placeholder image
Getty Images
A look at the players who impressed foA look at the players who impressed for England during the international break - and those whose status took a hit.
Sometimes, international breaks can be a little boring, and the idea of an extended three-week run of Nations League matches wasn’t exactly an idea which set pulses racing across the country – but for England, at least, the past four games have been unexpectedly interesting.
Partly, of course, that’s because the matches were mostly entertaining, either because they were competitive, produced moments of genuine quality or were pleasingly one-sided – it would take a hardened international break hater not to smile though the 7-0 brutalisation of Croatia – and it wasn’t until the last half hour of Tuesday’s comfortable win over Czechia that things really ran out of steam.
But it’s also because this round of games became an unexpected test of England’s identity as a team under Thomas Tuchel. Anthony Gordon kicked proceedings off by laying down a considered challenge to the Three Lions to be more direct, more aggressive, less ‘Spanish’ in possession, and they rose to it.
This was an England which attacked with more pace and speed of thought as the break wore on, and which gradually moved away from knocking the ball around at the back and towards angling sudden passes in behind the defence, especially after the 3-2 defeat to Spain. It seemed to work, too.
This international break ended up as a victory for a more vertical, perhaps more archetypally English style of play and, as such, for some of the players who stand to benefit from a change of tack. So whose England careers get a boost from the new ideology, and whose places could be at risk moving forward? Here are the winners and losers from the past three weeks…
Newcastle star among the winners of England’s international break
Trent Alexander-Arnold made a successful comeback to the England squadplaceholder image
Trent Alexander-Arnold made a successful comeback to the England squad | Getty Images
Lewis Hall & Trent Alexander-Arnold: After the defeat to Spain, Tuchel decided to switch to a more aggressive type of full-back, one that offered more width and attacking intent and created a threat in the final third rather than shoring up the midfield. It worked wonders.
Hall was outstanding throughout the international break, both in attack and defence, and while there were some moments when Alexander-Arnold’s defensive weaknesses were a little too apparent for comfort, his crosses – particularly the one for Anthony Gordon’s opener against Czechia in Prague – were just as dangerous as advertised.
With Hall and Alexander-Arnold, England were able to spread play more swiftly. Hall was probably the biggest winner of the pair, given that his playing style is so different to that of O’Reilly, who tends to drift inside into midfield. Alexander-Arnold will likely still find himself behind the more defensively sound Reece James in the pecking order, but it’s hard to imagine that he’ll be back in the wilderness.
Anthony Gordon: Gordon has been England’s preferred left winger for some time but has seldom been especially productive – prior to this international break, he had just three goals to his name from 25 caps. Since his move to Barcelona, however, he seems to have blossomed into a much better player.
His counter-attacking goal against Spain was quite sensational, his control of his header against Czechia was deeply impressive, and he was sharp, buccaneering and consistently threatening throughout his three appearances. The left wing no longer looks like a minor problem position, and it feels as though Gordon has levelled up since leaving Newcastle. If he can sustain that form, he could become a very important player indeed.
Alex Scott: Can you describe Scott as a ‘winner’ given that he suffered a quadriceps injury which could rule him out for up to two months? Probably, given that the 23-year-old looked the part both on debut and during his first start against Croatia.
Scott has been in outstanding form for Bournemouth and that translated to the international stage. He has a rare combination of energy, defensive acumen and playmaking skill that suggests he really could challenge Declan Rice and Elliot Anderson’s midfield duopoly, and took his chance to gain a step on players like Kobbie Mainoo with aplomb. This won’t be his last call-up.
Manchester City, Chelsea & Arsenal men among the losers
Nico O'Reilly suffered an injury and lost ground to Lewis Hall over the past three weeksplaceholder image
Nico O'Reilly suffered an injury and lost ground to Lewis Hall over the past three weeks | Getty Images
Nico O’Reilly: The flip side of the coin to Lewis Hall’s impressive international break is that O’Reilly, who left the squad with an injury halfway through proceedings, already looks a little bit like yesterday’s news despite a relatively strong showing at the World Cup.
Given that he’s 21 and can play in multiple positions, of course, he has plenty of avenues towards becoming an integral part of England’s future – but if he wants to keep his place ahead of Hall, he’ll have to demonstrate the same ability to stay wide, get forward, and leave few gaps in behind as he does it. His strengths suited Tuchel’s system when he preferred his left-back to invert and support the midfield, but if we did indeed see a glimpse of a new identity, then it’s one which leaves O’Reilly behind. For now, anyway.
Cole Palmer: Given how badly Palmer was impacted by injuries over the course of the last year or so, you can perhaps forgive him for skipping the international break to maintain his fitness, but it doesn’t seem to have gone down well with Tuchel, with the England coach griping that the Chelsea man had “missed too many camps.”
It won’t help Palmer’s case for future call-ups that England thrived in his absence. Morgan Rogers, in particular, was excellent on the right wing against Czechia at Wembley on Tuesday night, while Jude Bellingham still has the number 10 role on lockdown. So where does Palmer fit in, if he’s arguably not even second choice for either of his two primary positions?
The good news for Palmer was that his replacement, Morgan Gibbs-White, didn’t exactly pull up any trees, and neither did Eberechi Eze. Palmer still has a route towards selection. Starts may be another matter, however.
Bukayo Saka: Saka had a perfectly solid international break and scored twice in the 7-0 thrashing of Croatia in Rijeka – but he may have a bit of a problem after Rogers played so well on the right wing against Czechia.
The extra width that was offered by having a right-footed winger down that flank made a substantial difference, as did the sublime cross Rogers delivered for Harry Kane’s first goal – and remember that he did the same thing against Argentina in the World Cup semi-final. Saka may no longer be England’s undisputed first choice in his position, and that role could now be rotated according to the tactical needs of any given game.