Gareth Southgate is confident that Jude Bellingham will develop as a member of the England team following his successful resilience against Brazil’s aggressive strategies.
Bellingham’s fame was reinforced by his tough encounter during England’s 1-0 loss to the five-time world champions at Wembley on Saturday night. The midfielder from Real Madrid attempted to lead the attack against Brazil by taking control of the ball and charging at them, but was met with several sneaky fouls that impeded his progress.
The statistics revealed that Bellingham was subject to five fouls and it appeared that Brazil was attempting to agitate him. The 20-year-old had to be cautious after receiving a yellow card for a dangerous challenge on Bruno Guimarães.
Bellingham plays with a fierce intensity and opponents at Euro 2024 may attempt to take advantage of this. It is important to mention that he has received nine yellow cards while playing for Madrid this season and was suspended after receiving a red card against Valencia earlier this month. However, Southgate believes that Bellingham will grow and improve from Brazil’s physically aggressive style of play.
The head coach of England acknowledged that the opponent is a strong team with a high level of aggression. In a more intense match, there likely would have been more penalties to control their behavior. Despite this, it was a valuable learning experience for the player.
“I felt that he handled the situation admirably this evening. He was shown a yellow card, but it could have easily gone in his favor on multiple occasions. But the main issue tonight was that he was experiencing cramps. Given his recent absence from the game, it’s apparent that he’s still working to regain his peak physical form.”
Southgate believes that Lucas Paquetá from Brazil deserved a second yellow card in the first half, and when asked if he talks to Bellingham about controlling his emotions, he replied that he had already spoken to all the players before the game about the physical nature of playing against a South American team and the likelihood of there being many fouls.
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In a competitive game, the number of fouls would not match the number of cards given, and this would prevent the team from constantly committing fouls.
The FA announced on Sunday evening that Kyle Walker, Harry Maguire, and Sam Johnstone have left the squad due to injuries sustained while playing for England. The trio have returned to their clubs for assessment.
Walker was substituted in the beginning of the game against Brazil due to a hamstring issue. This injury may be worrying for his team Manchester City, as they have an important Premier League match against Arsenal on Sunday.
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On Saturday, Maguire was substituted out at the 67-minute mark, having just recovered from an injury. Manchester City’s Rico Lewis and Burnley’s goalkeeper James Trafford have both been moved up to the main team from the under 21s for the upcoming match against Belgium.
The latest injuries only exacerbate the frustrations of Southgate’s camp, as he was already missing numerous players due to illness or injury.
Ollie Watkins struggled to fill Harry Kane’s spot in the attack during England’s game against Brazil, highlighting Kane’s absence. Furthermore, the forward from Bayern Munich has already departed from the team ahead of their upcoming friendly against Belgium.
Southgate explained that the current injury is a rare occurrence, as the player’s foot became entangled in the netting. The player has expressed satisfaction with the strength of his ankles recently and has had a break during the winter season. As their domestic cup is not currently in play, there are limited measures that can be taken. However, due to the player’s strong work ethic, he will do everything possible to recover and be ready for upcoming matches.
Source: theguardian.com
