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#2 Going behind didn’t faze Southgate’s side
England are no strangers to surprisingly falling behind in qualifying games – most recently it happened in their game against Slovakia during the qualifying campaign for the 2018 World Cup, and in that match it took the Three Lions a while to settle back down into a rhythm as they clearly appeared to be stunned by conceding.
Tonight though, they stayed extremely calm, didn’t attempt to rush or force anything, and sure enough an equaliser came pretty swiftly. Marko Vesovic’s goal definitely came against the run of play but perhaps the most impressive thing about England’s response was the way Southgate swiftly shifted tactics – switching Raheem Sterling and Callum Hudson-Odoi on the flanks after the Chelsea youngster’s mistake had led to the goal.
It ensured that Montenegro never got comfortable in the lead while also showing faith in Hudson-Odoi’s attacking abilities despite his defensive error. And sure enough, it took less than 15 minutes for the move to pay off as England quickly went 1-2 up. England are a young side, but they seem far calmer under pressure than more experienced England sides of the past were, and that’s a huge positive.
