England got the job done with a 2-0 win over Andorra, but it wasn’t the prettiest performance overall.
The Three Lions bounced back following a defeat against Senegal in a friendly last international break. Thomas Tuchel maintains his 100% record as England manager in official competitions, with four wins in four games in the World Cup Qualifiers.
However, the last two have a lot in common: uninspiring wins against Andorra (1-0 last June and 2-0 today). It was another one of those matches with 80%+ possession but not a lot to show for it. Mainly sideways passing in “U” shape around the box and a general lack of excitement.
At the same time, there was one thing that worked well despite not even being Tuchel’s plan A: the right side.
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Reece James, Elliot Anderson and Noni Madueke stand out for England
England started the game clearly trying to force their actions down the left and take advantage of Marcus Rashford’s pace and skill out wide. Myles Lewis-Skelly would often occupy more central spaces with Declan Rice charging forward in underlapping runs.
However, their main chances – and nearly all their attempts – came from the opposite side. Like Rashford, Noni Madueke was being a nuisance on the right wing, taking defenders on and trying to make things happen.
Reece James was solid in support and playing wider than usual for Chelsea, where he tends to drop into midfield. His role was different, but equally important trying to find dangerous through balls and crosses.
Meanwhile, Elliot Anderson was the heartbeat of the team. He drifted more and more to the left as the game went on, but started as the right-defensive midfielder in a double pivot alongside Rice. The Nottingham Forest man stayed back almost aligned to the centre-backs and broke lines for fun with his passes. It was refreshing to see that instead of just recycling possession and robotically spraying the ball out to the full-back.
James crowned his strong performance with an assist – a perfect cross that gave Rice a free header to score England’s second and final goal.
Still, it could’ve happened earlier. Iker Alvarez denied Anderson brilliantly in the start of the second half. It was almost an open net and one could argue the debutant should’ve scored, but he received a bad pass from Harry Kane – who had a really poor game all around. Didn’t take anything from Anderson’s great performance though.
Madueke also didn’t pick up a goal or an assist, but led the Three Lions in chances created, tackles and successful take-ons.
Plan B > Plan A
Opta data shows that England ended the game with 42.0% of their actions on the right side, as opposed to 37% on the left and 21% down the middle. But that number was favoured heavily to the left in the first 20 minutes: 48% to just 34% on the right.
So despite scheming to take advantages from the left, Thomas Tuchel did well to adapt quickly and shift the focus to the right side.
England attempted 11 shots in the game against Andorra, and nine of them had assists – all of which came from the right, no exceptions. The two unassisted shots had Madueke involved: a brilliant solo run that led to a Rashford effort off target following an Eberechi Eze blocked shot and the own goal that opened the scoring.
It also felt like the Three Lions were trying to pass their way through the defence and towards the goal. That’s why Rashford and especially Madueke’s performances were refreshing. They were two of the few who were trying something different. James and Anderson also did that with their passes, which is their way to contribute.
Still not pretty or hugely convincing from Tuchel, who will face his first big test as England manager next Tuesday against Serbia. Hope lies in the higher level of competition, that maybe makes the Three Lions show up in a way that Andorra, Latvia and Albania couldn’t.