England are off to a phenomenal start at the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar. The men led by manager Gareth Southgate crushed Iran in a 6–2 demolition job on Monday. The draw in the other Group B match means that England could advance to the Round of 16 with a win in their next game vs. the USA.
All of this makes it hard to criticize Gareth Southgate right now, something he’s been so very familiar with for the past several months. That’s why we won’t criticize him. We’ll leave that job in the capable hands of FIFA 23.
Taking a good look at England’s FIFA 23 player ratings clearly shows that Southgate got his starting 11 against Iran quite wrong, at least as far as defense is concerned. Oddly enough, that’s the one team area that could be aimed at. The attackers scored six goals, but the defense gave away two, including a penalty, so FIFA 23 might be onto something.
Below you can see the FIFA 23 player ratings of England’s starting 11 from the Iran game. We’ve only kept it to regular World Cup Player items, so Mason Mount’s special World Cup Star card is off-limits.
- GK: Jordan Pickford – 83 OVR
- RB: Kieran Trippier – 84 OVR
- CB: John Stones – 84 OVR
- CB: Harry Maguire – 82 OVR
- LB: Luke Shaw – 81 OVR
- CM: Jude Bellingham – 84 OVR
- CM: Declan Rice – 84 OVR
- CAM: Mason Mount – 84 OVR
- RW: Bukayo Saka – 83 OVR
- LW: Raheem Sterling – 86 OVR
- ST: Harry Kane – 89 OVR
What FIFA 23 has to say about this squad, besides the fact their favorite number is 84 apparently, is that there’s much more to be squeezed out of the back four. Gareth Southgate can be excused for his choice of a starting left back as the best English player at the position according to FIFA 23, Ben Chilwell (83 OVR), had to be cut from the World Cup squad due to injury.
There are no excuses for not calling up FIFA 23 powerhouse Fikayo Tomori. The Milan center-back has never been among the England manager’s favorites. Despite being John Stones’ equal as the highest-rated English CB in FIFA 23, Southgate completely dismissed him for the likes of Connor Coady and Ben White. Maguire is feeling pretty safe right now.
Ben Chilwell is out through injury and Fikayo Tomori isn’t in the World Cup squad, but Southgate’s choice for starting right back left FIFA 23 with a surprised Pikachu face. The game claims there are not one but two better players for that role: Trent Alexander-Arnold, who is the second-best player on the entire FIFA 23 English roster, and Kyle Walker, who is also in the top five highest-rated.
Gareth Southgate has been questioned about TAA for years and he’s yet to give in. He could keep the doubters at bay as long as he keeps delivering results similar to the one versus Iran, but FIFA 23 would definitely do things differently if it were in charge of England.
