Anyone who watched England’s drab, negative, and uninspiring performance against Denmark yesterday could be forgiven for thinking that Manchester United have dodged a very big bullet in not replacing manager Erik ten Hag with England boss, Gareth Southgate.
Whilst United’s play for much of last season was turgid, passive, and chaotic, Ten Hag did at least have some fair excuses, including a historically bad injury crisis, some terrible refereeing decisions, and a complete change of management structure around him.
Not so Southgate, who despite bemoaning the lack of the GOAT, Kalvin Phillips, in a bizarre post-match interview, has arguably the finest England squad at his disposal in living memory, yet still manages to play as if the Three Lions were a non-league side facing the Premier League champions away in the FA Cup.
There was not a single Manchester United player gracing the England team yesterday, although there were two playing for the much superior opposition, Rasmus Hojlund and the excellent Christian Eriksen.
It is hard to see how the likes of Kobbie Mainoo, an unused substitute, Marcus Rashford, despite wayward form, Jadon Sancho, or even (ignoring political/ethical considerations) Mason Greenwood could not have improved the quality of what was put out on the pitch in Frankfurt.
The cases of Mainoo and Rashford certainly were not lost on people who know them well.
United legend Paul Scholes let a picture do his talking as he posted a photo of Mainoo in England gear on Instagram after the game. Few would argue he would not have been an improvement on Trent Alexander Arnold, his replacement, Conor Gallagher, or indeed the rabbit caught in the headlights, Eberechi Eze.
Source: Instagram
Meanwhile, Marcus Rashford’s brother and agent, Dwaine, also took to social media to protest his brother’s omission, stating “It’s hard to sit and watch when you honestly believe your man could make a difference!”
Marcus Rashford’s brother and agent Dwaine on Instagram after England’s draw with Denmark at the Euros 👀 pic.twitter.com/XLzuOUMBW0
— ESPN UK (@ESPNUK) June 20, 2024
From the England team that ended the game to a chorus of boos from the crowd, perhaps only Declan Rice and Jude Bellingham could be considered world-class options.
Other clubs may also feel their stars deserved a chance ahead of some of the workmanlike mid-Premier League standard players that Southgate seems to favor, perhaps in a narcissistic attempt to recreate England in his image.
One of the Premier League’s best players of the season, Carlton Palmer, got zero minutes in either of England’s two opening games, while the likes of Manchester City’s Jack Grealish, Chelsea’s Reece James, and Spurs’ James Maddison were controversially left out of the squad completely.
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