Southgate may have to sacrifice Bellingham's position to unlock Foden

England have entered the knockout round of EURO 2024 as the top team in Group C. However, the Three Lions still show stagnation and deadlock in their playing style. After each match, fans hope that Gareth Southgate needs to do something better, but it is the same.

Over the years, English football has produced a series of world- class attacking stars. Like previous tournaments, perhaps the "Three Lions" squad is not suitable to cram all the brightest stars to play together.

After the Slovenia game, the positions of Phil Foden and Jude Bellingham were the most controversial. Southgate may have to choose between one of these stars playing in the "number 10" role. It is clear that this duo is not effective when they often overlap positions.

England's average position map against Slovenia shows how Foden and Bellingham are blocking each other. Photo: Telegraph

The map above shows that Foden and Bellingham’s average positions are chaotic, with two of England’s most creative talents competing for the same space. Going into the Slovenia game, Foden started on the left in a 4-1-4-1 system and Bellingham joined Gallagher centrally. Notably, Foden and Bellingham switched positions frequently but neither seemed to want to play out wide.

As a result, England’s left wing continued to be ineffective, just like in the previous two matches. The Three Lions did not have a true left winger, and Trippier was not allowed to venture forward because he played with his left foot.

Based on the results of the three group stage matches, it seems that Bellingham is the underperformer in the England squad. The Real Madrid star has been out of sync and unable to make the difference he has made in his club career.

Apart from his goal against Serbia, Bellingham's performance was completely lackluster. Photo: AFP

For Foden, the Man City midfielder shows how Southgate’s plans fit in with wingers and attacking midfielders constantly switching roles. England need to play with genuine wingers and the squad has plenty of them, such as Bukayo Saka, Anthony Gordon, Cole Palmer and Eberechi Eze.

Foden had a better performance than his previous two games but it was still a far cry from his Man City form. At the Etihad, the 24-year-old midfielder fitted into familiar patterns that Pep Guardiola’s players know all too well.

At Man City, Foden often played in the half-space on the edge of the box. He could create chances by appearing behind the opposition defence. Foden has tried to replicate that for England as best he can, although it is not easy.

Foden played much more energetically than in the previous two matches. Photo: AFP

Bellingham should accept that he is not good enough and that a place on the bench is inevitable. Southgate has to make a difficult choice but it will help England find better attacking options. The knockout stages are no longer the place to experiment.

Source: https://laodong.vn/bong-da-quoc-te/southgate-co-the-phai-hi-sinh-vi-tri-cua-bellingham-de-mo-khoa-foden-1357716.ldo