England condemned to Nations League relegation after dismal defeat to Italy
England condemned to Nations League relegation after dismal defeat to Italy: Before, in his dreams about Molineux, Gareth Southgate was already here. In June, after England’s 4-0 loss to Hungary, the manager went out onto the field to cheer on the home fans.
The vitriol in the boos that greeted him was palpable.
Nations League
Southgate needed a mood-changer to restore belief after the team’s disappointing start to the Nations League campaign, which included draws against Germany and Italy and a loss to Hungary on the road.
But that would lead to more disappointment, more dead ends, and less innovation.
Once again, after it was all done, Southgate walked onto the field to applaud the away fans. They began a tirade of insults.
To be fair, Southgate is to blame for the lack of encouraging evidence they had seen up to that point.
The game was decided late when the emerging star Giacomo Raspadori killed a high ball and thought Kyle Walker gave him too much room.
Italy were deserving winners, sending England down to the Nations League’s second division.
The Napoli striker took a few touches to get himself in the proper position, moving away from Walker, before curling a magnificent shot with his right foot and sending it into the far corner. This past June was Raspadori’s first appearance in Italy. He’s scored four times already.
Euro
England’s swoon has arrived at a terrible moment, with the World Cup starting in late November. This likely means their demotion from the Nations League will impact their Euro 2024 qualification draw.
Going ahead in the Nations League, they will face weaker competition, limiting their exposure to top competition and the opportunity to improve. Those concerns, though, seem tangential.
The major issue is whether Southgate and his players will be able to block out the noise and the oppressive narratives that are swiftly emerging as they prepare for their opening World Cup match against Iran.
Before that, though, they have a daunting task ahead of them on Monday: a matchup versus Germany at Wembley in the last match of the Nations League. That settles the matter.
Even worse than England’s winless streak of five games (their worst such run since 2014 under Roy Hodgson), the Three Lions have scored just once in that span, and that came courtesy of a penalty kick from Harry Kane against Germany. One other side in the Nations League does not have a goal scored against them in competitive play. To be specific, San Marino.
England and Italy
In his press conference on Thursday night, Southgate mentioned that England had not won in Italy since 1961. He felt that his squad was built for just such a challenge.
It was also like an appeal for some sort of perspective. Although Italy may not be participating in the World Cup this year, remember: it’s Italy.
Even with veterans like Gianluigi Donnarumma and Leonardo Bonucci and up-and-comers like Jorginho, this Italy team is still developing and is not yet scary.
The vast unoccupied sections of San Siro symbolized local apathy and the continuing misery of Italy’s absence from Qatar.
In the first half especially, England had a tough time. Their passing was sloppy, and many of their touches were rough. Nick Pope, the team’s goalie, didn’t exactly inspire confidence with his delivery, so passing the ball back to him was a risky proposition. Off to a rare start on the right wing, Phil Foden provided some much-needed stability.
Italy started the game by diving into tackles, pressing England high up the field, and launching dangerous balls up the channels and across the sides.
Spot
Gianluca Scamacca had a header saved by Pope after Federico Dimarco crossed to the far post. Later in the first half, England got lucky when Raspadori botched a touch on a cut-back from the right side. The visitors attempted to attack Bukayo Saka’s blind spot on the left flank.
Despite switching back to a back-three formation, Southgate still aspired to be innovative. Thus, Reece James was picked to play right wingback, Saka was picked to play center-forward, and Jude Bellingham started in the middle. But the offensive strategy was vague at best.
They’d be quick to lament the fact whenever Southgate made a bad call or botched an action. He sounded like he was reaching for thin air.
Before halftime, England failed to pressure Italy because they could not get in their back line. It appeared as though Bonucci and company were completely comfortable.
Not much changed in the second half, despite a late charge.
James had an opportunity from a tight angle, but he wasted it by lifting a well-placed free kick high over the crossbar. Donnarumma returned his blow by pounding on the table.
Player
Why didn’t Kane make a square move? Kane followed up his initial shot with another directed at Donnarumma on the rebound. Bellingham pushed forward, hoping for a header in stoppage time, but his chances were slim.
After the break, Italy posed a threat, with Scamacca nearly setting up Nicolo Barella, but an offside flag prevented a goal. It took a virtually perfect backheel from Giovanni Di Lorenzo to crack the English defense, and then Raspadori struck gold with a beautiful shot.
Southgate replaced Walker and Saka with Luke Shaw and Jack Grealish, and he shifted to a 4-2-3-1 formation with Raheem Sterling as the No. 10 player.
Italy could have scored twice if the issue had nothing to do with the formation. Substitute Manolo Gabbiadini had a one-on-one with the keeper, but Pope made the save, and a cross-come-shot by Dimarco hit the far post and bounced back.