Former Manchester United defender Rio Ferdinand has pinpointed the moment where Gareth Southgate let England down at the 2022 FIFA World Cup.
The former England defender has insisted that Southgate was not good enough with his substitutions against France in the quarter-finals of the FIFA World Cup.
The Three Lions boss did not make a single change until the 79th minute despite his side trailing 2-1. Ferdinand credited Southgate for doing a commendable job at the FIFA World Cup but insisted that his substitutions were not proactive. In his Vibe with Five YouTube show, he said:
“Our substitutions is where I think Gareth Southgate let us down. I think he’s been pitch-perfect, touch-perfect in almost every decision he’s made up to this point, but you get into a game like yesterday where this is really where it matters now, and I think Gareth Southgate came up short in the tactical element in terms of substitutions.”
He continued:
“That’s part of tactics, making substitutions, and in-game management and deciding games with substitutions at the business end of a tournament, I think he would hold his hands up maybe in retrospect.”
“I threw a text in the group, and I stand by this: Gareth, in the moment, wasn’t proactive with his substitutions, he was reactive.”
Ferdinand claimed that England had enough firepower on the bench who could have impacted had they been given enough time on the pitch. He added:
“It hit 1-1 and we’re sitting there going ‘take the bull by the horns, make a substitution, get us on the front foot’. You’ve got Rashford, you’ve got Grealish who can go on, get us on the front foot and change this game.”
He concluded by saying:
“You’re sitting there going ‘It’s too late, man’. You’ve got to do this when we’ve got the chance of still winning this game and taking the game from them.”
England attacker hailed by former FIFA World Cup winner
Former Arsenal star Mesut Ozil heaped praise on England winger Bukayo Saka following their elimination from the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar. The World Cup-winning former German playmaker credited the Three Lions for their showings in the 2022 FIFA World Cup.
He singled out his former Arsenal teammate Bukayo Saka who had a sensational campaign for the Three Lions. Ozil tweeted:
“You don’t need to feel ashamed Team England. A strong performance against the current World Champion, good defending against Mbappe & Co., but France very effective as always. Great game from my brother @BukayoSaka87 – the future belongs to you. #ENGFRA #FIFAWorldCup.”
While this may all be cold comfort to the losing nation, the players should be proud of their performances. For now, they must return to their clubs and prepare for the resumption of the Premier League season.
