Euro 2016: Raheem Sterling facing the axe for England’s crunch Group B clash with Wales
Manchester City ace under threat after poor display in opening game draw with Russia as Three Lions boss considers changes
RAHEEM STERLING could be dropped for England’s crunch Group B clash with Wales on Thursday as boss Roy Hodgson admitted he won’t be scared to change his tactics again.
Hodgson made the surprise call to include Sterling from the start in the 1-1 draw against Russia as he opted for a 4-3-3 formation that saw Wayne Rooney drop back into midfield.
But the Manchester City wide man produced a disappointing display in Marseilles and is now facing the axe for a game England cannot afford to lose.
Defeat to Wales would leave Hodgson’s men facing an uphill battle to make it through to the knock-out stages with Slovakia last up in their group matches.
Hodgson said: "The team depends upon how you see individuals you are working with, and how you build a team to make best use of their qualities.
"We thought, going into this game, we'd been pleased with Raheem and Adam, and with Harry Kane, so we thought that would be our best attacking option.
"We could change it for the next games.
"When we analyse the game, and start preparing for the next game, there'll be a lot of things that we'll want to take forward and hopefully we'll be able to put the memory of that last minute goal behind us.
"It won't take us long to get over it."
Hodgson admitted trying to replicate a previous iteration of the formation, used during the team's 100 per cent winning run in qualification.
But with Jamie Vardy pushing for a starting role, Hodgson and his coaching staff have plenty to ponder in Chantgilly over the next couple of days.
"Lallana and Sterling and Kane...that's a direct replica of Sterling, (Danny) Welbeck and Rooney which we were using for long periods ahead of these finals," he said.
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"We've been playing this system (and) if you take the successful period, we've had with two defeats in over 20 games."
Kane had a quiet game at centre-forward, making no touches at all in the Russia box.
He did, though, continue his recent role as primary corner taker.
That has raised eyebrows in the build-up to Euro 2016, as it removes the Barclays Premier League's golden boot winner from the danger area at key times.
And one of Kane's most illustrious predecessors in the number nine shirt, Alan Shearer, believes that must change now.
"Let's get straight to the point, what on earth is Harry Kane doing taking corners? It is bizarre," he told BBC One.
"He is well within his rights to say to the manager 'find someone else'. He's one of the best goalscorers and one of the best headers of a ball.
"Get someone else to take corners, not him, because he's a top centre forward."
