Alan Shearer has urged England’s wingers to become more unpredictable to boost the Three Lions’ chances of World Cup glory this summer.
England will meet DR Congo in the last-32 on Wednesday, with the Three Lions looking to build on finishing top of their group.
Thomas Tuchel’s side, however, have faced criticism after struggling to create chances against Ghana and Panama.
England were held to a goalless draw by Ghana and took over an hour to break down Panama’s resistance before eventually earning a 2-0 victory.
The Three Lions will expect to face another side in DR Congo that are happy to sit deep and counter attack, as they did successfully in a 1-1 draw against Portugal in the group stages.
Much of the focus has been aimed at the contribution of England’s wingers Bukayo Saka, Noni Madueke, Anthony Gordon and Marcus Rashford.
Alan Shearer wants Thomas Tuchel to keep faith with Bukayo Saka and Marcus Rashford against DR Congo
The former England captain, however, insisted England’s wingers must be unpredictable
Shearer called on the pair to challenge defenders both ways to help them break down DR Congo
Former England captain Shearer, a Betfair ambassador, believes Tuchel should stick with Rashford and Saka in his starting line-up but stressed they need to mix up their play to break down the DR Congo defence.
‘There’s more to come from all of our wingers, whether that’s Saka, Madueke, whether that’s Rashford, Gordon. We haven’t seen the best of what they can do yet,’ Shearer said.
‘I know it’s difficult because when teams sit deep, there’s not a lot of space to run into. But the best finds a way, the best keep crossing the ball, whether that’s going on the outside or crossing it from the inside. We definitely need more from our wide men, all four of them.
‘In an ideal world, if he’s fit, then I would start Bukayo Saka and I would start Marcus Rashford.
‘I think Rashford, certainly in the first ten or fifteen minutes in the game the other day, he showed promise. But too many times, cutting inside and whipping it rather than Gordon going on the outside.
‘You have to change your game up. But I would still go with Rashford on the left and Saka on the right.
‘I think Rashford can do a bit of both and so can Saka. Saka can go on the outside, Rashford can go on the outside. They’ve also got the freedom to go inside and have a shot or goal like Rashford did in the first ten minutes where he had a shot and the keeper made a decent save from that.
‘So, they have to mix their game up. They have to do a bit of everything. I just thought they were predictable the other day.
Shearer’s comments come after Thomas Tuchel’s side struggled to break down Ghana and Panama
England will look to overcome a DR Congo side that defended impressively in a group stage draw with Portugal
‘Too many times, I thought they cut inside and just were happy to whip that ball in and no one was getting on the end of it. So, I don’t mind them coming inside now and again, but they also have to go on the outside as well to mix things up.
‘It was very similar against Ghana, just very samey, wasn’t it? Too slow, too predictable, too safe. So, I’m hoping that they can play with a little bit more freedom and a little bit more risk.’
England know victory over DR Congo would set up a last-16 tie against tournament co-hosts Mexico.
Mexico advanced on Tuesday after winning 2-0 against Ecuador at the Azteca, where the last-16 tie would also be played.
Alan Shearer was speaking ahead of England’s round of 32 game vs DR Congo, everyone’s got an opinion, back yours at Betfair.
