With crucial European Championship qualifiers just around the corner, followed by the UEFA Nations League semi-finals in the summer, Gareth Southgate has a lot on his plate.
The England manager will be carefully considering his squad options ahead of two important rounds of fixtures, with central midfield perhaps being his main focus.
Since Southgate arrived, England have gone from having very few suitable options in the middle of the park to possessing a number of players vying for a place in the team.
Various factors – the resurgence of Ross Barkley, the emergence of Ruben Loftus-Cheek and the talent of Dele Alli – have provided Southgate with plenty of options when it comes to midfielders who can drive forward with the ball and join the attack.
The holding role is similar, but there is a paradox: though there are suddenly too many players for Southgate to choose from, none of the options are particularly indispensable – no one player has nailed down the position.
Declan Rice’s switch in allegiance has only added to Southgate’s headache. Indeed, question marks remain over who is best suited to sitting in front of the back line, breaking up the opposition’s play and helping England to build from the back?
We’ve had a look at the options and ranked them in terms of suitability.
1. The Receiver – Harry Winks
Harry Winks has been an ever-present for Tottenham in recent months, becoming a guaranteed starter in the absence of Mousa Dembele. His impressive performances in an unusually deep role for Spurs have made him the ideal option for England’s holding role, too.
The 23-year-old has mostly played at the base of a midfield diamond for his club. He has been particularly effective in the role when Tottenham line up with a back three. Having three centre-backs – as England did at the World Cup – allows Winks to roam into more advanced areas when needed, a scenario in which he thrives.
But perhaps Winks’ most useful trait in his ability to receive the ball. He always makes himself available to teammates and is calm even when under heavy pressure. Dortmund were incredibly well organised against Spurs, particularly in the first half, and it was often down to Winks to collect the ball from a defender and drive forward. This is crucial for a team that likes to build from the back, like England.
What’s more, Winks showcased the undervalued defensive side of his game against the Bundesliga leaders. He won all of his four tackles (only Davinson Sanchez and Moussa Sissoko won as many) and recovered the ball eight times – only Sanchez made more recoveries (9).
There are more concerns when Winks plays in front of a back four. Tottenham have looked opened at times when that’s the case, and Winks doesn’t drop into the defensive line as seamlessly as the next player on our list. Still, at present he fits England’s style more than any other holding midfielder.
2. The Destroyer – Eric Dier
Eric Dier has missed a lot of football of late. He suffered with appendicitis over the festive period and has been downed with a virus since returning. With Winks in such fine form, Dier has every reason to be worried about his place in the team for both club and country.
That said, Dier provides something Winks fails to: the instincts of a centre-back. Over the last few years, Dier has allowed Tottenham to seamlessly switch between a back three and a back four. He has had less success for England in that regard, perhaps because Southgate has options he prefers both in defence and midfield.
With that in mind, Dier is arguably more useful than he is necessary. But with Southgate switching from three at the back to four since the World Cup, the holding role will be right for Dier in certain circumstances.
If England continue with a back four in their upcoming fixtures, Dier may be preferred to Winks to provide the defence with more support. Feasibly both Dier and Winks could start, with Winks given more permission to get forward thanks to Dier’s presence.
Aside from his positional versatility, Dier offers aggression and lots of it. His crunching tackle on Sergio Ramos during the victory in Spain last year set the tone for a no-nonsense England performance. The 25-year-old militancy is valued by both Pochettino and Southgate and could serve the Three Lions well.
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3. The Leader – Jordan Henderson
Like Dier for Spurs, Henderson hasn’t been a regular starter for Liverpool this season, which will raise questions over his place in the England starting line-up. His detractors ought to think back to the World Cup, where Henderson appeared to find his ideal role.
Indeed, Henderson was preferred to Dier in Russia as Southgate deemed there was room for just one deep-lying midfielder in his team. His decision turned out to be the right one. Henderson was tasked with keeping things ticking in midfield before releasing England’s pacy attackers with through balls over the top.
That’s not to say Henderson was perfect at the World Cup or that he made himself a guaranteed starter. England looked even more comfortable with a midfield three of Dier, Winks and Barkley in the victory over Spain, giving Henderson’s critics another stick to beat him with.
But like all of the options we’ve discussed, Henderson has unique traits, one being his leadership. The 28-year-old is Liverpool’s club captain and was being considered for the England armband before it was handed to Harry Kane. Moreover, by the end of the season he could be a Premier League-winning skipper.
There are other leaders in England’s set-up, which reduces the need for Henderson’s on-pitch leadership. But his positive attributes shouldn’t be discounted.
4. The New Kid on the Block – Declan Rice
Declan Rice’s expected inclusion in the next squad will force England’s other holding midfielders to up their game, which can only be a good thing. But is there a genuine chance Rice could walk straight into the team and make the position his own?
It’s a possibility that shouldn’t be ignored outright. After all, Rice is debatably having a superior season to both Dier and Henderson. Indeed, Rice has won more total duels per 90 minutes in the Premier League this season (5.69) than Henderson (4.09) and Dier (4.37).
On this list, Rice is probably most comparable to Dier in terms of his positional experience. Beginning his career as a centre-back before switching to midfield, Rice has shown an admirable level of composure on the ball, which has seen him become undroppable for the Hammers. On top of that, only Pedro Obiang (1.83) has made more tackles per 90 league minutes than Rice (1.69) for West Ham this term.
All of that said, there is no guarantee Rice will make a smooth transition from playing well for West Ham to shining for England, despite his experience for the Republic of Ireland. The 20-year-old could rise to the top of this list in no time at all, but at the same time there is as of yet no evidence he will easily oust the names above.
5. Mr. Versatile – Fabian Delph
More than anything else, Fabian Delph has become a utility player since leaving Aston Villa for Manchester City. He spent most of last season at left-back for his club, where his versatility and attitude undeniably contributed to City’s Premier League title win.
England are relatively well-stocked at left-back compared to City, so Delph has usually been used in a tried and tested midfield role. In that position, he has trodden the line between a back-up option and challenger for a starting spot.
Ultimately, Delph hasn’t done enough to convince Southgate he should be in the line-up on a regular basis. However, the 29-year-old is an incredibly convenient alternative to England’s other holding midfielders and is likely to be included in every squad until the day comes for him to retire from international duty.
The post The pecking order for England’s midfield holding role appeared first on Squawka News.
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