level second with the legendary Sir Bobby Charlton on England’s all-time scoring list. Kane is simply world-class. Ok yes this was a friendly and yes he would be expected to score from the penalty spot, but to be only 28 and a scant 4 goals behind Wayne Rooney’s all-time record is absolutely staggering. No doubts about his place in the squad when it is time to travel to the World Cup. If he carries on like he is doing and wins a trophy with England, it is very likely he goes down as the best English player of all time.

The rest of the match was mostly drama-free, with England’s talented subs creating a few half chances before the final whistle went. England won the match 2-1, and it’s always good to win in any situation. Southgate will have plenty of food for thought going into Tuesday’s match against Ivory Coast. Rotational players like Gallagher, Walker-Peters, Guéhi, and late sub Tyrick Mitchell all did well; but as alluded to it would be surprising if England played a back-3 again any time soon. If they do, it will be with different players in the line-up. The Swiss took advantage of the space on the wings far too often today, so the experiment there today probably won’t be attempted again. This wasn’t a classic or clinical performance by any standard, bur England got over the line in the end. Room for improvement for sure, but you’re never going to see the best football in a friendly.

Ivory Coast presents a different set of challenges, so I wouldn’t be surprised if Southgate switched things up again for that match. At tournament time, you need to be able to win as many different ways as possible, and you have to be ready to defend against many different styles of play. I would like to see Gallagher and Walker-Peters given more opportunities to shine.

***

Quick note: spare a moment to laugh at Italy. The reigning European champions were eliminated from World Cup 2022 qualification by minnows North Macedonia earlier in the week. A huge upset, and it means a second consecutive World Cup without Italy in it. Couldn’t have happened to a better set of fans and players 😉

Red Devils Take Down Old Rivals Leeds United in Australia

Manchester United soundly beat Championship side Leeds United in Perth, Australia today 4-0 thanks to 2 goals in each half from Mason Greenwood, Marcus Rashford, Phil Jones, and Anthony Martial. Even though on paper this game is listed as an “international friendly”, I can assure you there is nothing friendly about the rivalry between Leeds and Man United. Even though Leeds have been down in lower leagues in recent years and United haven’t played them very much, there is still a lot of negative sentiments between both sets of fans. Australian police were out in full force at the match, and fortunately it seems there were no incidents of violence. That would not have happened in the days of the football firms (hooligans) in the 1970s and 80s, but at least today there were no problems.

On the pitch, United were in dominant form in the first half, with everything being run through the midfield general Paul Pogba. Every time he got the ball he was looking to play it forward, and it was obvious that he was the most naturally talented player on the pitch today. He clearly loves playing the long ball forward to United’s pacy forwards and wingers, and I think a lot of Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s offensive tactics this season will involve Pogba playing it forward into dangerous areas for Rashford, Greenwood, Jesse Lingard, or Daniel James to run onto. Pogba must stay at United, at least for this season. I don’t care how much money is on the table, or what club he’s been linked with. There is simply no way to replace what he does for this team.

New signing Aaron Wan-Bissaka looked impressive as well, and it was his cross that led to Greenwood’s tap-in for the first goal. More about Greenwood below.

Rashford got United’s second after Scott McTominay played the ball to him on the left side a few yards outside the box. Rashford sold a sweet dummy-move that confounded two Leeds defenders, after which he danced around them and slotted into the right side of the goal. The Red Devils were in firm control and OGS rang the changes for the second half, substituting on 11 new players. You normally can’t do that in a football match since you’re usually limited to 3 substitutions per match. This was a friendly though so this time substitutions were virtually unlimited.

Even though it was mostly youth players on in the 2nd half, I was still very impressed with United’s play though, with some standout work by Angel Gomes, Tahith Chong, and Daniel James. It’s very clear that United are not lacking in players with pace and technical skill. All of those players I listed are extremely fast and extremely good on the ball. It’s also becoming more obvious that OGS wants us to be a high-pressing team, and now we are starting to cultivate the players to do that. I am not sure if Chong is ready to start for United yet, but I think Gomes definitely is. He was a revelation tonight. He’s short but he’s very strong on the ball and almost got a goal himself after some tight dribbling in the penalty area. All of the above players, along with Greenwood, represent a strong contingent of players coming out of United’s Youth Academy. I want to see Greenwood and Gomes to be incorporated into the first team as the season gets going.

Phil Jones got United’s third off a corner, and then it was Gomes’s dangerous ball into the box that earned United a penalty after Chong was taken out by a Leeds defender. Anthony Martial stepped up and converted the penalty easily into the bottom left corner of the goal. It was 4-0 and the match was well and truly over. United passed it around the final 20 minutes and did just enough defensively to keep Leeds from getting a consolation goal.

I hope that players like Martial, Lingard, and Juan Mata take notice of the good performances from the younger guys and step their respective games up as well. Competition for places in the starting XI is always a good thing, since it makes everyone motivated to play their best. OGS has to have the courage to play the younger lads too. Managers often think that experienced players are the best players, but it must be noted that given how successful this club has been with youth over the decades, OGS would be a fool to ignore them.

Good match against sub-par opposition, but United now travel to Singapore to play a much more formidable foe in Inter Milan, a giant from the Italian league. It’s still a friendly, but Inter definitely have much more talented players than Leeds do. The preseason is never a good measure for how the real season will go, but if United perform well against Inter I think I won’t be able to help feeling optimistic.

Still need a Director of Football. Still need another center-back and a true right winger, unless the plan is to play Greenwood on the right. I like what I see so far from United, but I can’t help but feel like there is a lot left to be sorted out.

United play Inter Milan next Saturday, 7/20. Early in the morning!