WilliamMunny
Well-known member
My view is that it is time to be brave and stop playing an extra centre back because you don't trust them. Aside from the fact this will give us an extra man in midfield and help us keep the ball, thereby taking pressure off the defence, we also have few players currently playing in a back 5.
TAA, Trippier and White are all playing right back in a 4 for their clubs.
Shaw is playing left back in a 4 for Man Utd.
Stones, Coady and Maguire play in a 4 for their clubs, with only Dier currently playing in a 5.
I think playing a back 5 to protect Maguire means you are playing an not entirely reliable Dier, whilst asking the full backs to become wing backs when none of them are currently playing in that specialist position.
I also think we need to get Foden involved in the middle and we need pace and ability to carry the ball out wide. Therefore my team to start the tournament would be:
.........................Pickford...........................
Trippier......White......Stones.......Shaw
..............................Rice...............................
.............Bellingham..........Foden...........
Saka...................Kane..............Grealish
Although White is playing right back for Arsenal at the moment - and excelling - he is a centre back by trade and presumably he's in the squad as a centre back first and 3rd of 4th choice right back second. You could make a case for playing one of the other CBs, but I think let's see what a player full of confidence can do in the first game.
I'd love to think we can stick to a back 4 throughout the whole tournament, but go from 4-1-2-3 to 4-2-3-1 or 4-3-3 if we feel the need for more midfield steel in the latter stages against the better teams. That said, the front 5 I have chosen all love the ball, as do the full backs, and I genuinely believe we would dominate possession against most teams with that line up.
I won't blame Southgate for being more pragmatic than me, as it's easy to be brave from the comfort of your own armchair. It would be brilliant however to set up as above and take the game to all opposition, with the likes of Maddison, Rashford, Mount, Wilson and Sterling all available to come on if any of those front 5 are not performing.
TAA, Trippier and White are all playing right back in a 4 for their clubs.
Shaw is playing left back in a 4 for Man Utd.
Stones, Coady and Maguire play in a 4 for their clubs, with only Dier currently playing in a 5.
I think playing a back 5 to protect Maguire means you are playing an not entirely reliable Dier, whilst asking the full backs to become wing backs when none of them are currently playing in that specialist position.
I also think we need to get Foden involved in the middle and we need pace and ability to carry the ball out wide. Therefore my team to start the tournament would be:
.........................Pickford...........................
Trippier......White......Stones.......Shaw
..............................Rice...............................
.............Bellingham..........Foden...........
Saka...................Kane..............Grealish
Although White is playing right back for Arsenal at the moment - and excelling - he is a centre back by trade and presumably he's in the squad as a centre back first and 3rd of 4th choice right back second. You could make a case for playing one of the other CBs, but I think let's see what a player full of confidence can do in the first game.
I'd love to think we can stick to a back 4 throughout the whole tournament, but go from 4-1-2-3 to 4-2-3-1 or 4-3-3 if we feel the need for more midfield steel in the latter stages against the better teams. That said, the front 5 I have chosen all love the ball, as do the full backs, and I genuinely believe we would dominate possession against most teams with that line up.
I won't blame Southgate for being more pragmatic than me, as it's easy to be brave from the comfort of your own armchair. It would be brilliant however to set up as above and take the game to all opposition, with the likes of Maddison, Rashford, Mount, Wilson and Sterling all available to come on if any of those front 5 are not performing.
