Feature or Flaw? Why England's USMNT Draw Was Completely Predictable
England’s performance versus the United States Men’s National Team (USMNT) left many supporters unfulfilled, not least because only four days had passed since they tore Iran to shreds in Group B’s curtain-raiser.
“The players are a bit down, but I’m not,” Gareth Southgate admitted after the match. “I thought we controlled the game [and that] our two centre-backs were outstanding with the ball [but] we lacked a little bit of zip in the final third.
“I’m not frustrated. We’ve had to show a different side to ourselves tonight and I’m actually happy with the mentality of the team. The objective is always to get out of the group, and we’ve done that in two games in the past two tournaments — we can’t expect to do that all time.”
England’s nil-nil draw with the United States leaves them top of Group B, with four points from their first two games at Qatar 2022. Unless they are hammered by Wales next time out, they are assured of a place in the knockout rounds.
And that is important to remember in the context of their vanilla performance on Friday [25 November]. Everyone could see that England were far from their best in the first half, but Southgate sat on his hands until the 65th-minute.
Why?
Because he was happy to take a point from the match — and therefore reluctant to throw caution to the wind with an offensive substitution (or two).
Even so, there are still valuable lessons to be learned from the draw.
Jude Bellingham, who was exceptional on his tournament debut, was completely ineffective on both sides of the ball versus the USMNT. He was uninfluential on the press, which left Declan Rice with too much work to do, and unsure in possession, which derailed any hopes of a fluid attack from England.
Still only 19, the Borussia Dortmund star left the field on 69 minutes with zero key passes, a negative duel win-rate, and one incomplete dribble. England’s attacks were painfully slow as a result, an issue which was compounded by a rare tactical triumph from Gregg Berhalter’s USMNT — who shifted their defensive structure to a 4-4-2.
It made for a dull match, but one that suited both sides.
England held onto the ball for extended periods, while the Americans sat in a mid-block with two banks of four and a pair of forwards blocking passes from Harry Maguire/John Stones to Rice/Bellingham.
When the Three Lions tried to break-out via their full-backs, they were quickly blocked by Yunus Musah and Weston McKennie, which left Mason Mount isolated in midfield and Harry Kane adrift up front.
England, then, were far too cautious in a match that was there for them to win. They allowed the USMNT to dictate how the contest unfolded, which saw Harry Maguire emerge as a player of the day candidate after a sturdy performance at the back.
Like it or not, the snore-fest was a feature, not a flaw, of Southgate’s grand design for international success. We’ll find out if the plan works soon. Until then, we wait — full of nerves and boredom — for the final outcome. Enjoy the football in the meanwhile.