[Devongone]

If England players and fans haven't heard of Leigh Griffiths their opinion isn't worth much. He did play in England, when he could get a game, and he plays in Scotland, when he can get a game. And I think that says a lot more about the football in both countries than Leigh Griffiths.

I think there is something wrong with me ....... Harry Kane is a good goalscorer, he's a decent bloke and he's a worker. BUT IMO that against both Scotland and France he lost the ball more than he retained it and regularly misplaced passes. He was inferior on the night to Leigh Griffiths and although superior to Giroud, he created nowhere near the danger and totally lacked the imagination of young Mbappe. He's very english.

Though commentators go overboard about the French side's ability they ARE struggling to qualify for the World Cup. At full back they are extremely vulnerable. A whole list of English full backs are superior as is one Scottish one! Centrally they have Varane who is way better than anything in our home nations, but aside from Aymeric Laporte the rest of their fairly temperamental central defenders can be very dodgy. Behind them Lloris is a keeper heading slowly backwards.

If and when their giant ragbag of options at the back weld into an operational defence France is potentially massively superior in midfield to England and just about everyone else. BUT The French seem to be the only nation other than England that struggles to combine midfield talent. They've caught Lampard-can't-play-with-Gerrard Disease and turned it into the new Ebola. They reach a major final and select three Vieira looky-and-playey-likies and think it'll work because they're sticking Payet in there too .......... Was it luck or judgement that finally led them last night to achieve a balance based on the security of Kante with Lemar, Ousmane Dembele and the powerful Pogba all playing their own game and using the confusion Mbappe injected into England? Remember France has loads of options up front and in midfield and for every chance to get it right there's its equal and opposite. They could pick a totally different eleven that would look as good on paper if not on grass.

Some truths England have to face are:-

Kane is Captain, he scores goals but he's often less than Fantastic.
The Ox can't successfully fill every role from defensive midfielder or even wing back to flying winger.
Dier has to learn that a defensive midfielder plays behind the rest of the midfield and concentrate upon that truth.
Alli plays with Dier every week, he has to be the one working back to him.
Tom Heaton is a decent keeper for Burnley, forget ANYTHING ELSE FOREVER!
Hart and Butland are the best of a very poor bunch of English keepers.
Sterling can be our most dangerous player, but doing only difficult stuff eventually makes everything impossible.
Every England practice session should involve Lallana and Sterling getting efforts in on goal.
If you're playing ten men or the opposition is tired, get men out wide and stretch play!
Learn from rugby that judicious use of substitutes with specific abilities genuinely works, most England changes operate on buggins-turn.

Rant over! I won't presume to tell the Scots what they need to do, but there's a lot of it as I think most Scots would agree.