A player by player review of the England Euro 2016 squad

I was always going to do this article but I didn’t envisage myself writing it quite this early. But without further ado here is a player by player breakdown of Roy Hodgson’s England squad

Joe Hart – Error prone. Bailed out by Daniel Sturridge and Jamie Vardy against Wales, no such luck against Iceland. There will be calls for him to be dropped when they new manager takes charge but you get the feeling he will still be Number 1 come September

Fraser Forster – Didn’t feature due to Hodgson’s undying loyalty to Hart

Tom Heaton – If Forster had no chance then we may as well have just taken two Goalkeepers to France

Kyle Walker – I thought he was excellent against Wales, at times playing as an auxillary winger but that was about as good as it got for the Tottenham full back. At fault for the Icelandic first goal and that mistake will wipe out any credit he built up previously

Danny Rose – Another of the Tottenham players who really failed to impress in this tournament. Had the perfect opportunity to make the Left Back slot his own but you get the feeling that the door could be left wide open for Luke Shaw once back from fitness

Chris Smalling – Hardly even tested in the first three games but was an anonymous figure in the Iceland game. The fact he is young and there are so few Centre Backs who could even lay a claim to taking his spot means he’ll start again come September

Gary Cahill – Almost the same as Smalling, the only thing that differs is the fact he is 30. I don’t think he’s quite for the international scrapheap but when we’re going from the likes of Terry, Ferdinand and Campbell to Cahill you can see the drop off in quality

Nathanial Clyne – Only had one game to show what he was worth. Did a decent job but Slovakia didn’t want to attack that night. He could be given the chance to show his wares in the first World Cup Qualifier against Slovakia

Ryan Betrand – He also had one game to show what he was all about and he was poor. Almost ran the risk of getting a red card due to flailing arms. There are many options at Left Back and you get the feeling that his place in the squad is in danger

John Stones – On the periphery but he surely has to be starting for England alongside Smalling going forward. England needs to build a centre back partnership that can be a platform for years to come, like it or not it will involve Stones

Eric Dier – Arguably one of the only few players to come out the tournament with any credit in the bank. Certainly the only Tottenham one. His free kick against Russia was one of the very few highlights for England. A Midfield mainstay for years to come

Dele Alli – So much promise but offered so little. You can’t blame it on fatigue as he had a month off at the end of the season through suspension. He like Dier will be in the England team for years to come and we will certainly see more of his talents on the world stage

Adam Lallana – Usually a solid 6 out of 10 player and hauled off after 65 minutes but I thought he was one of if not the best player in the England squad. That may be damning with faint praise but he was hardworking and industrious and you wonder why he can’t do that more for Liverpool

Raheem Sterling – Where to start. Again blinded loyalty by Hodgson has been his undoing here. The Manchester City winger’s confidence is shot to pieces and was non existent. No end product either you get the feeling that Pep Guardiola is going to have to put an arm round him

Wayne Rooney – How do you solve a problem like Wayne? – Put him in Midfield and create another one. The Captain was shoehorned into Midfield and the experiment didn’t work. More importantly where was the leadership when it was required against Iceland

Jack Wilshire – Unfit and how he played not once but twice for England in this tournament is absolutely unfathomable. He should be nowhere near an England squad until he has a long run of games under his belt. Danny Drinkwater must have sat at home and been fuming

Jordan Henderson – Once again he fails to impress in an England squad. I don’t think I’ve ever seen him have a decent game with the Three Lions on his chest. If you can remember then please let me know. Once again Danny Drinkwater must have sat at home and been fuming

Ross Barkley – Didn’t even get a minute, what was the point of taking him when we had so many similar players to the Everton Midfielder. How often was a game crying out for the width and pace of Andros Townsend, the answer is too many.

James Milner –  Came on as one of the ill fated substitutes in the draw against Russia. Mr utility for England could now have to be looking for another job as you would imagine his time in the England fold is coming to an end

Harry Kane – Once again you can file under Tottenham disappointments. The poor bloke looked knackered but that doesn’t excuse his poor set piece taking but then again you do have to ask why he was on set pieces in the first place

Jamie Vardy – Had to play second fiddle to Kane for the majority of the time but still managed to do what Kane didn’t and that was score. The fact that the opposition was so deep didn’t allow Vardy to utilise his pace over the top. Signs of brightness but was almost doomed from the start

Daniel Sturridge – The hero against Wales but absolutely useless against Slovakia and Iceland. Why take one touch when you can take four. Everything he did was telegraphed as he looked devoid of ideas but then again so did the whole team

Marcus Rashford – Two fleeting substitute appearances when a goal was needed but after that 3 minute cameo against Iceland when he did more than the rest of the side put together you had to wonder why he wasn’t chucked on earlier. Hopefully we’ll see a lot more of him in the years to come

The Manager:

Roy Hodgson – A tactical dinosaur that needs to be made extinct