England epitomise international break in timely Ukraine draw amid Southgate, Guardiola talk

England have made a depressing week even worse by epitomising the international break with a dull performance against an average Ukraine side…

The qualifying process for teams like England feels utterly pointless every time they step on the pitch, so at least their drab draw against Ukraine showed there is an element of competitiveness in a non-tournament setting. That was probably the only positive to take out of a very difficult-to-watch 90 minutes on Saturday.

That, and Kyle Walker getting his first international goal, which came from a sublime Harry Kane pass deep in his own half. Kane dropping in between his centre-backs is a common theme that frustrates many spectators and ironically was something co-commentator Dion Dublin enjoyed complaining about until his 41st-minute assist.

There were no individual performances to rave about and Jordan Henderson being in the starting XI annoyed us before the game got underway, all while the weather was bloody lovely back home. Sometimes getting paid to watch football is not worth it and surprise, surprise, this qualifier was not worth it.

In a week in which it has been reported that Gareth Southgate could leave after Euro 2024, with Pep Guardiola potentially being lined up as his successor, it was fitting to see England play very passively, especially in the final third.

Southgate’s style of play has been heavily scrutinised ever since he walked into the job. He has done a tremendous job and is clearly a great man manager, but is he the man to get England winning tournaments? It is hard to say yes having watched the draw against a Ukraine side that celebrated like they won the game after the full-time whistle. But if we are to take wins against the likes of Andorra with a pinch of salt, we really should with any result, and the latest one is not an exception.

We will be able to properly see what this England team is made of in a tournament setting and for the first time in Southgate’s reign, they will go into one as favourites.

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The Three Lions had no right to win the 2018 World Cup, yet they were so close to the final and last year were beaten by the holders in the quarter-finals. Euro 2020 was slightly different given their Wembley advantage, but England have never had the best squad in a competitive tournament.

Next year is different given the incredible improvement of Kyle Walker, John Stones, Bukayo Saka, Jude Bellingham and more. Not long ago it felt like Kane was their only world-class player but the four players just mentioned are all in that bracket now.

There was talk of Southgate resigning after losing to France in Qatar and he rightly stayed on. With talk already creeping up about his future post-Euro 2024; it feels like he has to win it all in Germany, and if he does, he has the right to choose if he wants to stay or leave on a high.

Regardless of what happens, Guardiola would obviously be a massive upgrade; he is the best manager in the world, after all. Even if the Manchester City boss has the incredible Erling Haaland leading the line, you can never say he gets bailed out by one of his players, but that is something that happens for England under Southgate, with Kane picking the lock with a sublime assist against Ukraine.

That moment of class, especially from a striker of all players, was the reason a boring 1-1 draw was not an alarming 1-0 loss. England controlled the game but had no cutting edge and the closest they came to scoring after the goal was a long-range Saka effort that struck the crossbar. Had that gone in, it would have been another piece of individual brilliance to give the Three Lions the three points.

Obviously, the result in the grand scheme of things does not matter. Watching the television coverage it quickly becomes evident that it is all about the tournament they are essentially warming up for. But for the smaller nations, there is no discussion about what will happen at the tournament, only getting there.

If anything can epitomise how pointless the qualifying stage is for a team like England, it is the fact they have already qualified before a ball is kicked.