10 things we learnt from England’s drab draw in Slovenia

England remain top of Group F in their respective 2018 World Cup qualifying campaign after escaping Ljubljana with a share of the spoils after their goalless encounter with Slovenia on Tuesday night.

In interim manager Gareth Southgate’s second game in charge, the Three Lions failed to impress or dominate inside the Stozice Stadium as the visitors surrendered their 100 per cent record.

However; England still top the group, two points ahead of second placed Lithuania, who similarly defeated Malta 2-0 last night.

So, after a drab draw in Slovenia, what did we learn from England’s latest competitive outing?

Here is five things SHOOT learnt from Tuesday’s Ljubljana lullaby…

Hart the saviour

Still very much England’s number one after last night’s heroics, Joe Hart spared England’s blushes in Slovenia.

The Manchester City shot stopper, who has been shipped out on loan to Serie A outfit Torino for the 2016/17 campaign, proved any doubters wrong with an array of spectacular saves to record an impressive clean sheet.

The 29-year-old, twice denied Josip Ilicic expertly when he was played in by poor backpasses from both Eric Dier and captain Jordan Henderson.

But, undoubtedly, his finest stop was his remarkable effort to turn Jasmin Kurtic’s close-range header on to the crossbar just moments after the interval. World-class.

England’s first goalless encounter since 2013

Yesterday’s Slovenia stalemate was the Three Lions’ first 0-0 draw and the first time they had dropped points in a qualifier since their clash with Ukraine back in September 2013.

Many supporters saw England’s opening qualifier in Slovakia last month heading the same way, a goalless encounter, but luckily for former boss Sam Allardyce, Liverpool midfielder Adam Lallana popped up with a last-gasp winner.

Unfortunately, the luck soon ran out for ‘Big Sam’ after his sole game in charge!

32 and counting…

Despite the discouraging scoreline and performance, England are still unbeaten in their last 32 World Cup or European Championship qualifying matches.

Having won 24 of those meetings, including eight draws, the Three Lions are still on course to qualify for the 2018 finals in Russia.

It’s just the actual major tournament where England always seem to fall short!

“Close them down!”

Tuesday night’s bombardment in Ljubljana saw the opposition register more shots than England for the first time since March 2013.

That record harked back to the time the Three Lions mustered a 1-1 draw in Montenegro during their 2014 World Cup qualifying campaign.

Once again, least we didn’t lose. Right?

“Shoot!”

As well as allowing Slovenia more shots at goal, last night’s lacklustre display saw England manage just three efforts on target themselves – their lowest tally in a competitive fixture since their clash with Costa Rica at the 2014 World Cup.

Let’s not remind ourselves what happened in Brazil that year…

Southgate has guts

Despite impressing as England Under-21 manager, many fans feared the former Middlesbrough boss wasn’t brave enough to stamp his authority on the senior team and give the Three Lions the kick up the backside they so overly deserve.

However; after a sloppy performance against minnows Malta at the weekend, where Wayne Rooney was booed by the home crowd, Southgate decided to drop the skipper for Tuesday’s trip to Slovenia.

Benching England’s all-time record goalscorer was always going to be a brave call, but it was widely regarded as the right decision, considering his recent form.

But, Rooney’s not to blame

On the other hand, Rooney’s absence hardly led to a spirited and convincing away win.

Instead, the Manchester United star watched his national team-mates struggle in Ljubljana, as he kept the substitute’s bench warm until he was called upon to replace Dele Alli.

Despite being highly criticised, with overwhelming calls for the skipper to be dropped, Tuesday’s outcome was simply ‘No Rooney, No Result’.

Walcott’s wobble

Theo Walcott, he started, we promise! Though we don’t blame you if you forgot after last night’s sluggish showing.

It was until the 62nd minute that Southgate finally realised the Arsenal winger was ineffective against Slovenia, finally bringing on Andros Townsend for the final third of the match.

The 27-year-old severely struggled to find his rhythm inside the Stozice Stadium, often dithering with the ball, rather than advancing down the flanks, before picking the wrong decisions at the wrong time.

Despite being in-form for the Gunners in the Premier League, Walcott showed on the international stage exactly why he was left out of England’s Euro 2016 squad.

The Young Lions don’t miss Southgate

Having stepped in, on an interim basis, to succeed Sam Allardyce as England manager, some would have predicted the Under-21 side would have struggled without their usual boss.

However, that wasn’t to be the case yesterday. Quite the opposite actually!

The Young Lions, now under the guidance of Aidy Boothroyd, thrashed Bosnia-Herzegovina 5-0 in Walsall to wrap up their impressive European Championship qualifying campaign in style.

Chelsea striker Tammy Abraham, on loan at Bristol City, netted twice, whilst there were also goals for John Swift, Josh Onomah and Duncan Watmore.

Gareth’s excuse

After watching his side escape with a point, interim boss Southgate explained that he had inherited “a mess” following Sam Allardyce’s controversial departure last month.

Having led the Three Lions to a comfortable 2-0 victory over Malta at the weekend in his first of four games in charge, the 46-year-old seemed to hark back to ‘Big Sam’s’ reign and use his extraordinary exit over a corruption scandal as an excuse for England’s goalless encounter.

He said, “With the overall objective of qualifying, we have kept the team on track.

“But we have taken over a mess really and had to steady the ship.”