England can’t ignore major problem after it reared ugly head again vs Switzerland

England have reached the semi-finals of a major tournament for the third time out of four attempts, but Gareth Southgate’s side have a major issue that they simply cannot ignore

As moments in poor football matches go, they probably don’t come much more significant than Harry Kane colliding with Gareth Southgate as the captain stumbled into the technical area.

Inadvertently, it seemed Southgate had done what every England fan inside this stadium and watching their TV screens had been screaming for him to do for some considerable time. Probably since the end of another dismal first half. Put Kane out of our misery.

Kane was probably going to be taken off even before the tangle with Southgate in the 19th minute of extra-time but whatever the reason for his withdrawal, it was not a moment too early. England have scraped into the semi-finals of Euro 2024 thanks to the brilliance of Bukayo Saka and the bottle of their penalty-takers.

What can you say about Trent Alexander-Arnold’s execution of the final spot-kick? As emphatic and as confident as you are likely to see.

Everyone should enjoy the moment. Southgate has taken his squad through to another semi-final of a major tournament – that’s three in his four-tournament reign.

And yes, it’s knockout football. It’s only the result that matters.

But let’s not pretend Southgate does not have big problems. And one of them is their leader, their talisman.

Harry Kane collides with England boss Gareth Southgate who tries to catch his captain ( 
Image:
Getty Images)
You could never accuse Kane of not giving his maximum – it just seems his maximum has, for one reason or other, been extremely limited.

Ahead of this tournament, Kane told the England squad not to expect Premier League-style carpets as surfaces for Euro 2024. Having trodden the fields of Germany during his fresher year in the Bundesliga, Kane was familiar with the slightly sub-standard pitches that have scarred this tournament. So, Kane’s team-mates were prepared for the odd uneven bounce, for the odd divot – what they were probably not prepared for was the sight of their skipper making the grass look like treacle.

The player himself and Southgate grew sick and tired of telling us that the captain is 100 percent fit but if this tournament has seen a fully mobile, up-to-speed Kane, then his club will be worried.

Kane has scored twice at Euro 2024 but everything he has done has been laboured. The lack of alternatives to Kane – or the perceived lack of alternatives – is an issue that will take top-spot in the in-tray of Southgate’s successor. England cannot go forward with such a strong reliance on a striker who does not offer the option of running in behind a defence.

Southgate claimed victory in another knockout match
England produced five brilliant spot-kick in the shootout but, in general play, their immobility in the final third, their lack of imagination, their lack of zip, was startling at times. Against a side as limited as Switzerland, the inability of Southgate’s men to create even half-chances was utterly baffling.

Equally baffling was the ineptitude at set-pieces. What on earth have they been working on when taking to the beautiful pitches at their training facility in rural Blankenhain in the east of Germany? Clearly not dead-ball situations in the attacking third.

There was one comical passage of first half play when an England cover ended back at the feet of Jordan Pickford without a Swiss player intervening.

Throughout the tournament, the players have been saying it’s on them, the drudgery is on them. In public, of course, they would not say anything else. But on the field, certainly for long periods of this game, they did not appear to know exactly what they were supposed to be doing.

Now, though, it hardly matters. There is another last-four challenge to face and, at this stage of a tournament, it can come down to fitness, to fortune, to refereeing quirks.

Gareth Southgate, Head Coach of England, interacts with Harry Kane ( 
Image:
UEFA via Getty Images)DON’T MISS
And you never know, Kane is such a dedicated servant, such a patriot, he might dig deep and produce a match-winning moment.

You would not put it past him.

But for now, he looks like a man who needs a rest … and at least he can put his feet up knowing his men have again found a way to win.

Somehow, the dream is still alive.

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