Did Roy Hodgson really have any choice in going on the attack and naming five forwards in England’s European Championship squad? Hardly.
The case for the defence just does not stack up. The stock of English central defenders, that proud lineage of Billy Wright, Bobby Moore and Rio Ferdinand, is now virtually entirely bare.
Wayne Rooney could probably do a better job at the back than most of those who were left on the cutting room floor. Eric Dier, who will likely start the tournament in midfield, certainly would.
If last season’s Premier League table is taken as a guide, the more you rely on English centre backs, the worse you do. Leicester City won the league with a German and a Jamaican at their base.
Manchester United were the highest placed side with a first-choice English central defender, in Chris Smalling. They finished fifth in a season generally considered underwhelming at best.
Five of the teams who finished within the bottom six had at least one English centre back.
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The two best performing sides with two regular England-qualified starters at the back were Chelsea in 10th and Everton in 11th. And arguably the best of those, John Terry, is unavailable anyway, seeing as he is officially retired.
The fact imported defenders predominate in the clubs at the top of the league goes against accepted wisdom.
The current trend inverts the idea that the best money is spent on goalscorers from overseas, when compared to the other end of the field.
Jamie Vardy’s goals fuelled Leicester’s extraordinary title charge. Tottenham Hotspur finished third on the back of Harry Kane’s stunning second Premier League season.
Liverpool’s curate’s egg of a campaign had one notable highlight to finish, as they reached the Europa League final. Daniel Sturridge was so injury-addled that his contribution to that effort was minimal, but he still scored eight times in two months at the end of the season.
All of which goes to show that manager Hodgson, far from suddenly being overwhelmed by a commitment to attacking verve, just had no other choice.
Not that that is necessarily a bad thing. With Jordan Henderson, James Milner and Dier around, there is still plenty of pragmatism to call on.
But the pep and brio players like Kane, Vardy, Dele Alli, and Marcus Rashford will bring to the overall ambience could have a telling impact.
England will have the youngest squad at the competition. As such, more players than usual will be unencumbered by past failings.
They might even play with flair. They might even look like they are enjoying it for once. Well, Sturridge probably won’t, but at least Alli and Dier might.
It is not exactly going to be like Kevin Keegan’s Newcastle United “Entertainers”, or the “Famous Five” of Ossie Ardiles at Spurs.
But whatever circumstances have got them there, it might turn out that the best form of defence for England just might be to go on the attack.
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