Ian Wright has defended Ben White following England's 2-1 victory against Switzerland on Saturday evening. The Arsenal defender was criticised by Roy Keane for failing to stop Borussia Monchengladbach striker Breel Embolo scoring Switzerland's opener.
White misjudged the flight of Xherdan Shaqiri's cross, as Embolo nodded past Everton goalkeeper Jordan Pickford at Wembley. England fought back to win the friendly, with defender Luke Shaw and captain Harry Kane finding the back of the net.
"It really is tough, you’re up against good teams," Keane told ITV. "Sometimes it’s just slight mistakes which we see for the goal and he [White] just got caught out. It’s good quality from Switzerland and they were on top at that moment in time.
"And we can criticise Luke Shaw for not stopping the cross, but people like Shaqiri have produced at this level many times before. They’ve got to get closer but as soon as it leaves his foot White’s body position is all wrong, Embolo’s got his number.
"He just got caught out, as simple as that. It’s a great finish and he got punished. You hope sometimes to get away with it, but it’s a great delivery and he’s just been caught out."
White is enjoying a solid campaign at Arsenal, making 31 appearances in all competitions and helping Mikel Arteta's side concede just 31 goals in the Premier League, the fifth-best record in the competition. Saturday, though, was just his third senior game for England.
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The 24-year-old never represented the Three Lions at youth level and wasn't even supposed to be starting against Switzerland, selected as a late replacement for the injured John Stones. The Manchester City defender's complaint isn't thought to be serious.
White was part of England's squad for Euro 2020, although he didn't make an appearance in the tournament. The former Brighton defender was called into the squad after Liverpool right-back Trent Alexander-Arnold suffered a thigh injury.
Responding to Keane's criticism, fellow ITV pundit Wright said: "I think, being called up as late as he did because of the injury in the warm-up, there was a bit of nerves, you could see that. But I thought he did well in the game to be honest. He did very well."
England manager Gareth Southgate was impressed with White's performance, although he does believes the Arsenal man was caught out by Embolo. Southgate was also happy with Crystal Palace defender Marc Guehi's display on debut.
"We played out from the back well, Ben White and Marc Guehi were very good," said Southgate at full-time. "Ben got caught a bit for the goal but apart from that to come in at late notice with John Stones feeling something, he and Marc should be pleased.
"We don't think it is too bad and could be ready for the next game. No point risking him in a game like this." On Guehi, Southgate added: "He is so calm so you don't see the last-ditch challenges... really composed with his defending and the ball."
