England manager Gareth Southgate has admitted that his decision to play Trent Alexander-Arnold (TAA) in midfield is an experiment due to the lack of a natural replacement for Kalvin Phillips. Southgate acknowledged that the strategy has not been as effective as hoped. He emphasized that England has faced challenges in the midfield position for 7 or 8 years, and without Declan Rice, the situation could be more problematic. Southgate's comments have sparked criticism, with some arguing that there are other players available who can fulfill Phillips' role. Ian Wright and Adam Catterall are among those who have publicly disagreed with Southgate's assessment.
😱 "No suitable replacement for Kalvin-Phillips? ❌ "Experimenting with a key position!" 👎 "Southgate has players who play that role on the bench." 👀 "AI haven't done this... It came out of his mouth." Adam Catterall goes in on Gareth Southgate's tactics at #Euro2024 https://t.co/VgcURCe5Q3
😱 "No adequate replacement for Kalvin-Phillips?" ❌ "We are experimenting with a key position!" 👎 "Southgate has players who play that role every single week on the bench." 👀 "AI haven't done this... It came out of his mouth." Adam Catterall goes in on Gareth Southgate https://t.co/ggutOtKuwn
😱 "No adequate replacement for Kalvin-Phillips? ❌ "We are experimenting with a key position!" 👎 "Southgate has players who play that role every single week on the bench." 👀 "AI haven't done this... It came out of his mouth." Adam Catterall goes in on Gareth Southgate https://t.co/aeQpCgxL2E
"I don't believe that..." 💬 Ian Wright has hit back after Gareth Southgate claimed England do not have a "natural replacement" for Kalvin Phillips in midfield 😳 https://t.co/rEdBtdV8jv https://t.co/QPwxYR0pw0
🗣️ "We've been trying to find a solution there for 7 or 8 years. If not for Declan Rice, I don't know where we'd be." 🏴 Gareth Southgate believes midfield has been a problem position for England for much of his tenure 📺 Watch: https://t.co/0PPw6lqdMo #euro2024 | #england https://t.co/QSzHuKvK5a
Gareth Southgate bizarrely claims England are struggling to replace Kalvin Phillips and Trent Alexander-Arnold starting in midfield is an 'EXPERIMENT' as the Three Lions' struggles continue https://t.co/3eap92yGie https://t.co/ZscQBRhCjj
OMFG!! Southgate reason for using TAA in midfield…”We don’t have a natural replacement for Kalvin Phillips so are trying some things.” What. The. Fuck!!! Should be sacked for that right now. There’s a wealth of players who can do what Phillips does. My word 😂😂🤦♂️🤦♂️
Gareth Southgate has discussed England's midfield dilemma 👀 https://t.co/AXwzgSobtb
Southgate (on TAA): “He’s had some moments where he’s delivered what we thought he would..It is an experiment…we know we don’t have a natural replacement for Kalvin Philipps but we’re trying some different things & at the moment it’s not flowing as we’d like, that’s for sure”