Granted, England do not have an N’Golo Kanté to effect major positive change in midfield, but they do have promising youngster Adam Lallana and above-reproach Wayne Rooney and out-tactic-ing master Sam Allardyce, so what could possibly go wrong?
Advertisement
Ruslan Gurbanov’s goal just before half-time saw Azerbaijan get their campaign off to a winning start with a 1-0 victory over 10-man San Marino, who had Cristian Brolli sent off early in the second half, and the Czech Republic drew 0-0 with Northern Ireland.
But Lallana turned familiar frustration into a dramatic win when his left-foot strike squirmed over the line to seal a 1-0 win in the closing moments of injury-time. Did Allardyce see a different performance altogether?
“A father of a son in a wheelchair came to the hotel in the morning and asked if it was okay to have a picture with his son”. We won, so it’ll stay with me.
“It was a great feeling, I’m not going to lie about that, but the main thing was the three points, definitely”. “I wonder how far it will take us?”
Adam Lallana celebrates his match-winner.
“It’s been a long time coming, ” Lallana said.
“I put pressure on myself to score goals”.
“We got what we deserved in the end, and won it in the last minute. You can’t forget how hard it is to play in Slovakia, but we dominated the game”.
You’re the manager, you can do what you want with the players and their positions. “When we finished he said: ‘Let me give you a lucky coin'”.
Put worldwide experience to the side, the former West Ham United and Bolton Wanderers boss is the England manager, and he tells players where they should play and must take players out who are harming the team in general.
“Finally we did get the goal and it’s (Lallana’s) first goal for England, so good luck to him”.
“I’m captain of the team and I feel I can do a very good job in the role I played tonight”, Rooney told Sky Sports. “I can’t stop Wayne playing there”.
Thus, it is important that Allardyce brings out the best in his captain and plays him in an advanced position rather than giving him the freedom to roam all over the field.
Advertisement
Allardyce, who offered the central defender John Stones praise for his performance, employed Rooney in midfield, allowing him the leeway to read the game and determine where best he could exert his influence.
