England’s forward trio of Harry Kane, Raheem Sterling and Marcus Rashford is “really scary”, according to midfielder Eric Dier.
Gareth Southgate’s men reached the final four of the Uefa Nations League thanks to a 2-1 win over Croatia, topping group A4 ahead of Spain.
What makes England’s front three so scary? Five key things to know…
- Despite reaching the World Cup semi-finals playing 3-5-2, England started to have problems breaking teams down.
- Gareth Southgate switched to a 4-3-3 halfway through the Nations League, with Kane, Rashford and Sterling leading the line.
- England won their subsequent two games to reach the final four of the Nations League, topping group A4.
- Dier believes the trio’s work-rate is vital to England’s successes.
- Kane (1), Rashford (3) and Sterling (2) combined to score five of England’s six goals in the Nations League.
Kane scored the winning goal in the 2-1 win over Croatia with five minutes to go, to cap off a thrilling comeback which saw England turn potential relegation into qualification.
Though neither got on the scoresheet, both Sterling and Rashford caused problems for the Croatian defence, by utilising their pace and direct dribbling style England were able to push forward.
Speaking to ESPN after England’s win, Dier complimented the Three Lions trio for their improvements: “I think it is really scary.
“You have got three players who I think complement each other really well. Of course, Harry we know. Raheem is playing at such a high level now as well. Marcus is really kicking on.
“All three of them have fantastic quality.”
Dier also praised the trio’s defensive work, ensuring their full-backs aren’t over-run as part of Southgate’s tactics.
“Their work rate is fantastic, which is something people probably won’t talk about as much,” he added.
“The way they work for the team, track back. Raheem was making such important defensive actions towards the end of the game.
“Those things are just as important. All three of them have a fantastic attitude, they are brave and direct. It is really positive for us.”
The trio really came alight for England during their 3-2 win over Spain in October which pulled them back into the Nations League, with Sterling scoring twice either side of a goal from Rashford and Kane recording assists for two of the goals.
Though international football does not return until March with the European Championship qualifiers, England have a semi-final to look forward to next June, going up against one of Portugal, Switzerland or the Netherlands.
Rooney backs Kane and Sterling as England superstars
Eric Dier is not the only Englishman to have spoken highly of the Three Lions’ attacking players, with record goalscorer Wayne Rooney also heralding the likes of Harry Kane and Raheem Sterling.
Rooney returned to the England squad last week for one final outing, in a 3-0 friendly win over USA dubbed the Wayne Rooney Foundation International.
And, speaking of the exciting new era of English football, Rooney said: “I think they’ve got superstars. Harry Kane has been top goalscorer in the Premier League for three or four years.
“Raheem Sterling in the last couple of years has been fantastic. I don’t think it’s fair to say the England team hasn’t got superstars.”
At his prime, Rooney was part of a star-studded England team which failed to inspire at various tournaments, never going further than the quarter-final stages.
In 2004, the Three Lions were probably at their previous peak, with Rooney believing England would have won the tournament had he stayed fit.
“What you’re saying is we had some great established players: David Beckham, Frank Lampard, Steven Gerrard, Paul Scholes, Rio Ferdinand, John Terry… why didn’t it work? I’ve no idea.
“We tried to be successful. We maybe never had the squad, we had the startling 11 which was very good but going into the tournament we maybe never had that back-up.”
QUIZ: Can you name every England player to be called up by Gareth Southgate?
Since taking over as England manager in 2016, Gareth Southgate has called on 69 different players for his squads including Kane, Sterling and Rashford. Test your knowledge with our Sporcle quiz, and let us know how you get on in the comments below or through Twitter @Squawka.
The post England now have a “really scary” front trio, says Eric Dier appeared first on Squawka News.
From Squawka NewsSquawka News https://ift.tt/2FzbXdZ
No comments:
Post a Comment