It’s reasonable to wonder what more England needs to do after competing head-to-head with the defending World Cup champions. The opportunity for England to win the World Cup for the first time since 1966 came to a disappointing conclusion, though not in the way they had anticipated. After sending a shot past Hugo Lloris early in the game, Harry Kane feels like he can kick a penalty with ease. However, on his second attempt, his effort flew over the crossbar and into the stands. The World Cup, which had a chance to tie things up, finished in penalties, much like the Euros, but the Three Lions should be happy with their effort.
In addition to winning the xG fight 2.32 to 1.19, England’s starting XI didn’t have any glaringly poor performances because Gareth Southgate’s strategies worked. England switched from a 3-4-3 to a 4-3-3, and they were rewarded by scoring 13 goals in Qatar. They performed well enough to win, but in a knockout event, things can occasionally go wrong. England followed up its fourth-place finish at the 2018 World Cup in Russia with a fifth-place result at the 2022 World Cup after making the Euro 2020 final but losing to Italy on penalties.
Losing after coming so close to the championship game is painful, but under Southgate, England has started to challenge for championships on a regular basis, which hasn’t been the case in a very long time. Prior to Southgate, England went through a period in which they failed to advance past the World Cup quarterfinals until 2018. This followed their complete absence from the competition in 1994. Sam Allardyce was only in charge for 67 days before the manager was fired after just one game for giving agents advice on how to get around transfer restrictions.
English soccer has long been derided on a national level. Despite playing in the finest domestic league in the world, they were eliminated early from tournaments against weaker competition. However, Southgate has altered that. The England manager has talked the talk and walked the walk while in charge despite the intense spotlight on him.
Even England was made aware of where they are and where they are going thanks to this World Cup. Kane, Harry Maguire, and Jordan Henderson all performed admirably, and even if each of them may have different responsibilities or leave the team by 2026, they will all have contributed to developing the next generation of English soccer stars. However, there is a clear indication of where England is going based on the performances of Marcus Rashford, Declan Rice, Jude Bellingham, Bukayo Saka, and Phil Foden.
Every position has a ton of talent, so it’s a fantastic move. This World Cup suffered greatly from Reece James’ absence, and Kyle Walker and Kalvin Phillips needed to be treated for injuries during the competition. However, Southgate was once more up to the task. Raheem Sterling and Ben White both had to leave the team for personal reasons, but Southgate handled it. Even if England doesn’t take home a trophy from this tournament, that cannot be disregarded.
It’s difficult to find more than one or two countries that are more ready than England for competition in the future, despite having one of the strongest collections of youthful talent. The team has improved significantly under Southgate, and while they could have won this game, they still gave it their all. Soon, a trophy lift will be interrupted by the Three Lions’ roar.
