Player of the Tournament

Who was the England player of the tournament? Has to be Pickford for me. Trippier and Maguire also get honorable mentions. Kane played well against the smaller teams and obviously scored lots of penalties but the others are ahead of him IMHO.

I've got to give the accolade to Trippier, complete surprise package, run up n down the wing like a demented dog, put some superb crosses in and at the other end of park did a very good defensive job....would be interesting to flip this thread on it's head and see who we thought was the biggest disappointment..

Pickford for me-biggest disappointment Ali but saying that he was injured so nobody really

Trippier defo.

When it comes to worst player I literally couldn’t pick anybody who failed to deliver. Sterling got a lot of stuck for his role that he performed well. Against Croatia he was our most lively player up top

Between Trippier and Maguire for me.

Trippier for me.

Thought he was the only player we missed more than anyone else against Belgium in the dead rubber and had we got to the final I think we would have missed him more than anyone else again, I include Harry Kane in that who is valuable but we have other options.  We don't have another wing-back capable of such a consistently high standard of delivery that Trippier delivers.  The only other player I think we can't replace easily is Kyle Walker, just because he gives the defence so much extra pace.

Don't think anyone disappointed. Alli hasn't really lived up to his early hopes in an England shirt but he fits in with the set-up.

Difficult to say. I thought Sterling, Stones and Pickford played really well
We should have played Rose ahead of Young  

Trippier. An unexpected tournament revelation.

Alli didn't look fit. It's a shame Oxlade-Chamberlain got injured, would've been a decent alternative.

Quoted from diehardmariner

Trippier for me.

Thought he was the only player we missed more than anyone else against Belgium in the dead rubber and had we got to the final I think we would have missed him more than anyone else again, I include Harry Kane in that who is valuable but we have other options.  We don't have another wing-back capable of such a consistently high standard of delivery that Trippier delivers.  The only other player I think we can't replace easily is Kyle Walker, just because he gives the defence so much extra pace.

Don't think anyone disappointed. Alli hasn't really lived up to his early hopes in an England shirt but he fits in with the set-up.

Walker is a funny one for me.

I agree his pace as a covering defender has been so valuable at times. However I think he's got the least technical ability out of the starting XI. Maguire and Stones are comfortable on the ball and can use both feet or the outside of the foot to make a pass under pressure, or find a pass into the middle third. Walker is the one who ends up boshing it high and long more than anyone else because he's restricted to playing a straight-forward right footed pass in the way he's facing, or he doesn't see a pass into someone in midfield the way Stones does. His long balls seem to go way too high as well, giving opposition time to adjust positions by the time it comes back down.

Also seen a movie-graphic on twitter this morning of passing maps/combination lines throughout the game last night as it developed. Two of the thickest lines (most used passes) for much of the match were Walker back to Pickford, and Pickford long to Kane. Which doesn't tell the whole story I'd admit because stats never do, but Walker having to pass back to Pickford rather than slide a pass into someone (even if they've got a man behind them) was a common theme (and one Maguire and Stones didn't suffer with).

Not trying to dig Walker out here, just always thought he's technically limited. If we played a back 4 I'd have Trippier over him without doubt.

Pickford for me. After this showing I feel he's on the cusp of becoming a world class goal keeper.

Did any GTFC fans go to Darlington away in April 2012 towards the end of our second Conference season (2011-12)?

If so, you saw a young Jordan Pickford in goal for Darlington keep a clean sheet in a 0-0 draw.

Regarding Trippier, I think he's done quite well, but I see Walker as a better full-back defensively as his extra pace and strength make the difference. Obviously, less capable when it comes to more intricate passing and crossing, but it's something to consider. Trippier certainly did as well as most of his defensive colleagues, but I think Pickford was the reason we ultimately got to the semi-finals. I was impressed with his kicking (and he had to do a heck of a lot of it!) and, of course, he made some good saves in all of the knock-out games. Oh, I was also impressed with Loftus-Cheek when he played. Big, skilful, powerful and has the potential to be a really good player.

I wouldn't say Alli has disappointed me this tournament as he's never looked any good at international level that I can recall and he wasn't properly fit for much of the time in any case. Biggest disappointment would probably be, erm, Rashford? I know he's not had many chances, but he looks very one-dimensional against an organised defence. Can generally beat the first man but then needs to move the ball on instead of continuing to dribble.

Trippier

Trippier, closely followed by Pickford.

Walker isn’t brilliant defensively but if we had made it to the final, he’s the only one who could’ve dealt with Mbappe I think.

Trippier.  He also takes a mean freekick.  Has been talk of him being in the team of the tournament.

I thought that in most games Trippier was in good positions wide on the touchline in space and passes often did not get to him.

Ironic, that if Southgate went 442 for the World Cup then Trippier would probably not have got a starting place. Walker looked set for the RB position.

Trippier, closely followed by Pickford. A couple of players underperformed against Croatia but on the whole the squad has lifted the spirit amongst England fans that has been missing for years. Anyone calling for Southgates sacking needs to give their head a wobble. Imagine the team and tactics if Alllerdyce had  still been in charge.

Quoted from Perkins

Imagine the team and tactics if Alllerdyce had  still been in charge.

I'd already be sporting a rather fetching Kevin Davies tattoo, whether we win the final or not

Quoted from Tommy

Walker is a funny one for me.

I agree his pace as a covering defender has been so valuable at times. However I think he's got the least technical ability out of the starting XI. Maguire and Stones are comfortable on the ball and can use both feet or the outside of the foot to make a pass under pressure, or find a pass into the middle third. Walker is the one who ends up boshing it high and long more than anyone else because he's restricted to playing a straight-forward right footed pass in the way he's facing, or he doesn't see a pass into someone in midfield the way Stones does. His long balls seem to go way too high as well, giving opposition time to adjust positions by the time it comes back down.

Also seen a movie-graphic on twitter this morning of passing maps/combination lines throughout the game last night as it developed. Two of the thickest lines (most used passes) for much of the match were Walker back to Pickford, and Pickford long to Kane. Which doesn't tell the whole story I'd admit because stats never do, but Walker having to pass back to Pickford rather than slide a pass into someone (even if they've got a man behind them) was a common theme (and one Maguire and Stones didn't suffer with).

Not trying to dig Walker out here, just always thought he's technically limited. If we played a back 4 I'd have Trippier over him without doubt.

No doubt he's not as good with the ball as either Stones or Maguire.  I do wonder if his lack of passes could be a result of options though.  Maguire on the left of the three often had Young playing quite deep to pass to whereas Stones had either Walker or Maguire if he went either side.  Walker's main outlet, especially if Henderson was covered, was Trippier.  But, I'm guessing by orders, Trippier was often much further up the field and not available for a short pass, hence the going back to Pickford.

I also think we were deliberately more direct last night than at any point in the tournament.  Kane was utilised for his aerial ability with Sterling playing off his flicks.  I like the back 3 we went with, it's got enough of everything to be highly effective.  Who you would replace each of the 3 with in event of injury/suspension/lack of form is anyone's guess.  I suppose Joe Gomez is the one who stands out to replace Walker, not sure if he's half as quick though.  I'd be a bit worried if we replaced Stones or Maguire with Cahill. Jones etc.

Quoted from Tommy

Did any GTFC fans go to Darlington away in April 2012 towards the end of our second Conference season (2011-12)?

If so, you saw a young Jordan Pickford in goal for Darlington keep a clean sheet in a 0-0 draw.

I did go to an England Youth game v Australia a few years earlier when he was an unused sub.  Raheem Sterling was a second half sub, I think he was still at QPR then but he was dubbed as the 'one to watch'.  He looked a class above.

Trippier and Pickford in equal measure for me.

The thing with Walker playing as a third centre back, it gives license for Trippier to get forward and do his thing, with Walker covering across as a right back if needed, which he has the pace to do and is comfortable with, so i think his position in the team helped massively with the success of Trippier.

Lets'not forget that we didn't adopt this formation until we had qualified, so it's still bedding in yet. Was a brave move by Southgate, and turned out to be the correct one. I'm left wondering if Shelvey could be the missing piece to unlock defences?

Quoted from diehardmariner

I did go to an England Youth game v Australia a few years earlier when he was an unused sub.  Raheem Sterling was a second half sub, I think he was still at QPR then but he was dubbed as the 'one to watch'.  He looked a class above.

Yeah I went to that one. Sterling played left wing and lit up the game in all honesty, absolutely rinsed their right back time after time.

Incidentally thought Sterling was really good last night, was giving their defence nightmares early on, and we lacked a bit of his intelligence when Rashford came on. I'd also be interested to see how many times Vardy touched the ball during the whole tournament. I know it's down to service and everything as well and I know he's not had lots of time on the pitch, but when he has, he's barely had a kick.

While Pickford played a stormer, I'm going with Trippier, I think he played at a level even Tottenham haven't seen

MaGuire for me....dominated the air, stepped into midfield to turn over the ball regularly, carried the ball well and strong and assured. May not be as eye catching as Trippier but solid throughout, Pickford played very well too, made some vital saves at vital times and pretty decent kicking/passing.

Raheem Sterling.  

it's a 3 way split for me, Pickford, Maguire and Trippier, those 3 stood out from the rest, I don't follow Premiership footie and have to admit I had never heard of any of them before the tournament started.

Quoted from Les Brechin

Raheem Sterling.  

dont suppose you are due a check up are you Les ?  

Trippier for me - overall I'd go for Mbappe & Modric.