Qatar 2022 was an up-and-down tournament for England. Some signs of real promise in games against Iran, Senegal and Wales, but also some disappointments against USA and in bowing out to France. England matched the French for large spells of the game but failed to put their neck on France’s throats when they had them pinned to the canvas, ultimately letting their chance slip as Harry Kane’s penalty ballooned into the Qatari night.
There is a lot of speculation surrounding Southgate’s future. But for now, let’s look at each player and rate how they performed at the 2022 World Cup…
Jordan Pickford – A slightly overlooked player for his country, the Everton goalkeeper seems to raise his level even higher on international duty and always steps up when needed for England. His two saves against Senegal in the last 16 at 0-0 kept England on an even keel during a period of pressure (the point-blank save from Ismaila Sarr is one of the saves of the tournament and went relatively unnoticed, it wasn’t even given a corner). Once again Pickford can hold his head high. Grade: B+
Kyle Walker – Went into the tournament injured but returned for the Wales game and played 90 minutes against Senegal before ‘Operation Mbappe’ as England tried to stop France’s danger man in the quarter finals.
This was supposed to be the game where Kyle Walker would get his flowers, for so long one of England’s best players under Gareth Southgate but a player who never receives too much mainstream credit. The Manchester City full-back did a reasonable job on Mbappe, supported by Declan Rice and Jordan Henderson, but did not get his career-defining moment as England lost. Grade: B
Luke Shaw – A solid and dependable performer under Southgate, Luke Shaw brought the added benefits of the new regime at Manchester United into his England form. Under Erik Ten Hag the left-back looks fitter, sharper and leaner than ever before and is playing his best football in years this season. Shaw rarely put a foot wrong in Qatar, also providing an assist for England’s first goal of the tournament against Iran. Grade: B+
John Stones – A sturdy performer who in truth was not tested a great deal in Qatar as England came up against four teams (Iran, USA, Wales, Senegal) short of truly dangerous firepower in centre forward areas. When he did face a top player he was partially to blame for losing his man as Olivier Giroud snuck in at the far post in the quarter final to knock England out. A rare lapse in concentration but a crucial one. Grade: B
Eric Dier – Used as a bit-part player, the Spurs defender played 20 minutes against Iran and 13 against Senegal, so would be unfair to give a rating. Grade: n/a
Harry Maguire – The much-maligned Manchester United defender tends to step up for England, partly because of the generally slower pace of international football where intense, high-pressing teams are more scarce than in the week to week frenzied atmosphere of the Premier League. Maguire is a better defender than he gets credit for, even if not quite at the truly elite level his price tag would suggest. He did his job in Qatar well. Grade: B
Declan Rice – “One hundred per cent I want to play in the Champions League,” said Rice in a press conference mid-way through this tournament. “For the last two or three years I’ve been saying that. I’ve been playing consistently well for my club and I feel like I really want to keep pushing.”
This World Cup was a type of audition for that status and he did not let anyone down. In certain games, against USA for example, he can at times be too horizontal in his passing, playing it sideways and safe rather than through the lines and truly impacting things in midfield. But as a midfield screener in front of a defence he protects the back four well and showed he is probably ready for the next level away from West Ham. Grade: B+
Jude Bellingham – One of the players of the tournament. A regular starter for England now at 19, his marauding midfield performances included a goal against Iran and a world-class display against Senegal where he showed all aspects of his game, from ability to break up play, to his driving runs through midfield and ability to create for others.
He was the only player with the emotional intelligence and speed of thought to quickly run and console Harry Kane after his penalty miss against France, yet another sign of his maturity and leadership skills. He is going right to the top. Grade: A+
Harry Kane – A great goalscorer but a scorer of great (or greatly important) goals? The jury is still out. A decline in pace means the England captain prefers dropping deeper into midfield these days, which is something he does brilliantly to help build play as he showed with a fine performance against Wales.
But ultimately Kane failed when it counted from the penalty spot in a World Cup quarter final and ends the competition with two goals, which is less than expected. His career-long wait for a trophy continues and there have to be question marks about his ability to deliver in the biggest moments, like Olivier Giroud did. Grade: B-
Raheem Sterling – Where Euro 2020 was Raheem Sterling’s defining tournament in an England shirt, World Cup 2022 did not hit the heights for the Chelsea forward.
After a goal and assist against Iran Sterling rather went off the boil: lacklustre in a 0-0 draw with USA and then dropped for the Wales game in favour of Phil Foden. Ultimately his tournament will be remembered more for a shocking burglary on his family home that caused him to fly home and miss the Senegal game. By the time he returned to Qatar he hadn’t trained and played just 11 ineffective minutes against France. Will face strong competition for his place going forward. Grade: C-
Marcus Rashford – Another Manchester United player to benefit from the much more professional environment at Old Trafford under Ten Hag, Marcus Rashford only played 137 minutes in Qatar but stepped up with three goals including two in a swashbuckling display against Wales in a 3-0 win.
The 25-year-old only sneaked into the squad having spent long periods out of Southgate’s plans but he reminded the world what he is capable of in this World Cup and was unfortunate to only be given five minutes against France. Grade: A-
Kieran Trippier – England are currently blessed with so many outstanding right-backs that Kieran Trippier tends to go under the radar, but once again he was dependable and assured in Qatar. Now 32, Trippier started the first two games against Iran and USA and created three chances.
Unfortunately for him Kyle Walker just offers that extra bit of explosive recovery pace and so he was benched after USA and only played 25 further minutes. Could be his last major tournament for England but he showed his obvious quality. Grade: B
Aaron Ramsdale – Did not play. Grade: n/a
Jordan Henderson – Another for whom Qatar could be his last major tournament in an England shirt. At 32, Henderson’s leadership skills were much appreciated, particularly the budding bromance he struck up with Jude Bellingham (Liverpool fans, take note…). Excellent against Senegal, he was tasked with the job of helping mark Kylian Mbappe in the France game but did show some of his limitations in possession and struggled against the 2018 world champions. May struggle to keep his place from here. Grade: B-
Ben White – An unimpressive tournament that did little to enhance his international reputation, and may well have actually damaged it. White is on record as saying he does not like watching football when not playing, and so reports that he fell out with England assistant manager Steve Holland due to ‘poor knowledge of England’s opponents’ USA and a ‘lack of preparedness and knowledge of his own personal stats’ may or may not have some credence to them.
Either way, to leave the England squad and then post on Instagram his delight at being back at Arsenal suggests he wasn’t entirely satisfied with his time in the England camp. Did not play a minute in Qatar. Grade: D
Conor Coady – Did not play. Grade: n/a
Jack Grealish – 19 minutes and a goal against Iran, 22 minutes against USA, 14 minutes against Wales, 25 minutes against Senegal, two minutes against France. Is Gareth Southgate holding back the player who many feel should be one of England’s attacking talisman?
It is hard to truly grade Grealish when he never really gets consistent game time under Southgate to show what he can do. His absence is often seen more as a reflection of Southgate’s conservative tendencies than any slight on the Manchester City player, and we didn’t get to see enough of him to know if he can truly impact games at this level. Grade: B-
Bukayo Saka – England’s best player against France where he was exceptional and gave Theo Hernandez nightmares, the 21-year-old emerges from this tournament as one of England’s top performers, one of the best young talents at this World Cup and arguably one of the best ball carriers in the game at the current moment, certainly among those out in Qatar. The Arsenal youngster was fantastic against Senegal, France and Iran, scored three tournament goals and won one of the penalties in that quarter final defeat. A true star. Grade: A+
Mason Mount – Won England’s second penalty against France after coming off the bench but it was the USA 0-0 draw that was perhaps his defining game. Criticised for his performance in a game where he struggled to impact creatively and link play, Mount was subsequently dropped for the games against Wales, Senegal and France and reduced to a bit-part player. Grade: C
James Maddison – Sadly, injury kept him out of the group stages and he was not given a chance thereafter, having performed so well to play himself into Southgate’s plans. Grade: n/a
Phil Foden – Started the World Cup on the bench but played his way into the team against Wales and made the shirt his own with a goal, followed by two assists in a wonderful performance against Senegal.
Watching the quarter finals, you can’t help but feel that Foden can be England’s Antoine Griezmann and that Southgate should in future build the whole team around the talents of the 22-year-old. A special player who is too good to be confined to wide areas. Grade: A
Nick Pope – Did not play. Grade: n/a
Kalvin Phillips – Came on against Wales and registered an assist but only played 40 minutes in total in Qatar as he recovered from injury, so it would be unfair to give him a rating. Grade: n/a
Conor Gallagher – Did not play, and is maybe the one player many may feel was fortunate to even make the squad instead of perhaps another striker. Grade: n/a
Callum Wilson – Looked good in his 14 minutes against Iran, weighing in with an assist, and may feel he deserved more minutes, particularly against USA where England lacked a focal point as Kane dropped so deep. Enjoyed another 32 minute cameo against Wales, but unfair to give a grade. Grade: n/a
Trent Alexander-Arnold – Played 33 minutes against Wales as a substitute. A player who divides opinion, it’s hard to argue he deserved to start ahead of Walker or Trippier. Clearly not one of Southgate’s favourites. Grade: n/a