Our football columnist on why Aston Villa’s Ollie Watkins is a better bet than Brentford’s Ivan Toney to stand in for England striker Harry Kane.
England’s defeat by Brazil on Saturday was, like most international friendlies, not a typical game so we can’t take much from it. But it did force Gareth Southgate to think about the doomsday scenario of Harry Kane being unavailable at Euro 2024.
Without their injured record goalscorer England drew a blank, and there’s no doubt that they are more effective with Kane in the team. But if he is injured or suspended this summer I would be happy to start with Ollie Watkins in his place, ahead of Ivan Toney.
I’m a fairly recent convert to Watkins. Until this season I didn’t really fancy him, but Unai Emery has repaired his shattered belief by giving him Aston Villa’s No9 shirt and he has really won me over with 16 goals and 10 assists in the Premier League.
Emery has chiselled away at Watkins and he now knows his job and his strengths. He is quick, strong, aggressive, intelligent, gets his shots away and is a much-improved finisher. Crucially, he looks super confident and that’s what England need.
Toney, who is set to start Tuesday’s friendly with Belgium, has loads of ability but I’m not sure he knows exactly what his best attributes are. He is given a lot of freedom to pop up in different areas for Brentford, which suits his unorthodox, off-the-wall playing style.
But if we’re talking about England’s starting XI, you need structure – especially in the first 45 minutes, when international games are usually difficult and tight – and Toney doesn’t bring that. Watkins, on the other hand, does.
Of the alternatives, I don’t think Marcus Rashford can play through the middle – he’s not a clever enough footballer. He is intuitive, instinctive and has amazing ability but, compared to Watkins, I don’t think he has put enough thought into his game.
I’d have Rashford and Newcastle’s Anthony Gordon as impact substitutes in wide areas. If Southgate needs another wild card forward, I’d take Dominic Solanke ahead of the likes of Callum Wilson and Tammy Abraham – assuming they were all fit.
Solanke has come on leaps and bounds this year, is playing with immense confidence for Bournemouth, and has a good football IQ. You always need an element of freshness about the squad and he would bring that.
Kane is reliable, a comfort blanket, but he is also multi-faceted. His tendency to drop deep, pick up the ball and launch passes out wide to the likes of Bukayo Saka, allow Jude Bellingham and Phil Foden to get forward from midfield and score.
Watkins would need to adapt his game a little to deputise effectively, but I’ve seen improvement in that aspect and I think he can do the job.
Ivan Toney is vying with Watkins to be Kane’s England deputy at Euro 2024
I wish I could say the same about Harry Maguire, who is my biggest worry for this summer’s tournament. His performance against Brazil convinced me that England won’t win the Euros with him in the XI; he is too static and slow with the ball.
I’d pick Everton youngster Jarrad Branthwaite in the left centre-back role instead. Brathwaite, 21, might lack experience but I strongly believe that he is the best English player in that position in the Premier League.
Next to Maguire, John Stones isn’t the superstar that he is for Manchester City in an England shirt. He has so much ability but doesn’t seem to have the licence to step out, draw the press and make those clever passes.
How does Southgate fix that? It’s also about deciding what Declan Rice and Bellingham do. For me, Rice should play No6 as he can drop in if Stones steps out. Bellingham can play as an all-action No8, with Foden as the other midfielder to knit it all together.
Trevor Steven is a former England footballer who played at two World Cups and two European Championships. @TrevorSteven63.