UEFA Nations League: England are boring? So what? Good football doesn’t win tournaments – The Warm-Up

England drew 1-1 with Germany at the Allianz Arena. It leaves the Three Lions rock bottom of Nations League Group A3. It was not a performance without fault. In fact, there were many. The defence looked disjointed, the midfield overrun and the attack subdued. The latter of which probably had a large bearing on the former. England are undoubtedly a better team when on the front foot.

England under Gareth Southgate may have already peaked with their appearance in the final of the Euros last summer. Perhaps a meandering, laboured performance was a function of fatigue after a long season or perhaps wider issues are afoot.

A clearer picture of England's current state will be available when this Nations League group is concluded - after a solid summer break - in September after return fixtures against Germany and Italy.

However, Southgate's England have put together a body of consistency that affords them the benefit of doubt.

Thus, with said benefit given, focus should settle upon the positives. They were two-fold.

Firstly, England's options from the bench were game-changing; both Jack Grealish and Jarrod Bowen gave an otherwise rudderless performance drive and vigour. Southgate deserves credit for making said changes.

Secondly, England salvaged a draw from a game they would have almost certainly have lost in years gone by. Harry Kane called it "character" in his post-match interview. But it was something different - more an understanding of what they represent. England are now a team not constrained by performance. They are a team of nous, a team of game smarts and a team - having been thoroughly outplayed for large swathes of this contest - who turned the screw, and amped-up the pressure until it paid dividends as Kane notched his 50th England goal.

This enduring threat marks most title-winning teams. Tournaments are rarely won by sides that consistently played the best football, but by teams who ground results out in less-than-impressive performances.

Germany were the more coherent side - and by some distance - but England offered an increasing threat as the game entered the clutch period.

They snatched a result they barely deserved. England's inferiority complex is no more. They are finally a serious outfit.

The year is 2055. Football, in a post-Super League wasteland, has been irrevocably changed. Rugby is now the world's most popular sport, brown loafers its most popular shoe and flares continue to dominate the catwalk.

In essence, sport - a reflection of life - has been turned on its head, but, amongst the mayhem, there is one constant: Jose Mourinho has once again signed Nemanja Matic.

The above nonsense has a serious-ish point, and that is: Matic is the most Mourinho of Mourinho signings. If Matic is signing for Roma, reports that Mourinho is off to PSG can be discounted. If Matic, however, all of a sudden gets cold feet and ends up at the Parc des Princes, then, to coin a phrase, lump on Mourinho to Paris.

Mathieu Valbuena and Karim Benzema have a complicated history.

For the uninitiated, a court in France found Benzema guilty of complicity in the attempted blackmail of Valbuena. He was given a one-year suspended sentence and fined €75,000.

Benzema had denied any wrongdoing after prosecutors said he had encouraged former France international team-mate Valbuena to pay some blackmailers in order to keep a sexually explicit tape private.

The case dates back to June 2015..

Set alongside that context, it is fairly remarkable that Valbuena has backed his former international team-mate for the Ballon d'Or.

“It wouldn't be fair to say he doesn't deserve the Ballon d'Or," said Valbuena in an interview with RMC.

"Yes, he deserves the Ballon d'Or. I can speak objectively on a sporting level. I am doing well my way too, there is no problem.”

This section usually contains a link out to an article. However, today the redirect is to the often imitated but never surpassed Swiss Ramble, whose latest Twitter thread assesses the debt situation among some of Europe's biggest clubs.

Tonight sees Belgium take on Poland and Wales against Netherlands - you can follow both live on eurosport.co.uk.