Jude Bellingham:
There was a dive for Jude Bellingham following his World Cup debut against Iran. The Borussia Dortmund starlet not only scored England’s first goal, but also played in midfield. Here he lost to Weston McKennie, who never looks good. Bellingham is a truly outstanding prospect, but his retirement, having failed to significantly impact proceedings, serves as a timely and helpful reminder that he won’t always make way for him at this level.
Harry Kane:
The draw was undeniably good for England, as it was in 2018 in Russia, and there’s a feeling Harry Kane could shine again in the group stage to put himself in contention to win a second successive Golden Boot . However, Kane is yet to score in Qatar and, worryingly, he has yet to score. Walker Zimmerman had a brilliant block to deny the Spurs forward, but for the most part Kane was ineffective and even started running deep to try and get the ball. The question now is how much he will be affected by his ankle injury against Iran. This is a real cause for concern, as Kane is probably the only player in the England squad who is irreplaceable in attack.
Gareth Southgate:
Bos The three lions he kept the same starting lineup when he beat Iran, but the mistake here was waiting too long to make changes. Before the break it was clear that things weren’t working out. England seemed flat and uninspired. He should have made at least one substitution during the interval to liven up the atmosphere. Because of this, for some reason he waited until the 69th minute to try and change the momentum of the match. However, at that stage, the United States had been at the top for over half an hour. Unsurprisingly, those who believed Southgate was too cautious and conservative to get the best out of this immensely talented group of players are once again making their disapproval publicly known. on line long before the final whistle was blown. Phil Foden should be playing!
UK expectations:
In the grand scheme of things, this isn’t a bad result. Avoid defeat to the Welsh team who lost to Iran and England will almost certainly progress to the last 16 as winners of Group C, which is the pre-tournament hope. However, England appeared compared to when it was against Iran. They looked flat and tired which is a very worrying sign at this stage of the competition. Some say the team will benefit from this reality, as it will put less pressure on their shoulders. But the point is, England don’t look like world champions at Al Bayt Stadium.
