Lessons Learned from England's European U21 Championship Campaign

Well another international tournament has come, and before it is all but done England are packing their bags and heading home on an early flight back to Heathrow Airport. 

Yes, Gareth Southgate's Young Lions have been knocked out of the U21 European Championship at the group stages and will now have to be content with another two years of transition and practice before they can try to prove themselves against the best once again. 

Yet before we banish this tournament to the history books, let us take a moment to consider what exactly went wrong for England against some of Europe's best sides.

Just what lessons have England learned from this year's U21 Championship?

They Have Pace to Burn but Must Use It Wisely

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If there's one thing England had over a number of their opponents at this summer's tournament it was the pace that they could unleash on each wing. 

Jesse Lingard and Nathan Redmond may not have picked up as many assists or even goals as they may have liked in the three games, but they showed time and again that they could skip past any incoming challenge. 

Add to that a similar speed of play from full-backs Carl Jenkinson and Luke Garbutt and you have both of England's flanks just waiting to punish the opposition.

Unfortunately, through poor tactics and a real lack of chemistry, that just never seemed to happen this summer. But it's something that could certainly be worked on in the future. 

Harry Kane Isn't England's Solution to Anything

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Whether the Tottenham Hotspur striker liked it or not, there was only one name that was being talked about prior to this competition whenever England came up: Harry Kane. 

The striker is an unquestionable talent. What he managed at Spurs last season has certainly thrown him among the top players in England, but as we saw at the European Championship this summer, such a reputation can often mean very little in a different country against different opponents. 

Unfortunately Kane was tasked with dragging this England side through the group stages when in fact he should have been no more than the focal point of a well-thought-out attacking line.

Instead of actually putting a team together, Southgate simply stuck Kane up front and worked down from there. Which, as we all now know, simply didn't work for England. 

England Need to Start Looking for a Playmaker

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Despite what happened at the European Championships, few could actually argue that there isn't legitimate talent in this England side. Jack Butland is an exceptional goalkeeper, Jenkinson and John Stones are likely future first-team internationals and the attacking talents of players like Lingard and Kane are clear for all to see. 

Yet there is one position that simply hasn't been filled by any England player in quite some time: the playmaker. 

For all of England's pace down the wings and confirmed talent up front, there wasn't a single central midfielder at this summer's tournament who wanted to grab each game by the scruff of the neck and pull the strings for his side. 

Germany have Emre Can, Portugal have Bernardo Silva and Denmark have Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg, but England simply don't have anyone at this level who can match such creative talents. And that's a problem that may continue to trouble this generation for years to come. 

They Must Dare to Attack

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As we've already stated, this England team certainly had talent within its ranks, yet one of the most frustrating aspects of Southgate's side was the manner in which they refused to attack. 

In the opening game against Portugal, the English manager opted to sit back and try to hit the favourites on the break, yet that slow, careful build-up style of football is one that stuck with his side in the next two games. 

Despite a real need for goals against Sweden and Italy, England simply didn't know how to break teams down and get their goals. 

Much of that will be down to the lack of a genuine playmaker within the midfield, but Southgate's decision to ignore players like Danny Ings and Ruben Loftus-Cheek for much of the competition is what really cost his side their place in the latter stages.