10 November 14, 2021The Sunday TimesFootball
A
nd so to Serravalle, and the
conclusion of another
straightforward qualifying
campaign, against the
“mighty” San Marino, a
nation whose all-time
record is played 189, lost
180, drawn eight, won one.
Whose goal difference in the 152
competitive matches in which they
have played is minus 650. Who are
Uefa’s smallest member in population
terms and who sit No 210 — last place —
in the Fifa world rankings.
For England to miss out on
automatic qualification for next year’s
World Cup they would have to
somehow lose to such a side. You are
more likely to see Gareth Southgate as
a contestant on Love Island.
If there is zero suspense about the
outcome of tomorrow’s fixture, there
is plenty of excitement about what
comes afterwards. Southgate can
begin preparing for Qatar 2022,
knowing that he only has three
England get-togethers before the
World Cup begins in November. These
involve friendlies in March, four
Nations League fixtures in June, and
two more in September — and then it
will be upon him, the tournament the
FA set as its target to win as long ago as
2013, when Jude Bellingham was in
primary school.
Can England win it? Yes. That is not
the same as saying they will win it, but
opportunity has never knocked
harder. Performances since the
European Championship tell us thatPerformances since
the European
Championship tell
us that this England
team is continuing to
evolve and improve
JONATHAN
NORTHCROFTFootball Correspondent‘Yorkshire
Pirlo’ tells
of pre-final
text from
namesake
Moyes said Phillips was
fundamental to Leeds because of his
rare ability to work himself into a
deep pocket of space to receive
possession, then play a progressive
pass to start an attack at the pace
needed in Marcelo Bielsa’s fast
transitions. Doing so requires elite
mobility and stamina but also elite
game understanding. Moyes is
encouraging similar traits in Rice,
whose continued development is
evident this season, and suggests
Rice, 22, and Phillips, 25, both still
near the start of their international
careers, could in the long term for
England be “quite a combination”.
Factor in Jude Bellingham, 18, who
has so full a skill set he could play any
midfield role, in any style, plus the
potential of Phil Foden, 21, to operate
as an exceptional creative No 8 or old-
fashioned No 10, and could it be that
England already have the raw
materials to rule the middle of the
park in any game? Pep Guardiola’s
Manchester City do it, for example,
not with a traditional No 6, No 8 and
No 10, but the kind of flexible, multi-
skilled midfielders (think BernardoOn the eve of England’s meeting with
Italy in the Euro 2020 final, Kalvin
Phillips received a video from his
Leeds United team-mate Jack
Harrison. It was from one of his fans –
a certain Andrea Pirlo.
Harrison played with the great
Italian at New York City FC and when
Phillips clicked play on the film,
Pirlo’s message read, “Good luck in
the final and all the best.”
Phillips’s reaction was, “Oh my
God. “I thought he was going to say
something about Italy but no, he
wished me well. Full respect for that.
“I’ve seen that he’s very cool, but
I’ve heard he’s a nice guy as well. To
have someone on the other side wish
you well and especially a player like
that... it’s a great feeling.”
Phillips is dubbed the “Yorkshire
Pirlo” by Leeds supporters and it
appears that one of the reasons the
real Pirlo got in touch was that he
sees truth in the comparison. In an
interview after the tournament, Pirlo
discussed how the traditions of
English midfield play are different tothe Italians’, with less emphasis on
strategy and more on athleticism. But
he added, “There’s the boy at Leeds
who’s a bit of a regista,” – a regista
being the type of player Pirlo was, a
playmaker with freedom to dictate
games from deep positions.
Pirlo’s take is fascinating in the
context of England’s apparent
shortcomings, not just in that Euro
final defeat by Italy, but the World
Cup semi-final loss against Croatia in
2018 and indeed in most
tournaments over the past 25 years.
In the biggest games they have lacked
control in midfield — yet here is one
of the great midfield controllers
suggesting Gareth Southgate has a
player with the skill set to change that
history.
Pirlo’s admiration of Phillips
brought to mind David Moyes’s
assessment of the Leeds pivot, when
writing about England in The Times
during the Euros. Moyes mentioned
Pirlo too, saying that Declan Rice and
Phillips had some of the traits needed
to be more than defensive
midfielders: they could be but top
modern, deep-lying starters-of-play.Jonathan NorthcroftSolid defence, improved creativity
in midfield and rivals’ weaknesses
give Three Lions a huge chance
an England team who were a penalty
shoot-out away from winning that
tournament are continuing to evolve
and improve. Here is why 2022 can
end the years of hurt.TEN REASONS WHY
ENGLAND CAN WIN THE
WORLD CUP
Reece James
England’s 2022 squad is likely to be
very similar to their Euro 2020 one, so
evolution will come from individual
players rather than personnel
changes. Reece James, the Chelsea
right back, can be one source. Against
Albania on Friday he was like an
English Joshua Kimmich or João
Cancelo, stepping from wide into
central midfield and dominating the
game with a range of skills, which
included set-piece delivery. The 21-
year-old’s performance built on his
progression for Chelsea and added, to
England, an extra tactical layer.
“Reece is just a very, very talented
footballer,” Southgate said. “Excellent
with the ball and strong without it. His
last games for us were a little quiet and
we just had to remind him of our
belief in him. He’s already a top player
but he can be anything he wants.”The best defence?
Denmark, with one goal conceded in
qualifying, may argue, but England
have kept 14 clean sheets in the past 12
months and remain especially solid
when John Stones, Harry Maguire and
Kyle Walker play in a three. “The
defence has given us a bedrock for the
team during this calendar year, and
means our attacking players can go
and play,” Southgate added.Improving midfield
Southgate recognised that England’s
possession play and creativity in
midfield required upgrading and
since the Euros has made tweaks to
encourage improvement. Full backs
stepping into midfield is one, trialling
Phil Foden as No 8 another, but the
biggest change has been in giving his
central midfield players more licence
to play in the opposition half. Jordan
Henderson took advantage againstHEARD THE
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