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England have teething problems in their squad - but a huge long-term issue could be just around the corner
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The best features, fun and footballing quizzes, straight to your inbox every week. Become a Member in Seconds Unlock instant access to exclusive member features. You are now subscribed Your newsletter sign-up was successful Want to add more newsletters? Five times a week Four Four Two Daily Fantastic football content straight to your inbox! From the latest transfer news, quizzes, videos, features and interviews with the biggest names in the game, plus lots more. Once a week . .. And it’s LIVE! Sign up to our FREE live football newsletter, tracking all of the biggest games available to watch on the device of your choice. Never miss a kick-off! Join the club Get full access to premium articles, exclusive features and a growing list of member rewards. Ian Wright watched England's drab loss against Japan from the comfort of ITV's Wembley studio alongside Joleon Lescott and Mark Pougatch, the voice of reason that it was only a friendly and that the boys will come good when it matters. And there are kids today who will know him purely for just this: being an avuncular presence during international tournaments, podcast appearances and the occasional Arsenal kit launch. And yet Wrighty was world-class: a pre-internet Vardy, an Henry before Henry. He scored 185 goals for the Gunners after the age of 27, and a fair few of them were absolute bangers. He had flair in abundance and an instinct for goal like you wouldn't believe. Like his mate Gary Lineker, his brilliance has almost been forgotten since he moved from one box to another box – and the world needs reminding of it sometimes. Yet for the 333 goals that Wright scored in senior football, nine of them came for his country. Nine. He played just 33 times for England – fewer caps than Jude Bellingham has managed at the age of 22. 1997 Tournoi aside, Wright didn't go to a single international tournament with the Three Lions: Ivan Toney and Dominic Calvert-Lewin both have, yet will either of them be spoken of with the reverence of Wright in another 30 years? Get VIP England tickets HERE with Seat Unique England games are a rite of passage for any match-going fan – and unsurprisingly, hospitality tickets for the national side are amongst the very best in the country with pre-match lounge access, premium padded seats, quality dining and complimentary drinks. Matchday programmes and souvenirs are included, while the views are outstanding. You won't want to miss this. Yet the competition for places up front in the 1990s was fierce. In 1992, Wright missed out to future colleagues Lineker and Alan Shearer, along with Alan Smith, who himself had led the line for two title-winning teams by the time the tournament rolled around. By 1996, Les Ferdinand, Teddy Sheringham and Robbie Fowler were all on the scene, before Michael Owen joined them two years later. Andy Cole was good enough to score 187 goals in the top flight and win Manchester United a Treble: yet he, too, didn't go to an international tournament. The age of Shearer came and went, replaced by The Owen Years, where England were led by a Ballon d'Or winner in attack, before Wayne Rooney came along to become England's all-time goalscorer – and then, we're up to the present day with Harry Kane smashing that record into oblivion. All three of them were undeniably world-class centre-forwards: in between, the likes of Peter Crouch, Daniel Sturridge, Jamie Vardy, Danny Welbeck, Marcus Rashford and Ollie Watkins have consistently been a tier below, perhaps not among Europe's elite but good enough to lead the line for clubs in the Champions League. Defeat against Japan in a friendly is hardly the end of the world, but it did pose an interesting problem: where did all the Ian Wrights go? And what are we meant to do with all these Phil Fodens? Simply put, there is no one waiting to snatch Kane's chain in the way that Kane stepped into Rooney's shoes. There isn't even a Ferdinand or a Sheringham – there are Suttons and Heskeys, but producing Propa Centre-Forwards and reliable guitar bands is something that England have done since the Beatles. Now, we're looking to Wet Leg and Dominic Solanke. The best features, fun and footballing quizzes, straight to your inbox every week. Other countries have revolutionised their approach to youth football and suffered as a result, finding that standardising a possession style earlier on coaches out expression. Germany were incredibly lucky that their golden generation of pass masters was led by a wily, Polish-born fox-in-the-box, to balance the number of Krooses and Ozils with someone who could actually finish. Spain, likewise, haven't produced a decent no. 9 since David Villa. Italy were blessed with Francesco Totti, Alessandro Del Piero and Christian Vieri all at once – yet in their quest to find the next Andrea Pirlo, they've been left with Moise Kean leading the line. Now, they haven't made the last three World Cups. Is that where England are heading? Is this a lot of pressure to be heaping on Liam Delap? The world has moved on. Sven-Goran Eriksson had David Beckham and Joe Cole, who were more midfielders, and little beyond that in terms of wide options. Thomas Tuchel has Bukayo Saka, Noni Madueke, Phil Foden, Cole Palmer, Morgan Rogers, Anthony Gordon, Marcus Rashford, Jarrod Bowen and Harvey Barnes, with Max Dowman, Ethan Nwaneri, Rio Ngumoha and Jeremy Monga all coming through their respective youth systems. 33-year-old Kane is, and has been, one of a kind for England for a decade: enough of a target man, a false nine and a lethal goalscorer wrapped in one, and perhaps he is, to a degree, irreplaceable. But the trajectory of a world-class centre-forward is often different to a winger – of which England have enough – and Kane is also proof of that.
Kane was a solid youth player but hardly a wonderkid. He got his shot in an average Tottenham Hotspur side, with Mauricio Pochettino prepared to sacrifice short-term results for the long-term gain of blooding Kane, Dele Alli and others. Top sides don't really do that very often: it's unlikely that Pep Guardiola will give Divin Mubama half a season up front, for example. For whatever reason, very few players enjoy the Erling Haaland journey of becoming a world-class no. 9 in their teenage years. Evan Ferguson and Endrick were both thought to be the next big thing, but both have had to go on loan. Kane was 22 when he was first capped for England; the same age that Robert Lewandowski was when he signed for Borussia Dortmund; the same club that Alexander Isak flopped at. Kylian Mbappe was a winger for a long time and could perhaps be better there; Ousmane Dembele is a winger playing up front himself, while Hugo Ekitike was overlooked entirely by Paris Saint-Germain. Julian Alvarez was a backup to Haaland – who himself got to cook in Norway, Austria and at Dortmund before he was considered the finished product – and the likes of Victor Osimhen, Serhou Guirassy, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, Edinson Cavani, Viktor Gyokeres and Lautaro Martinez only really came to prominence in their 20s. It seems as though England are set for one of two or three things when they eventually replace Harry Kane. Perhaps Jude Bellingham could well be converted into a centre-forward: his debut season at Real Madrid showcased exactly how good his eye for goal is, he can be given the license to drop deep and create just as Kane does, and though he is a midfielder, he's that good a player – and most importantly, that rounded a presence in attack – that he can become That Guy. Swap out Bellingham for Dowman or Nwaneri, too, if you like: both are still teenagers and could well develop into a kind of Aguero-type no. 9 that could benefit Arsenal, and do the job for their country.
Perhaps, England's next great centre-forward really is Delap or Mubama, or even Solanke, Eddie Nketiah, Jay Stansfield or someone else that you've heard of, who's simply waiting to explode into a line-leader at the elite level, in much the same way that Kane did, that Olivier Giroud did for France, or Miroslav Klose did for Germany. Or perhaps, that's it for the great English tradition of a top-level centre-forward, and we'll be left to look on enviously at the age of the Irish and Evan Ferguson. Maybe there's an Italian decade in waiting for the Three Lions, unless they can convince a kid from somewhere else to convert nationality (if only we'd have had the foresight to do so with Leeds-born Haaland, eh). We've been here before, after all. Between Jimmy Greaves' pomp in the 1960s and the emergence of Gary Lineker in the mid-80s, there wasn't really anyone capable of keeping England relevant on the world stage – and the nation suffered, failing to qualify for 1974 and 1978, before a forgettable World Cup in 1982. We really did take Ian Wright for granted in the 90s. Oh, what Thomas Tuchel (or his successor) would do for a player like him to come through now. Mark White is the Digital Content Editor at Four Four Two. During his time on the brand, Mark has written three cover features on Mikel Arteta, Martin Odegaard and the Invincibles, and has written pieces on subjects ranging from Sir Bobby Robson’s time at Barcelona to the career of Robinho. An encyclopedia of football trivia and collector of shirts, he first joined the team back in 2020 as a staff writer. You must confirm your public display name before commenting Please logout and then login again, you will then be prompted to enter your display name.
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