England is almost at the verge of losing out on the Euro 2024 competitions. England at the verge of losing out on the Euro 2024. England arrived in Germany with high spirit and were expecting to do wonders in the tournament.
Possible Euro winners 2024
But the reverse turned out to be the case as they are already fighting their way to qualify
for round of 16, which was supposed to be done easily. They have been booed by their own fans and heavily criticized by the media back in their country.
England’s Euro 2024 campaign is off to a stuttering start despite picking up four points from their opening two games.
Though they are on top of the table in group C with four points, it is not yet certain that they will qualify for the next level of the competition.
After an underwhelming 1-0 win over Serbia in their opening game which was followed by a disjointed display in a 1-1 draw with Denmark.
Southgate’s men are still almost certain to make the knockout stages and can win Group C with Victory over Slovenia on Tuesday.
Most dangerous left-wingers in Europe
However England has several fires to fight if they should deliver on the expectation to become European champions.
There are some certain issues which England as a team must resolve to be able to achieve their dreams of becoming Euro champions. Let us delve into some of them.
1.No natural left-back
Gareth Southgate idea of bringing only one natural left-back to the Euros already looks misjudged. Luke Shaw has not played a minute for his Club or country since February and still has not been fit enough to join the team in training in Germany.
With the Manchester United defender set to miss their final Group match against Slovenia on Tuesday, Southgate must not decide to risk featuring him during the knockout stages should incase they qualify for the next stage of the competition
Even if the 28-year-old proves his fitness before then. Due to lack of a natural-left back, Kieran Trippier has switched to the left-back position thereby causing an
imbalance in the defense line. Gareth Southgate should work on recruiting new Left-backs in order to balance England’s National team.
2.Dealing with how they press their opponents
In response to questioning over the reason why England have set backs after going in front in their opening games.
Southgate has said that his players do not possess the physical level needed to press their opponent for 90 minutes.
“We are not pressing well enough, with enough intensity,” he said. Unlike Germany, Spain, and Portugal who have made flying starts with a similar
workload also weighing on the legs of their squads still are almost ready to be qualified for the next stage of the competition.
Most ranked center-backs in recent years
Southgate has said opposite about his team as many of his squad had not played a competitive 90 minutes for nearly a month before facing Serbia.
Though he is hoping that they will regain match sharpness as the tournament progresses.
3.Who makes up the midfield
As Jude Bellingham and Declan Rice remain pivotal to England’s hopes, it is important to know who plays alongside with them in the midfield.
Southgate’s experiment of converting Liverpool’s right-back Trent Alexander-Arnold into Midfield has so far failed to pay off.
Most ranked center-backs in recent years
Arnold has been replaced by Chelsea’s Conor Gallagher in both the opening two matches. Southgate has so many other options like Kobbie Mainoo and Adam
Wharton but neither has started a competitive international before. Southgate should look more to using players in their natural position of play rather than converting players to position they might find hard playing.
4.Dealing with expectations
Rarely have England begun a major tournament with greater expectation. The likes of Foden, Bellingham, Bukayo Saka and Harry Kane should be the envy of
Europe after they combined for 114 goals in club football in the 2023/24 campaign. Despite this, Declan Rice has admitted that the team are putting much pressure on themselves to deliver.
“We are all so desperate to make the nation proud” the young midfielder said. “We are all so desperate to win, to be leaders, to go out there and give people memories for lifetimes.”
Southgate has urged his players to walk towards the expectations rather than become frightened by the challenge. But the time has now come for them to do their talking in the pitch.
5.Fierce Criticisms on Kane
Harry Kane was unusually the target for some of the fiercest criticisms, despite netting his 64th international goal against Denmark. The England Captain was subbed off with over 20 minutes to go and has faced calls to be dropped if his performance does not improve against Slovenia on Tuesday.
However, Kane is not moved by these criticisms because he has been there before. He is by a distance England’s most reliable source of goals.
Though he failed to score in the group stage at both the last Euros and World cup, he scored six times in the six knockout games at those tournaments.
Kane said, “I know when major tournament football is on, it is always going to be scrutinized. He has been known to be a great and pivotal player in England’s team over the years.
Kane should be accepted the way he plays and focus more and builder a stronger and formidable team.
When this afore mentioned issues are being tackled, England might stand a chance of coming out on top in the 2024 Euro competition In Germany.
