England were beaten 2-1 by Argentina in the semi-finals of the World Cup on Wednesday, with Djed Spence being offered some food for thought on one incident
Glen Johnson believes that Djed Spence had to be ‘smarter’ in the build-up to Laurato Martinez’s winning goal against England on Wednesday.
The Three Lions were handed a 2-1 loss to Argentina in the semi-finals of the World Cup, despite largely looking to stamp their own place in the semi-finals.
England took a back seat approach almost instantly after taking the lead 55 minutes into the encounter through Anthony Gordon, defending in a low block against a relentless Argentinian onslaught.
But, with around 40 minutes remaining (including extra-time), that was always going to prove too difficult a task. Enzo Fernandez levelled matters with five minutes left on the clock, producing a composed finish from the edge of the box after being given plenty of room by John Stones, Jude Bellingham and Morgan Rogers.
Martinez then struck the winner two minutes into added time, getting ahead of Stones and Ezri Konsa at the far post to head home for a 2-1 semi-final victory. Yet, as Argentinian players celebrated wildly, England players protested to referee Ismail Elfath, claiming foul play.
Alexis Mac Allister initiated the move when his effort from the edge of the box struck the post – the ball trickling towards the near touchline. Spence and Lionel Messi then sprinted towards the loose ball, with the England full-back getting a clean touch as he attempted to clear the danger.
However, Messi seemed to catch Spence’s foot with his trailing boot during the challenge, with the defender instantly displaying discomfort by hopping on one leg. From there, Messi gathered possession on the wing before delivering a cross for Martinez to nod into the back of Jordan Pickford’s net from close range.
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Numerous England supporters were swift to question why VAR did not intervene due to the apparent foul on Spence, particularly given that Egypt had a goal disallowed against the World Champions for a comparable incident in their quarter-final encounter.
According to former England defender Johnson, who earned 54 caps for the Three Lions throughout his professional career, it might come down to Spence not making more of the contact. Speaking to football.london via thesportsgeek.com, Johnson said: “Credit to Djed for getting back to his feet.
“Sometimes you need to be smarter. I do think we sometimes to need to match teams for the way they set up, the way the are aggressive to stamp our mark on the game.
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“Maybe we’re a but too nice at times and if Djed goes down then it gives VAR a decision to make. But he gets on his feet and maybe that’s why no VAR was given and no other English player appealed. So not Argentina bias for me.”
Following the defeat, England will face France in the third-place play-off on Saturday. Meanwhile, Argentina will go head-to-head with Spain in the World Cup final the following evening.
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