World Cup

Gary Lineker: 'England lacked tactical nous'

By Simon Sinclair, Reporter | 23 June 2014

Former England striker Gary Lineker believes that the Three Lions failed to notice tactical problems on the pitch during their two World Cup defeats.

Former England striker Gary Lineker has expressed his belief that the Three Lions lacked tactical nous on the field in their World Cup defeats.

Roy Hodgson's side crashed out of the tournament as they lost their first two matches against Italy and Uruguay.

Lineker feels that captain Steven Gerrard and the other experienced players in the side failed to notice problems on the pitch which led to their downfall in Brazil.

He told Blahzil.com: "Steven Gerrard, wonderful player that he is, has always been an individual in many ways.

"He's not really a player that can organise or spot problems. He didn't spot the danger on England's left side in the first game, which was pretty obvious after a few attempts.

"We don't have the players who can spot something and deal with it. In my era we had Terry Butcher, Ray Wilkins and Bryan Robson - players who could spot problems on the pitch and that is something that is missing from this crop."

England exited the World Cup at the group stage for the first time since 1958.