Talking Tactics: Andorra frustrate England but fall to familiar scoreline

A fully rotated England side were respectable 4-0 winners against their 156th-ranked opponents at Wembley.

Andorra came with a game plan and for much of the match they stood as firm as the Pyrenees mountains that encompass the small principality of 77,000 people.

They were initially broken down by Jesse Lingard's 18th-minute finish but the minnows, who were coming into the game on the back of a win against San Marino, clung on without conceding a second for another 54 minutes.

Gareth Southgate, understanding how important goal difference could be, brought some of his big hitters off of the bench, two of whom played a part in the second goal.

Mason Mount was brought down in the box, letting captain Harry Kane step up and convert from the spot.

It was 3-0 six minutes later as Lingard grabbed a brace after receiving the ball from Bukayo Saka, before placing the ball past Gomes from the edge of the box.

Roles were reversed in the 84th minute when a short corner was played to Lingard, whose cross found Saka to head home.

He became the first Arsenal player to score and assist in the same game for the Three Lions since Ian Wright did so against Moldova in September 1997.

Bamford’s debut

Patrick Bamford's long wait for an England cap come to an end. 

The Leeds forward last pulled on a Three Lions shirt at Under-21 level in 2014 and many would have seen this as a great opportunity for him to join a unique group of players to score on their senior debut. 

But it was not to be as he cut a frustrated figure leading the line on his own for 62 minutes before being replaced by Kane.

Nine of the 10 starting English outfield players completed more passes than the entire Andorra side combined (33) but Bamford (eight) was the only player for the Three Lions not to.

Southgate did offer up some sympathy for his No9.

He said: "He [Bamford] had two centre-backs on him most of the time, very tight marking and it was difficult to find space.

"The experience would have been an important one for him, it is not easy for any player making their debut.

"We weren’t able to score as many early as we would have liked and it makes the game a little more anxious for the players."

Trent’s new role

Trent Alexander-Arnold, who admitted this week that his recent England performances have been “mediocre” and not enough to justify a regular place in the starting line-up, was pushed into a midfield position by Southgate. 

Against a side like Andorra, it seemed a pretty safe way to test how he would adapt in a more advanced role and this had been the thinking of the Three Lions boss.

He said: "We know that he is an outstanding footballer — we’ve wanted to have a look at him in a midfield position for a while.

"He is fabulous with the ball, today is an opportunity, he’s got to play the role his own way."

But it is very much a work in progress.

A passenger for large parts of the first half, Alexander-Arnold was much less involved than midfield partners Jordan Henderson and Jude Bellingham.

He switched with Reece James after the break, dropping into his more natural home of right-back.

Will we see the Liverpool man back in midfield again? Only time will tell but it was not the most inspiring of auditions.

Another clean sheet

England kept their 11th clean sheet of 2021, levelling the most they have previously achieved in a single calendar year back in 1966.

Granted, it came against a side that had never scored in any of the four previous meetings but the partnership of Tyrone Mings and Conor Coady looked comfortable throughout.

It can be easy to lose concentration in fixtures like this but the pair remained switched on and allowed Sam Johnstone in goal to have one of the easiest 90 minutes of his career.

Wide delight

Against Hungary in midweek, England’s best threat came down the wings as Jack Grealish and Raheem Sterling encountered plenty of joy in Budapest.

Tonight, it was Lingard and Saka’s turn to take the baton and carry it forward.

On both occasions, the Three Lions faced a tight defensive unit and it was their wide play that was crucial to breaking it down.

Saka and Lingard left Wembley with goals and assists to their names and will give Southgate a selection dilemma ahead of Wednesday’s match in Poland.

On the up

In years gone by, it has been easy to dismiss fixtures against opponents like Andorra but their resolute performance shows why these opponents should never be taken for granted.

With infrastructure continually improving, Europe’s lower-ranked nations will only keep strengthening.

Five of Andorra’s eight wins since joining UEFA in 1996 have come this side of 2017, with an additional 11 draws in that time.

It is thanks to their rigid defence, as was evident at Wembley, that they have had this upturn in results, keeping 13 clean sheets in the last five years.

Of course, they are not going to be qualifying for a major tournament any time soon but bigger countries are less likely to be guaranteed a walkover.