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The last time England faced off with Wales, they came away with a 2-1 victory in one of the most dramatic games of Euro 2016. Tonight’s international friendly had far lower stakes, but the result remained the same.
Gareth Southgate’s England ran out 3-0 winners, with first international goals from Dominic Calvert-Lewin, Conor Coady, and Danny Ings being enough for the victory. The scoreline flattered England somewhat, as they were tidy, solid at the back, but struggled to create a lot of chances for the third match running.
Here are five talking points from England’s win over Wales.
#1 What is England’s best system going forward?
After largely using a 4-3-3 system in the matches that followed the 2018 World Cup, England began tonight’s game in a 3-4-3 formation for the second game running. And while Gareth Southgate’s side came away with a victory tonight, the game played out a lot like September’s 0-0 draw with Denmark.
Essentially, the use of 3-4-3 suggests that Southgate wants to piece together the best parts of the other two systems he’s used with England. One is the solid three-man defence seen in the 2018 World Cup, with the other being the ruthless attacking trident used in the 2018-19 UEFA Nations League and Euro 2020 qualifiers.
Unfortunately, based on the evidence we’ve seen so far, the system just doesn’t work. Using 3-4-3, England have kept two clean sheets, but simply lack any kind of midfield creativity. And it’s hard to blame the personnel given tonight’s experimental side was completely different from the one that faced Denmark in Copenhagen.
Essentially, the system seems to cause a huge disconnect between the midfield and the attacking trio, blunting England’s attack entirely. This wasn’t a problem in the World Cup because the system used there was more of a 3-5-2, with Jordan Henderson as a single pivot and Dele Alli and Jesse Lingard acting as the side’s creative hub.
In this 3-4-3, however, that creative hub is missing entirely, largely because Southgate’s system uses a pair of more defensive-minded central midfielders. Would it work better with a more offensive-minded midfielder as one of the duo? Perhaps, but that’d leave England more open to opposition attacks.
Overall then despite tonight’s win, it seems clear that switching back to 4-3-3 – and looking to put together a more cohesive midfield - is the way forward for Southgate and England.
#2 England’s form players come through on the night
Tonight’s England side was a hugely experimental one. Gareth Southgate handed debuts to Dominic Calvert-Lewin, Bukayo Saka, Reece James, and Harvey Barnes, while also handing Jack Grealish, Kalvin Phillips, Conor Coady and Ainsley Maitland-Niles only their second caps.
Thankfully, those players – who have been brought into the England squad due to their club form – largely all delivered. Grealish and Calvert-Lewin combined brilliantly for England’s first goal, and the Aston Villa captain looked dangerous going forward all night long.
Phillips was tremendous as England’s holding midfielder, constantly stealing the ball from his opponents and finding some excellent passes at times. Coady was solid at the back and scored an unlikely goal – his first at any level since 2018.
Saka, meanwhile, looked nervous early on, but grew into the game and was excellent during the second half. And James, Barnes, and Maitland-Niles all looked comfortable once they came on from the bench.
Southgate may have an issue going forward in a sense that he tends to trust certain players – Declan Rice and Jadon Sancho, for instance – meaning that more opportunities for the likes of Grealish and Phillips may be limited in the future. But the England boss certainly has options, and that kind of competition can only be good for the squad overall.
#3 Wales’ defending was too naive and led to their downfall
If anything, the 3-0 scoreline of this match flattered England, who struggled for creativity throughout the game. However, in a lot of respects, Wales came away with what they deserved. Ryan Giggs’ side were tidy in possession and looked dangerous early in the first half. But some naive defending eventually undid them.
Jack Grealish’s cross for England’s first goal was definitely outstanding. But Wales defenders Chris Mepham and Joe Rodon completely failed to track Dominic Calvert-Lewin, allowing him a free header on goal that he comfortably put away.
In the second half, meanwhile, nobody tracked Conor Coady when Kieran Trippier’s free-kick floated into the box, allowing him to score. And finally, Danny Ings was completely unmarked when he was able to score from a bicycle kick following Tyrone Mings’ knockdown.
Wales’ defence was indeed somewhat inexperienced tonight – Mepham and Rodon have a combined 16 international caps. But there’s also no excuse for such naive defending, at any level.
If Giggs wants to take his side to the 2022 World Cup, then he needs to ensure his defence performs a lot better than they did tonight. Otherwise top international attackers will take full advantage and condemn them to more disappointing losses like this one.
#4 England looked dangerous from set-pieces again
One of the most notable parts of England’s run to the semi-finals of the 2018 World Cup was how dangerous Gareth Southgate’s side were from set-pieces. England scored 12 goals during that tournament, and incredibly, discounting penalties, six of them came from set-piece situations.
Since then though, England have looked far less dangerous from set-pieces than they did during that tournament. Sure, they’ve scored a handful of goals from corners and free-kicks, but a lot of times it’s felt like Southgate’s men have been out of ideas from dead-balls.
Tonight though, England looked much more dangerous from set-pieces than they’ve done in some time and scored two of their three goals from them. Kieran Trippier’s free-kick for Conor Coady’s goal in particular was outstanding, while Tyrone Mings rose brilliantly to knock down a corner to set up Danny Ings’ overhead kick.
Sure, the goals were partially made possible by Wales’ poor defending. But given England’s general dearth of creativity, it was nice to see them manage to find the back of the net in a different kind of way. If they can remain this dangerous from set-pieces – and find a way to create more chances from open play again – they will definitely score goals at next summer’s European Championships.
#5 Would the game have been different with fans in attendance?
Given this was the first meeting between England and Wales since then, it was hard not to compare this match to the classic Euro 2016 showdown between the two sides.
Of course, this game was never going to be quite as dramatic as a match during a major international tournament. But we’ve seen plenty of international friendlies with as much fireworks as any competitive game. So what made this one feel a little flat?
The most likely explanation was the lack of fans in attendance. Fans of football have probably gotten used to the sight of behind-closed-doors games during 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. And they’ve probably gotten used to the fake crowd noise from the TV as well.
There can be no doubt, though, that a Home Nations clash like this would’ve been made much more special had Wembley been packed with fans.
The big question right now is, does it really need to be this way? Wembley has a capacity of 90,000, and while it would clearly not have been viable to have a full stadium, could perhaps 30,000 fans have been allowed in, with empty seats being left to ensure social distancing?
With so much pressure on lower league clubs right now due to empty stadiums, it’s definitely a question that’s worth asking. Football is always a great sport to watch, but it’s much better with fans in attendance. And the quality of this game would almost certainly have been higher had there been a live crowd.
