England mounted a perfect counter-attack against Spain, but made too many errors. The Telegraph's post-match analysis highlighted four key observations, suggesting that beyond the heavily criticised defence, Anderson must continue to emulate Rodri, both at Manchester City and with England.

Errors prove costly for England

Before England equalised in the 39th minute, they could have been down 0-4. Nevertheless, several of Spain's goals resulted from elementary defensive errors by English players under pressure.

First, Guéhi in the 2nd minute, then Nico O'Reilly failed to lift his head under intense pressure and played the ball directly to Olmo. For the third goal, Oyarzabal scored, and any of the three defenders — O'Reilly, Quansah and Ezri Konsa — should have tracked the substitute forward.

Against the world's best team, this is the price you pay. In the World Cup final, Argentina tried to maintain a more compact shape against Spain, at least for the first hour.

Counter-attacking is England's winning weapon

England's first goal was a textbook counter-attack: even if England played for many more years, they might never reproduce such a brilliant attacking move.

Spain rarely offers such opportunities for opponents to regain possession. When they press high in attack, if one of their players makes an error and loses the ball, seizing the opportunity is not optional—it is a chance that must be taken.

In the World Cup final 69 days earlier, Scaloni's Argentina hoped for such an opportunity but never got one.

Anderson carries the midfield burden

In Rice's absence, Anderson has become the most experienced midfielder on the pitch. The Manchester City player will be 23 in November, and his England appearances could reach 21 by the end of this international break. David Beckham had only 11 caps for England at that age.

Disrupting Spain's possession rhythm required Anderson's energetic running. His ability to press the ball-carrier is first-class, but against an opponent of Spain's calibre, things are far from straightforward. In the 27th minute, an overly ambitious pass from Anderson was intercepted by Rodri, and Spain immediately breached England's defence, with Ferran Torres's shot narrowly missing the target.

England's equaliser came from a first-time pass by Anderson after winning the ball from Williams's feet. He struggles to control the tempo of the game the way Rodri does for Spain—England doesn't play that style. But whether at Manchester City or for England, that is the standard he should aspire to.

Overall, Anderson was England's standout player. He has sharp positional awareness, and in the match's closing stages, he tightly marked substitute Pedri, anticipating the opponent's through-ball passes. This defensive recovery was a microcosm of his game: aggressive in winning the ball, then calm in possession, avoiding risk and executing smart passes.

Star forwards show character

At least Tuchel can take some comfort that several star forwards demonstrated strong mentality.

Although it was an important match, it wasn't at the level of a knockout fixture in a major summer tournament. Nevertheless, England played with greater freedom. It remains unclear what impression this will leave on Tuchel, who will remain frustrated by the team's lack of control. It was evident that Wembley's supporters preferred to see the team face the world champions courageously rather than constantly retreat into their own penalty area.

Alexander-Arnold remains on the bench

Alexander-Arnold has every reason to wonder why the starting right-back role went to his former Liverpool teammate Quansah, a natural centre-back. A match in which both full-backs push high would suit the Real Madrid player perfectly. He returned to the squad after missing the World Cup, but this incident clearly demonstrates Tuchel's ongoing uncertainty about how to use him.

Since Alexander-Arnold is part of the squad, he should get playing time. Quansah, operating in an unfamiliar position, was not always comfortable. Against an opponent of this calibre, few would consider Quansah a better choice for this position than Alexander-Arnold.

After the match, Tuchel explained that Quansah's "pace and ability as a centre-back" put him "slightly ahead" of Alexander-Arnold. When asked which match Alexander-Arnold would play, Tuchel curtly replied: "There are three other matches."

Traduit par IA.

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