Luka Modric showed a need to twist Gareth Southgate's back three

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It was wonderful to see England again at a big tournament. And to see them play from the back, which allows us to believe that English teams can do it.

We know that with us they have made a lot of pride and contributed to the unity of the country. They changed the way players are perceived and gave hope to everyone in the national team.

Gareth Southgate should take a lot of credit for all of the above and partly to have designed a system suited to these players. We do not really have the kind of midfielder who controls the tempo of a game or who goes through small creative passes, like Philippe Coutinho or Luka Modric. Dele Alli and Jesse Lingard have made the best use of our strengths in the midfield.

England was again happy to watch a big tournament in Russia this summer

The last three allowed Harry Maguire to shine and take out the ball just like John Stones., Although I would have liked to see him play on the good side of the defense so that he has even more opportunities to do so. </ P> <p> Harry Kane was able to take the shoes off. But we had a penalty shootout and won two playoff games, so there are a lot of positives to f

Of course, Gareth Southgate and the players will miss a missed opportunity. A draw at halftime and a 22 minute play time brought them closer to the ultimate football game.

I'm sure the staff will know what he could have changed in the second half. The most obvious was that if the 3-5-2 form worked well for us against less opposition, it became 5-3-2 against better teams. And then he lost his efficiency. All systems have their Achilles heel and, as a great defender of the last three, I know very well how it can go wrong.

This is what happened in the second half when Ante Rebic and Ivan Perisic started foot forward. Suddenly, Kieran Trippier and Ashley Young were forced to side positions, almost for the first time in the tournament. The three backs of England then ended up scoring a man in Mario Mandzukic

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England lacks the kind of medium that controls the tempo of a game like Luka Modric [19659020KieranTrippieretAshleyYoungwasstopenedbylateralpositionsbycrossbreadmails” class=”blkBorder img-share” />

Kieran Trippier and Ashley Young were forced to back positions by The Croatian Wingers

The fact that Trippier and The Young were pushed back, leaving space for Sime Vrsaljko, Right rear of Croatia. (You did not see so much of Ivan Strinic, the left-back because he was carrying an injury.) So Alli had to shuttlecock to cover her left flank and try to cope with Luka Modric and Ivan Rakitic. He covered an extraordinary 9.7 miles in the game, 4.2 miles from the ball; more than anyone other than Marcelo Brozovic. So there was even more space for Modric to work.

With everyone deeply and Dele concerned about an extra man, England could not muster a threat of attack. Which meant that the man Modric was simply getting more and more balloons, and that England was just hanging on.

A change was needed before Croatia scored its second goal. Raheem Sterling and Harry Kane were still playing as two before, while Sterling should have been told to come in and stop Vrsaljko's runs. When Marcus Rashford arrived, I thought it was there that he would have played. But he played more or less in the same position as Sterling.

The other way to change is to move to a fourth back when you defend, Kyle Walker coming back right away. This allows Kieran Trippier to go back and complete your midfield, which supports Dele. Lingard had to harass their midfield and you were not outnumbered.

Dele Alli a had to commute to cover both Modric and Ivan Rakitic

Raheem Sterling (pictured) or Marcus Rashford should have been asked to help in the back

Gareth Southgate will have a plan for next time and against Spain next is the perfect challenge

As soon as you win z the ball, you can find yourself in a third back, Maguire pushing a little further than Walker with Stones as a sweeper. Trippier and Young are again conventional wing-backs. I used this system in a friendly against Portugal in 1998 with David Beckham and Graeme Le Saux as wingers.

Knowing Gareth Southgate, he'll have a plan for next time. By coincidence, the next two matches of the League of Nations of UEFA are against Croatia and Spain.

So it's the perfect time to try something new. Spain will have more possession than us, so it's a perfect chance to know how to beat the best teams.

Overall, Southgate and Steve Holland deserve tremendous credit for devising a system that has almost ended the problems we previously had on short sides when we used to find ourselves not creating chances and not not have opportunities. Now let's go to the next step and see the best teams.

Wish a good match to finish the World Cup on a good note

There was not a good team at this World Cup, nor a very good person. Which is curious because it is as if it was an excellent competition. I think that's because we have seen a lot of good matches, Spain against Portugal, Germany against Mexico and Sweden, Argentina against Croatia and Nigeria and against France in the last 16. Then there was Belgium against Japan and their superb match against Brazil. …

And we saw some good moments from Kylian Mbappe. Not enough to call it a real big one. He did not do enough in the semifinal, but he's only 19 years old. His performance against Argentina was excellent. The run that he did for the penalty made me think of Michael Owen against Argentina in 1998 when he burst onto the world stage.

Mbappe created the biggest buzz among the fans when he got the ball and in that respect he eclipsed Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo and Neymar, who came home early

<img id = "i-2fa37e3b33500235" src = "https://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/newpix/2018 /07/14/21/4E3D630200000578-5954589-image-a-1_1531601568816.jpg "height =" 423 "width =" 634 "alt =" N & # 39; Golo Kante has been outstanding in every aspect of his game. Golo Kante was exceptional in all aspects of his game and had a superb World Cup

For Croatia, a nation of four million people, to win the Sunday World Cup would be historic

France played well against Argentina but there is still a feeling that there is more to come. We did not really see the best of Paul Pogba and Antoine Griezmann. But N & # 39; Golo Kante was outstanding – not just doing defensive work but carrying the ball 30 meters from the midfield. He had a great World Cup.

France is favorite today. Croatia did well to stay in the match on Wednesday and then come back, with Luka Modric, who was not able to kick in the first half, but was supreme after the break. England should have disturbed them more, and I suspect a better midfielder from France.

For Croatia, a nation of four million, winning would be historic. For France, it would be a powerful answer after losing this final of Euro 2016 in Paris. I just hope we will have a great game to complete a very good tournament.

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