Light-footed and supple, so with exactly the attributes that England had been missing at this EM so far, Jack Grealish prevailed in the penalty area and initiated the redeeming winning goal for England in the last preliminary round match against the Czech Republic with his soulful flank. For days, fans and media on the island had loudly demanded that national coach Gareth Southgate should finally nominate Grealish, who is employed at Aston Villa on the left offensive side, for the starting XI. Southgate complied with this request on Tuesday evening – doing itself a huge favor.
Revitalized by the fine movements of the dribble artist Grealish, England got acclimatized in time for the tournament. Especially after the bleak draw in the island duel with Scotland, the nation expected an increase in the team’s performance, which gives reason to hope to be able to stay at the EM until the final on July 11th at Wembley. With the 1-0 (1-0) victory over the Czech Republic, England finished Group D in first place and will therefore also have a home game in the round of 16 next Tuesday – they will meet at Wembley Stadium Three Lions on the runner-up in group F, which is likely to be either world champion France, European champion Portugal or Germany. If it came down to an exchange of blows with the Germans, after 25 years there would be a new edition of the German-English football classic in exactly the same stadium. At that time, both nations met in the EM semifinals. In a dramatic and unforgettable game, the future title holder Germany prevailed on penalties, the decisive penalty was awarded to the English by Gareth Southgate.
With an agile and playful appearance against the Czechs, who were tied on points before the whistle, England tried to make it clear that they did not want to get involved in the game of poker, that they might end their own group behind the Czech Republic in order to slip into the supposedly less demanding tournament table.
No experiments: Coach Southgate trusts most of his starting staff
Anyway, they had to Three Lions only play in shape again after the team was last out of step. The Times wrote that the English national coach’s job, which was already difficult to manage, had become even more difficult for Southgate because “his credit” was running out in the country. After the home defeat by Denmark in the Nations League in October there was already a heated, never-publicized conversation in which the less squeamish island press accused him of “cowardice”. In four and a half years, Southgate always had to master the balancing act between the country’s expectation for refreshing offensive football and its personal affinity for a stable defensive – and it did not always succeed to the satisfaction of the population.
Phil Foden, whom he removed from the squad because he was worried that he would be absent from another yellow card in the next round, demonstrated just how carefully the former defender is in the selection of staff. However, this foresight also helped him to 57 caps for England (as many as as a player); a brand that only Sven-Göran Erikson (67), Bobby Robson (95), world champion coach Alf Ramsey (113) and Walter Winterbottom (139) had passed before him. Only Southgate managed to make more than 50 international matches in both roles in England history.
Mount and Chilwell have to be in quarantine – because of contact with a Scottish opponent
In his anniversary game, Southgate stuck to the usual 4-3-3 formation and, apart from a few inevitable changes, also trusted the majority of its starting staff. Due to the short-term failure of the bustling Mason Mount, a place for Grealish in the team became available. Like teammate Ben Chilwell from Chelsea FC, Mount had to go into quarantine after a half-hour conversation on Friday in the cabin corridor with the Scot Billy Gilmour, who later tested positive for Corona. Although the tests of the two Englishmen were negative, the authority of Public Health England ordered after a hearing of the association that Mount and Chilwell should isolate themselves for ten days until next Monday. This decision caused outrage. The loudest scolded Chelsea’s technical director Petr Cech, who described the measure as “incomprehensible” because Gilmour’s teammates were all allowed to play for Scotland in the parallel game against Croatia.
At the expense of the flow of the game, Mount’s absence was not because Grealish represented him brilliantly. Secured by the serious clearers Declan Rice and Kalvin Phillips and flanked by the explosive Raheem Sterling and – only surprise! – 19-year-old Bukayo Saka (Arsenal FC). Jadon Sancho, who is employed by Borussia Dortmund, was again only on the bench before he was used for the first time at this European Championship shortly before the end of the game (84th). That combination paid off after twelve minutes when Saka cleared the space for Sterling in the penalty area to score the winning goal after Grealish’s cross. Immediately after kick-off, Sterling put the ball on the post.
Due to the early deficit, the physically active Czechs were forced to venture out of their own half of the game. The team around coach Jaroslav Silhavy ensured a goal danger, especially according to standards. The English, on the other hand, became dangerous after counterattacking, and the hard-working captain Harry Kane also came to the conclusion, but without succeeding in the hoped-for first tournament goal. England’s most accurate attacker has only scored two goals in his past twelve appearances.
Even after the half-time break, the game continued to lack the usual intensity, which may have been due to the fact that both nations had already qualified for the round of 16 in advance. For the most entertainment value, the fade-ins of the intermediate results from Glasgow, which first reported the 2: 1, then the 3: 1 for Croatia in the duel with the Scots, who were deeply unloved in England. Only one scene topped this outburst of jubilation towards the end of the game – the replacement of the frenetically celebrated Jack Grealish.
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