5 things - England v Malta

If England needs a quarter-back it should be Jordan Henderson not Wayne Rooney

For club and country, Wayne Rooney has attempted to re-brand himself as something of a footballing quarter-back. A 2016 Paul Scholes. Jose Mourinho has seen through such efforts, but Gareth Southgate hasn’t yet, playing his captain as a deep-lying midfielder from the start against Malta.

Within two minutes of kick-off he’d already given the ball away twice, and it didn’t get much better for Rooney from then on. The 30-year-old didn’t appear to have any real purpose in his role and was shown up by Jordan Henderson alongside him, who found a way to keep the passes rolling through midfield whilst also splitting the Maltese defence with a number of cutting through balls.

There was simply no need for Henderson and Rooney in the same team, at least with them playing in the same position. But if England truly needs a quarter-back to play at the base of their midfield, it should be Henderson, not Rooney.

England still have the same problem they had under Roy Hodgson

This was about as comfortable a World Cup qualifier will ever get for England. They were in complete control from start to finish, with no real danger that Malta would have more than just a few souvenirs to show for their trip to Wembley. But England still suffer from the same problem they did under Roy Hodgson.

England still struggle to break down sides of a lower caliber. That was the issue against Iceland at Euro 2016, and in the group stage, and it was the issue for much of the match against Malta. Too often they are lulled by teams willing to sit deep and defend into slowing down the pace of their play, inadvertently making them easier to defend against. England are too quick to run out of ideas in breaking down opposition backlines and while they did so twice on Saturday, there were signs that the same problem persists.

Jesse Lingard offers England something different

Wembley has been kind to Jesse Lingard. He scored the winner in last season’s FA Cup final there and made his first competitive start for England against Malta. The Manchester United man didn’t enjoy his best game, fluffing his lines in front of goal on more than one occasion, but he did demonstrate why he deserves his place in the team.

Lingard offers England something different. His off-the-ball movement frees up space for others, always finding a position to prove an option for a pass. Lingard found the right balance between holding his width and knowing when to drive inside. He is arguably England’s most intelligent player and this performance hinted at just how important he could come to become.

Daniel Sturridge must learn to play as a number nine

By scoring the opener and causing Maltese goalkeeper Andrew Hogg problems throughout, Daniel Sturridge showed himself to be an effective option for England up front with Harry Kane currently sidelined. But someone should remind the Liverpool striker of the number on his back.

He is a number nine, but too frequently Sturridge dropped deep to receive the ball, leaving nobody in the box to make the most of the crosses repeatedly slung in from the wings. Particularly with Rooney, Alli and Lingard all pushing forward from deep, Sturridge only served to overcrowd the area around the edge of the box by roaming. England need someone like Sturridge, but they need him as a centre forward.

Gareth Southgate won’t be judged on these kind of matches

The temptation to draw a verdict on England’s new interim manager on the basis of this performance and result will prove too much for some. But pragmatism must be applied (for once) when assessing how Southgate did on his national team bow. These aren’t the kind of games he will be judged on.

England have had three managers in their last three games, but nothing much has really changed in terms of how they play. Southgate’s influence will become more apparent over the next three fixtures (against Slovenia, Scotland and Spain) and so it won’t be until then that judgement should be passed.