So not exactly an inspiring last game before the Euros as it turned out. All that talk of putting out an attacking team fell a bit flat on its face with that god awful formation Roy decided to inflict on the team.

At least Dier tried to start some attacking moves and Walker did some good work out on the right but there was a lot missing in midfield until the subs came on. Must be one of the lowest shots on goal count for us. I'm not sure two up front is going to work as an option as both players kept on getting pushed to either side of the area. We definitely need wide players in midfield though to give us more width as we shouldn't be relying on the fullbacks alone pushing up. Also, I also kept wondering what the hell Smalling was doing carrying the ball deep into the opposition's half though thankfully his headed goal did help rescue a poor night.

That was soul-destroying to watch

I would have thought a five year old would have realised you don't play Vardy and Kane together, far too similar. Sturridge should be paired with either Kane or Vardy and if Sturridge isn't up to the job (in which case he shouldn't be in the squad) then pick the kid and play Rashford with Kane or Vardy.

Since Drinkwater has not been included, Hodgson has cleverly reduced the potential effectiveness of Vardy by excluding someone who routinely gets the best out of him - the game last night was a perfect demonstration of how not to use Vardy - so Kane must be in the starting line up (he should be anyway).

Vital we get the attacking options right as the centre of our defence is way below par.

You can play them together, but you have to have Kane playing more like a number 10 to do it and that certainly wasn't what they were doing last night. Shoving Vardy and Kane onto the wings is about as clever an idea from an England manager as playing Andy Johnson on the wing or Joleon Lescott at fullback.

As far as I'm concerned Rooney should not ever be picked as the main striker again now, particularly with the likes of Kane, Vardy and Sturridge available, and sacrificing those guys onto the wings, and moving Dele Alli out of his best position, to accommodate Rooney is rank idiocy. Rooney's the most versatile player in the England squad and is at his best facing the opposition goal, dropping deep to find space so he's the one who should be moved around the formation.

I absolutely support Rooney being in the starting line-up somewhere as this team can look like little-boys-lost without him, hardly anyone dares hit a pass longer than 15 yards when he's not on the pitch (Alli last night passed up a number of obvious opportunities to spread the play because the pass wasn't a gimme) and he brings a drive, determination and creativity that's sorely missed when he's not there.

Personally I'd prefer Kane up top on his own to Vardy, with Rooney (inside left), Alli and Lallana (inside right) as the three behind him, with Dier and (if he can stay fit) Wilshere as the main central midfielders. Kane has more quality, in general, than Vardy and I like the idea of being able to bring Vardy on later on when his work-rate and pace may be most effective against a tiring opposition.

I'd second every word of this.

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@Slainte Mhath

Makes a lot of sense to me, although I am more anxious than you appear to be to play Sturridge; when fit he is for me the best, the least predictable striker we have. Predictable is not necessarily bad - hasn't stopped Vardy and Kane banging goals in all season - just unpredictable can be better for unsettling a defence and creating more opportunities for others.

We seem to spend too much time thinking, for instance, about where to play Rooney, not enough on how the team is expected to play.

I know Roy has to be positive but is keeping a clean sheet against 10 men for an hour at home deemed one as such?

You'd be worried if we did give them a few chances TBH although generally our defence must be the biggest worry.

We just need to play with a high tempo and pace to break down such teams - passing for passing sake doesn't work for us.