England head coach Gareth Southgate has heaped praises on his English player after fighting their way back to draw 1-1 with Germany at the Allianz Arena on Tuesday.
Jonas Hofmann gave the host the lead in the second half but Harry Kane scored his 50th England career goal to earn a point for the three lions.
What did Southgate say about England’s comeback?
Speaking to reporters after the game, Gareth Southgate said: “To respond in the way they did was fantastic, I thought in the balance of the overall game it was well deserved.
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“It’s an important sign for them as much as anything – of course for everybody else watching, but when you’re in a team, this group, with still seven or eight who got us to a World Cup semi-final, that’s why those players are so important to us because that core of the team put their bodies on the line for each other and on nights like that you have to do that to get a result.
“With the quality, we had on the show, we thought we had to raise the bar. We could see the game was there for us when we got the ball to the other side of their midfield, we were in business.
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“In the second half, we started a little bit slow out of possession. We weren’t aggressive enough with our pressure and conceded.”
Meanwhile, Gareth Southgate also hailed the impact of Jack Grealish after the Manchester City star replaced Mason Mount in the 70th minute.
The introduction of Jack Grealish in the last 20 minutes of the game turned the game around for the three lions and the Manchester City star seems to have injected new firepower into the team.
When Southgate was quizzed if Jack Grealish is a starter or impact player, Gareth Southgate responded: “I think he can be both.
“If we didn’t trust him we wouldn’t put him on the pitch with 20 minutes to go in the belief he can make a difference.
“The start of the game, the challenge to the wide players to attack, defend, try to score goals at a high tactical level and you’ve got to be spot on.
“I think that’s an area Jack can get better at and what he did do was carry the ball and at that moment of the game as it opens up there’s a little more space, a little more opportunity, and also that freshness.
“The impact that he and Jarrod Bowen had was really important in those attacking areas. There is a good challenge there, good competition for places and we’ve got to keep pushing them.”
Harry Kane scored a record 50th career England goal on Tuesday, three goals less from equalling Wayne Rooney’s 53 England goals to become all-time England Top scorer.
Southgate continued: “The finish is exceptional, isn’t it?’ ‘The pressure at that moment, he trusts his technique. We have huge faith in him. I haven’t seen the re-run (of the decision) again.
“It looked at the time as though there had been an obstruction on him, at the very least. I’m assuming the referee has looked at it and decided that was the case.
“Rightly, the fact that he’s got 50 goals will be the center part of the story. But his all-around game, the way he led the line, the way he competed, the way he pressed from the front for us today was exceptional.”
