Gordon ahead of Saka in winger rankings? | Football Weekly
After England swatted Czechia aside on Tuesday, Max Rushden is joined by George Elek, Dan Bardell and Barry Glendenning to mull over whether Anthony Gordon is one of the first names on the team sheet and whether that team sheet should include the mercurial talents of Trent Alexander-Arnold. Watch the full podcast episode ► https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CHwKsuH5QsI Subscribe to Guardian Football ► https://www.youtube.com/@guardianfootball?subconfirmation=1 We want your feedback! If you had any thoughts on our coverage of the World Cup, please let us know here ► www.theguardian.com/YTWorldCupSurvey The Guardian publishes independent journalism, made possible by supporters. Contribute to The Guardian today ► https://support.theguardian.com/ Guardian Football Weekly: https://www.tiktok.com/@guardianfootballweekly https://www.instagram.com/guardianfootballweekly/ Website ► https://www.theguardian.com Facebook ► https://www.facebook.com/theguardian Bluesky ► https://bsky.app/profile/sport.theguardian.com Instagram ► https://www.instagram.com/guardiansport/ The Guardian on YouTube: The Guardian ► https://www.youtube.com/@theGuardian Football Weekly podcast ► https://www.youtube.com/@FootballWeeklyPodcast Guardian News ► https://www.youtube.com/@guardiannews Guardian Australia ► https://www.youtube.com/@GuardianAustralia Guardian Sport ► https://www.youtube.com/@guardiansport
Transcript
So, England won 2-0 in Czechia. Uh George, you were live in Prague. Uh how was it? I guess the red card makes it a tricky game to to take anything from, I guess. >> Yeah, I I I think as soon as Czechia was sent um you know, we're we're down to 10 men, it was a game that England couldn't really get much out of. Like, had we won the game comfortably, it would have been well, they were down to 10 men. Had we not won the game, it would have been an absolute disaster. So, it feels like we we navigated it okay. Um the first 15 minutes were pretty concerning. Um some of the same issues that that we had against Spain where it felt like Spain created a lot of chances, but rather than it being thanks to their brilliance, it was mainly thanks to to individual errors. And we saw a couple of those yesterday. You know, England's high line being exploited by some wayward passing. Um there was a clip pulled through that Anderson probably should have cut out and he failed to do so and they got in behind. Trafford made one decent save from a one-on-one. England then hit the post, Morgan Rogers um with a shot that that hit the post and came out to Anderson who had a shot from the edge of the area blocked. Um but that was England's only kind of real a a- you know, a lot of possession, but really struggling to break Czechia down. Um and after the red card, things didn't really improve. It just meant that Czechia didn't really carry that attacking threat. Um so, in the second half, you know, Thomas Tuchel changed things, took off Lewis Kelly because we we basically didn't need two holding midfielders or two two central midfielders at all and brought on Eberechi Eze. And immediately things got better. Um Trent doing who did I don't think he put in one cross in the first half which felt like a bit of a shame given how we've waited six years for him to start a game at right back for England. Um but he did it within the first minute of the second half. A brilliant ball, very similar to the Morgan Rogers cross against Argentina. Um kind of using whipping it around the the the defensive line for Anthony Gordon with a stooping header, really good header as well, kind of controlling it to the far corner. Yeah. >> And he scored three from three. And then um yeah, and then the points were made safe by Harry Kane. So, it's it's job done. Um some bright moments from from some players that came off the bench that we'll we'll get on to. Um but it's not you know, this is a a classic case of just getting through it then. Um and as a spectacle, uh certainly after the the red card, it was it was you know, it was it was of defense against attack and England just had to find a way to make sure that we got the goals needed to to win the game. >> Yeah, George. I mean, you were at the Spain game as well, George. And I suppose I'm I looking at things that are interesting to talk about. I suppose Anthony Gordon I think when we went into the World Cup, we had sort of two wide men on each side and you know, Saka's fitness wasn't there. So, we weren't sure exactly who was the like the premier wide attacker. It feels like Gordon is becoming that. >> Yeah, we we we before every game, we do an England pod on who's going to start each game. And we were talking before this one where it's always been the idea that like Saka is is the lock on the on the right-hand side and then it's kind of between Gordon or maybe Rashford who's not in the squad this time around, but could be Eze, could be Gibbs-White now. I I think now Gordon's made that that left that left wing spot his own. Like he has to be the one that starts there probably even more so than Saka who who hasn't really done it necessarily for for his country for a for for a longer period of time. He just looks very good. Like he's he's obviously very aggressive. He's incredibly quick. He gets past his man pretty consistently. Um and his final action is now there. Now, he's yet to score for Barcelona. Um which given they've scored I think 24 goals this season, is a bit of a concern. Um I think he's had quite a lot of shots. Uh but his finishing for England has been very good. You know, he scored the goal against Argentina. He scored the the opening goal against Spain. He scored the opening goal here. So, he's not only scoring goals, but he's scoring important goals, too. And he seems to be really reveling in it. Like he's doing a lot of media at the moment. Um I I could hear listen to him talking about football all day. I know he he there's been a bit of a uh reaction to the way I think because he's so self-confident and because he kind of speaks in buzzwords, it it kind of rubs people up the up the wrong way, but I think listening to him talk about his own ability and his belief in his ability and the fact that he's now playing for a team in in Barcelona who dominate the ball, so he can show off what he can do technically, where he believes that he's underrated in that regard. And and I tend to agree. Like he's someone who you know, when he was bought by Newcastle, that was met by derision in some quarters not understanding why. And then he beat it very well there. He went to Barcelona in the summer and people were were laughing at the fee and I wondering how he managed to you know crediting his agent and he started pretty well there and now he's doing it for England. So um you know despite the the the knockers he's certainly a player that is um is stepping up on the big stage. >> Real missed opportunity for you there George to become the first ever person on a podcast to prize his football IQ. He that was a massive chance that you didn't take. >> Yeah. [laughter] Yeah, that's that's a fair point. He's done enough himself I think. >> He sounds to the high performance podcast manner born. I I'm sure it's only a matter of time. >> Maybe [snorts] he'll host one in 20 years time. He could do that. Um I I look George alluded to it down but that that part that cross from Trent Alexander-Arnold it is so you know, if you only watch the highlights you're like there. Here give him just make let him play. You know like it's just so perfect. It's so this is what you get with with Trent. >> Yeah and England will have had lots of games over the last however many years where they need to break a team down they perhaps struggle to do it and if they'd have had Trent Alexander-Arnold at right back they'd have probably broke that team down with a moment that was very similar to what we saw last night. Even even when he's there though I I just feel like there's a a disrespect like Tuchel almost said the other day that that well Ben White's not fit so basically I've I've called him up and we've tried all kinds of players that aren't right back in that position over the last few years as well. The guy is a top quality footballer. I can't understand for that like it's almost insulting Thomas Tuchel comparing like well we called him up because Ben White's not there because for me Trent Alexander-Arnold is a hundred times the footballer that that Ben White is and for any other country he's probably got an awful lot more caps. So I thought he was great to sit to see him out there. The guy's played for Liverpool virtually his whole career and now he's playing for Real Madrid yet he's never had a sniff for England and and we should be good enough to have been able to find a place for him. I find it absolutely baffling all the all the the around Trent and I'm glad that he finally There felt like Lee Carsley was the only one that maybe felt like I might give him a bit of a chance here and try and build the build the team around him a little bit, but obviously his spell was a was a short-term one. But, for me, he he has to play. I think he's such an unbelievable footballer. >> Tuchel um just prioritizes physicality over so much um when it comes to his defenders. Like, you look at Jerrell Quansah, who he rates, who's been in every single squad that he's that he's selected for England, um who he's happy to play at right back, which he's now playing for Leverkusen. And obviously, like from a technical standpoint, there there's there's no comparison to make between the two players. And given that they're at Liverpool together, um for the just Liverpool fans then, who do you want to start right back for us, Trent or or Quansah? Like, there's no question. But, because Quansah is is tall and because he's quick and because he's strong and he can run, you know, when it comes to his final third action, it seems like Tuchel's less bothered. And that's why he likes Nico Williams left back. He was injured yesterday. Like, I thought Lewis Hall last night put in a performance at left back. Now, I really like I really as a player, I should say. I think he's got a lot of attributes that make him a really important player, and I think his his future definitely doesn't lie at left back. He'll be a he'll be a an eight or a 10. He's a midfielder. Um but, Hall last night did so much that that I really just didn't do during the World Cup. Like, he provided a really good support for for Gordon on the left wing. He made some overlapping runs down the outside of Gordon. He um drifted inside a couple of times as well and got into um and kind of provided an extra body in the box. He's a decent one-on-one defender. He's a good ball carrier. Like, he is a left back. You know, I know that he he he kind of came through as a midfielder at Chelsea, but he is now very much a classic modern-day left back. Or maybe modern-day left backs are now Nico Williams, where it's just more a case of being a a big lad there. Whereas, I really doesn't offer that. Like, he's a very good player, but he doesn't really carry. He doesn't really overlap. He drifts in field sometimes in deeper areas. But, I I still think that Tuchel looks at at his profile and his height and his strength and and sees still that kind of robust um physical nature as being what he what he wants, which which you know, I I I see as a shame given we've got given the the wingers we've got and their their their desire to drift inside, it should mean that having a kind of attacking-minded technical fullbacks or even wingbacks is what we should be looking at given that we we dominate the ball in most games. >> Yeah, I mean I guess on Trent, Reece James could put a ball in like that. But like you're right when you say Cancelo or Cancelo or anyone that rhymes with those players wouldn't. Barry, did you have any uh strong thoughts from that football match? >> Ah, it was a very comfortable England win. They scored two, they hit the post twice, they brought a few good saves out of Kovar, the Czechy goalkeeper. Um put a few decent chances wide. So, it was it couldn't have been more comfortable really. I suppose their finishing could have been better. On the Trent thing, I think everyone has a position on him now. You either raise him and want him in the team or you don't and you don't want him in the team. And I think Tuchel's clearly in the latter camp. So, what what what what is the point of picking him? Just if you don't rate him and you don't want him in your your squad, why are you picking him? Um I that's the the one thing I get. I I would have him in, but um you know, he he did make a mistake in the first half yesterday that led to Czech's best chance of the game. But um the cross was was sublime. >> A word for for um two of the substitutes. Alex Scott made his debut, um which is really exciting. He is he's so good um and it's taken a long time to get to this point. You know, it's amazing. He saw saw Guernsey FC where he started his career as a 16-year-old playing in the Isthmian South, the eighth tier. So, this is a proper you know, this is he's this is a guy who when he was 16 years old was playing non-league football who then went to Bristol City. An unbelievable couple of years at Bristol City where his talent was was very obvious, but he couldn't really find a position cuz he was kind of too small to play center midfield, so he's shifted out wide where he couldn't really impact games the way that he necessarily um should have done given his talent, but in his second season there won championship young player of the year. Had an amazing season and it's taken a bit of time at Bournemouth but obviously last season he showed everyone what he can do and he's had to wait you know he's had to wait for this opportunity. I think he was probably quite close to getting the World Cup squad. He came on for his very good mate Elliot Anderson those two are basically inseparable whenever at England camps. And I was I was very good so like he's he's so tenacious his ability to cover ground quickly he's scrappy works really hard off the ball but is such a good ball carrier. And like Anderson like always shows for the ball always wants it so it was really happy to see him get his opportunity and he's a player that I think should be basically in in every squad going forward and I hope he will be. And then Rio Emgoma came off the bench he obviously played in a in a non-competitive game in Florida before the World Cup this was his competitive debut and it really lively on the right hand side you know playing in front of Trent always wanting the ball really good ball carrier very tricky fast feet but a couple of really good deliveries too. So yeah just I guess the next generation post-World Cup coming through and and two really exciting prospects for England who took their chance well.