Ross Barkley was in a different mood on Monday, dancing between Spain’s midfielders with the ball at his feet and finding teammates effortlessly in England’s historic 3-2 over Spain and has now drawn praise from pundits Jamie Carragher and Jamie Redknapp.
The two pundits for Sky Sports were confident if Barkley can keep producing performances as like he did against the former World Champions, he could go a long way to become Gareth Southgate’s missing link in midfield.
According to the pundits, the Three Lions missed a creative spark in midfield during the World Cup in Russia last summer, that led to their exit in the semi-final. But after the reintroduction on Ross Barkley to the England setup, the Chelsea star could define a few games for his country from now.
“I’m pleased for Ross Barkley tonight. He was involved in one of the goals but he also played really well tonight. He’s had an up and down couple of years – criticism leaving Everton, didn’t quite happen at Chelsea, injuries as well… there’s no doubt that lad has got talent. If he can put it all together with his decision making going forward, he could be that creative player, that we said on the back of the World Cup, that England still lacked.”
Jamie Carragher
“You can see he’s got that sparkle in his eye again. I think he’s learning a lot about the game under Sarri. I think he’s developing. It’s confidence, it’s belief.”
Jamie Redknapp, Metro
Barkley contributed to one of the goals after his clever over the top pass found Harry Kane who instantly connected to the waiting Raheem Sterling to tap in England’s third goal in the game.
