Euro 2020 wounds are raw but Southgate’s young squad can, with the right changes to smooth the flaws, be a force in Qatar
England slipped from their horse at the last but, once they have cleared the grit from their eyes and stopped seeing stars, they may yet find it has waited for them. While the wounds of defeat in Wembley’s biggest game for more than half a decade will smart acutely, there is little time for them to fester; in 17 months there will probably be another knife-edge denouement to digest and the task for Gareth Southgate, as the international calendar rattles along at uncommon speed, will be to ensure it is somewhat happier.
If Gianluigi Donnarumma’s parry from Bukayo Saka felt like the end of a journey, there may come an opportunity to present it as the continuation of one: perhaps a trampolining point from one World Cup to another. The coronavirus-addled schedule has crammed two major tournaments closer together than ever and thoughts must turn immediately to how England can draw on their better work, while smoothing out their flaws, before Qatar 2022 begins next November.
