Back to the Chelsea Newsfeed

OLIVER HOLT: Let’s enjoy Jack Grealish and Phil Foden but one man will be the rock for this England team... at 21, Declan Rice is already a highly-accomplished defensive midfielder and the amount of potential he still has to unlock is frightening

In the haste to profess adoration for Jack Grealish and the slow burn of satisfaction at the embarrassment of riches available to England in attacking positions, it is sometimes easy to ignore the conundrum Gareth Southgate is facing as he tries to assemble a starting XI that can win the Euros next summer.

It is easy to see that England is overflowing with youthful talent in attack but Southgate is searching for a system that will best camouflage weaknesses in defence where, too often, the national team looks vulnerable and one-paced.

Nobody particularly likes the 3-4-3 formation that pragmatism has presented because it is essentially an exercise in damage limitation.