England vs Belgium: Gareth Southgate prioritises morale, defence drops dangerously deep and Danny Rose roves

England’s World Cup group phase ended in an underwhelming defeat by Belgium in Kaliningrad, meaning Gareth Southgate’s team finished second behind Roberto Martinez’s side.

That may or may not be a blessing – England face Colombia in the second round, a far trickier draw than Belgium’s meeting with Japan, but would be likely to face a more favourable quarter-final, on paper, should they get there.

Here are five things we learned:

It was the week’s hot topic: should Gareth Southgate rotate his team? It boiled down to a question of prioritising either his team’s momentum or his squad’s morale, and the manager lent firmly towards the latter.

England made eight changes from the side that hammered Panama with only Jordan Pickford, John Stones and Ruben Loftus-Cheek retaining their places in the side. Southgate gave Phil Jones, Gary Cahill and Trent Alexander-Arnold their first minutes of the tournament, and likewise Danny Welbeck from the bench, meaning every outfield member of the squad has now seen some action in Russia.

While that may be good for morale in the camp, the inevitable criticism will be levelled that a defeat will be far more negative for the players’ mood and has taken away much of their hard-earned momentum. One of Southgate’s most important tasks in the coming days will be to convince the world and more importantly his own players that this was not as dispiriting a result as it might have felt at the full-time whistle.

There were some notable tactical details here which differed from the Tunisia and Panama games. In the first half it was clear that England were constantly searching for the long ball in behind Belgium’s back three to capitalise on the pace of Jamie Vardy and Marcus Rashford a strategy which did not bare fruit.

Without the ball, England defended much deeper than their first two games. It may have been a ploy to reduce the space for Michy Batshuayi to run into, but more likely it was the natural result of bringing in the older legs of Jones and Cahill for Kyle Walker and Harry Maguire. The result was a gaping hole between defence and midfielder which at its widest in the moments which England suddenly lost the ball and Lotus-Cheek had already committed himself forwards.

Ultimately Southgate might solve the problem when he reintroduces his first-choice defence in the round of 16, should they be fit to do so, but he will be concerned with how much less control his side asserted in the middle of the pitch here, dropping off rather than confronting Belgium’s attacks.

The most distressful moment of England’s night was the sight of John Stones reappearing for the second half on the bench with strapping around his calf. He has developed into an essential part of Southgate’s setup as the only player to have started all six friendlies since qualifying for Russia and the only squad member to have begun all three group games at the World Cup.

If he isn’t fit for the round of 16 then Southgate is likely to bring in Cahill to his defence. There are obvious benefits to having the most capped player in the squad at the heart of your defence, but Stones is at the centre of England’s success in a 3-5-2 system which suits him perfectly. Southgate will be desperate not to lose him.

England began the match ahead of Belgium in Group G by virtue of a better disciplinary record – two yellow cards to three – and they extended that lead in the first half when Danny Rose drew two fouls which resulted in Belgium bookings.

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They were small moments which illustrated what Rose brings: acceleration, illusive dribbling and a left foot which his competitor for the role, Ashley Young, actively avoids. Young did well in England’s opening two games but there is a valid line of argument that Rose brings a better balance to the team. He linked well with Fabian Delph who acted as the perfect foil, a willing runner to stretch the opponents’ right side, and must be in consideration for the round of 16.

Yes, Marcus Rashford missed England’s best chance of the match. But the opportunity came about because, finally, one of his searing runs was spotted by a teammate. He had made another burst a few minutes before which Loftus-Cheek couldn’t pick out, and made another soon after his glaring miss which was just a little overhit.

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He may not bring a cold, deadly eye for goal but neither does Raheem Sterling, while Vardy has had a quiet tournament so far and Danny Welbeck is clearly bottom of Southgate’s pecking order. Of all Kane’s possible strike partners, Rashford is the one opposition would least like to face: quick, direct, skilful. He brings a spontaneity to England’s play which no other player in the squad can match, and right now he is Kane’s most potent potential partner.