Emmanuel Petit worries for England that Gareth Southgate ‘doesn’t know what he’s doing sometimes’.
The Arsenal legend, who was also a World Cup and European Championship winner with France, believes England have the quality and experience in their ranks as they bid for Euro 2024 glory this summer.
But he has doubts about the tactical nous of Southgate, highlighting his inability to bring the best out of Trent Alexander-Arnold, who played in midfield, as one example of the Three Lions boss getting it wrong.
Speaking on talkSPORT, Petit said: “When you look at the players, there are so many players that have the experience of winning big titles. The likes of Jude Bellingham with Real Madrid, and Phil Foden, the season he has had.
“He has so many players that know what it takes to win big competitions so I’m not worried about that. I am just worried about the tactics of Southgate.
“I don’t want to criticise Southgate because I think he has done a good job for England but he should have, in my opinion, done some things better.
“When you play at the highest level like this, sometimes managers have a big impact on the players but sometimes, they don’t have any impact.
“I’m not saying Southgate doesn’t have any impact on his players but those England players know exactly what it takes to win competitions and I’m just worried about Southgate.
“I have the feeling that he doesn’t know what he is doing sometimes with the team in terms of tactics.
“He is trying to put players in different positions and trying different tactics that can switch players. But does he know his best eleven? I’m just questioning myself about that.
“When I look at the game against Serbia, I was very impressed in the first half but in the second half I didn’t recognise the English team and I didn’t recognise some players that showed much composure and confidence with their clubs,” added Petit.
“When I look at the game of Trent Alexander-Arnold, I was thinking he was lost on the pitch, he doesn’t know what to do tactically in terms of defending but as well when gets the ball. I have the feeling sometimes he is lost on the pitch, but he is not the only one. This is the responsibility of the manager, I am sorry to say that.”
England dominated the first half against Serbia in their opening Group C fixture, with Bellingham getting them the breakthrough they deserved.
They laboured in the second half, though, dropping back and allowing Serbia to assert control and were fortunate to hold on for a 1-0 win.
Petit stressed that criticism of England should not be too harsh given they won the game.
But he believes they need a better balance in their team as they prepare for their second Group C encounter with Denmark on Thursday.
“They played very well in the first half [against Serbia], but in the second half I did not recognise them,” he said.
“They lost composure and they lost confidence as well. They were under pressure so much and lost the ball easily so many times.
“I’m not sure about the balance of the team right now, especially in the midfield, so we will see what Southgate will do for the next game.
“Trent Alexander-Arnold, I was not impressed by his game. Foden as well, he was probably the only one to try something in the second half with Bellingham, but I’m not sure about the combination up front.
“Harry Kane dropped into midfield too much, leaving space alone up front, so Southgate needs to think about the tactics for the next games.
“Is he going to change the midfield? I don’t know but I don’t get it, because physically they dropped so much in the second half and in terms of confidence as well.
“I’ve seen very good players lose composure with the ball in the second half, so for me this is not an explanation. If physically they drop, I can understand that, but those players can do much better than that on the pitch.”
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