Wembley result : Vardy 1 VAR 1
An experimental England team only scored one goal against Italy.
Ciro Immobile sent an easy header sailing over the bar in 16 minutes.
What a miss! Especially by a striker who has already scored 34 goals in 38 games for Lazio this season.
Then Raheem Sterling played in Jamie Vardy and his shot hit the keeper.
As I’ve seen saying, this England team has a lot more running power than firepower.
Then we improvised sharply and scored. A quick attack, a foul, a quickly taken free-kick by Jesse Lingard to Vardy, who blasted home his seventh goal for England.
Raheem’s bold spurts can create unusual situations, generate momentum and chances.
1-0 to England in 26 minutes.
We led until the last five minutes: Sub Chiesa went down in the box and the German referee Deniz Aytekin gave a corner. Then he called for VAR.
The replay showed that Burnley centreback James Tarkowsky trod on Chiesa’s foot but not deliberately. A dubious incident. The ref watched four replays and gave a penalty and Insigne hit a wickedly accurate right-foot spot-kick and Jack Butland, diving to his right, got as close to that shot as any goalkeeper could have done.
As I said before the match, England do not score enough goals. One by Lingard in Amsterdam was enough to win. That’s how utterly piss-poor Holland were. But one against Italy, even this Italy, was never going to be enough.
VERDICT : Italy were out-powered in the first half and Raheem Sterling was our best player.
What Gareth Southgate found out : Jesse Lingard is a good sidekick for Raheem, Oxlade is another good sidekick for Raheem, and fireball Jamie Vardy is a specialist finisher who does what Raheem can’t do. He can consistently race through one on-one one and smash the ball into the net.
With this template, and these players, England can be solid in wide areas but attack narrow and have plenty of men round the ball when we lose it. We should be an energy team, a pressure team, a pressing team.
What is pressing? Attacking when you don’t have the ball.
It’s Bielsa, Klopp, Pochettino and Guardiola.
Our playmakers should be John Stones and Raheem Sterling. Problem solved.
Good to see Adam Lallana back. He is the only two-footed English forward in the Premier League.
As co-commentator Glenn Hoddle noted, “Eighteen months ago he was England’s best player on many occasions.”
ENGLAND: Butland, Walker, Stones, Tarkowski, Dier, Trippier, Oxlade-Chamberlain, Lingard, Young, Vardy, Sterling.
Subs: Hart, Pickford, Pope, Rose, Henderson, Maguire, Mawson, Livermore, Lallana, Cook, Alli, Rashford, Welbeck.
ITALY: Donnarumma, Zappacosta, Rugani, Bonucci, De Sciglio, Pellegrini, Jorginho, Parolo, Candreva, Immobile, Insigne.
Subs: Buffon, Perin, Ferrari, Darmian, Ogbonna, Bonaventura, Verratti, Belotti, Spinazzola, Verdi, Gagliardini, Cutrone, Cristante, Florenzi.
Referee: Deniz Aytekin (Germany).