Ruud Gullit couldn’t wrap his head around why Gareth Southgate substituted Arsenal forward Bukayo Saka for Chelsea winger Raheem Sterling as England were knocked out of the Qatar World Cup by France.
Moments after ex-Arsenal man Olivier Giroud put France back into the lead, Southgate decided to bring off Saka for Sterling, who hadn’t played since the group stages because he had to return home.
The issue here was that Southgate was taking off a player that was probably England’s best player on the night, he had already won one penalty and he should have been awarded a few more free-kicks during the game.
Theo Hernandez and France’s midfield, just couldn’t handle Arsenal’s star. Yet he was hooked off and that was for a player that was coming back from the cold.
In the end, it was a call that just didn’t work out, as Dutch legend Gullit was left baffled by Southgate’s actions, as he told beIN SPORTS (10/12/22 at 9:10 pm).
“Saka was the only one who was really, really good,” said Gullit. “Why did you take him off?
“I don’t think he (Sterling) is near what he was a couple of seasons ago. Therefore, why would you do that? And he didn’t do anything (when he came on).”
SOUTHGATE REACTIVE AGAIN
Once again, another tournament passes by where Southgate is reactive rather than proactive.
The same happened at Euro 2020 and those same issues have shown their ugly side in Qatar.
Even someone like Marcus Rashford, who was England’s top-scorer during the tournament, only had five minutes towards the end to make a change.
This lack of bravery and pro-active nature is one of Southgate’s biggest weaknesses, as it’s another quarter-final exit for the Three Lions.
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