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Shearer and Keane lead pundits slamming England after 'damning' Slovenia game

26 June 2024 , 10:20
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Scroll down to read what has been said
Scroll down to read what has been said

EURO 2024 pundits have slammed England for yesterday's snoozefest display against Slovenia.

The Three Lions played out a bore 0-0 draw with Matjaz Kek's side in Cologne.

England were held to a 0-0 draw by Slovenia qhiqhhiqkhitkprw
England were held to a 0-0 draw by SloveniaCredit: Alamy
Gareth Southgate's decision making has been criticised
Gareth Southgate's decision making has been criticisedCredit: Getty

It was another uninspiring performance that left supporters far from satisfied.

Even ex-England stars Alan Shearer and Jamie Carragher struggled to see the positives, while Manchester United legend Roy Keane slammed the "sloppy" showing.

Speaking on his podcast, Shearer claimed that manager Gareth Southgate selected the wrong squad - even after dropping Trent Alexander-Arnold in favour of Conor Gallagher following his failed midfield experiment.

Ferdinand in full agreement with Carragher over latest Maguire setbackFerdinand in full agreement with Carragher over latest Maguire setback

The Newcastle legend said: "By his own admission, you can tell that. He took him [Gallagher] off at half-time.

"That didn’t work, I thought [Kobbie] Mainoo coming on was a positive. He did well. I thought he made his substitutions too late giving [Cole] Palmer, what, 20 minutes-ish?

"What’s [Anthony] Gordon done against him? Because, giving him two or three minutes?

"I think Gordon did more in two or three minutes on the left-hand side then we’ve shown in two-and-a-half games, I think, with forward passing, with a bit of energy, with a bit of class, bit of knowhow."

Shearer went on to admit that England's lack of chances so far at Euro 2024 has been "pretty damning".

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He continued: "What he’s tried to do in the first three games hasn’t worked. His starting line-up in three games hasn’t worked, so big changes. For me, he has to play Gordon on the left-hand side."

Carragher also refused to shy away from berating Southgate's squad, claiming that some players failed to back-up the fighting talk they used before Tuesday's match.

In his column for The Telegraph, he wrote: "When Harry Kane and Declan Rice came out fighting after the criticism that followed the Denmark draw, no one was applauding them more than me.

"They looked and sounded like the leaders they are. The trouble is, when you speak like that, you have to back it up where it really matters. To me, that made the Slovenia performance the worst yet."

Carragher identifies Guardiola role in Arsenal's transfer pursuit of MudrykCarragher identifies Guardiola role in Arsenal's transfer pursuit of Mudryk

He added: "The sum total of England’s contribution to Euro 2024 so far is 45 minutes against Serbia from Jude Bellingham and Bukayo Saka. That is it. We cannot dress it up any other way."

Like Shearer, the Liverpool legend insists Southgate needs to switch up his starting line-up.

"Ripping up part of the team and starting again may be against Southgate’s instincts," Carragher claimed.

"He has never had to do it before in tournament football. Now he goes into every game knowing it could be his last as the England manager.

"The alternative is more of the same, with players trying to paint a positive picture based on the fact England won the group and are unbeaten."

Ex-Ireland star Keane also had some strong words for the Three Lions.

Speaking live on ITV, he said: "It has been too slow and too sloppy.

"The one good moment was offside.

"Pass it in front of somebody, and be brave enough to lose the ball."

Gary Neville echoed the sentiments and labelled the team "basic".

England failed to impress against Slovenia
England failed to impress against Slovenia

Despite the criticism, England are still favourites to WIN Euro 2024.

Yes, you read that right.

The Three Lions somehow managed to top Group C with five points and now have a favourable potential route to the final.

According to Ladbrokes, England are now 4/1 to win the tournament.

Germany and Spain are both 6/2 while France are 5/1.

England icon Gary Lineker was keen to look at the positives from Tuesday's match despite the results.

Having already been critical of the Three Lions at the European Championship, the ex-Leicester star changed his stance following the 0-0 draw.

After branding the first half "really dreadful" on The Rest is Football podcast, he said: "In the second half, I thought you could see that if this team continue to play a high press, chances will come.

"And we may have been playing that way because Slovenia knew that a draw would get them through. So, they were cautious and sat back a little bit. I understand that.

"But I saw enough to suggest that England are improving slightly.

"Now, I think there were downsides but I think there were real positives, particularly, I thought, when Cole Palmer came on.

"We were still unbalanced on the left, no question about that, and I thought it was a little baffling that he waited so long for Anthony Gordon to come on, because I think [Phil] Foden was playing there but then he was switching with [Jude] Bellingham and I don’t think that really helped either of them in a way, because they were neither here nor there.

"I’m trying to put a positive spin on it. What I did see in the second half was energy and I haven’t seen energy, apart from the first half an hour of the first game, in the other performances.

"So, I think there’s enough there in the second half, enough there just to make me think for the first time this England team has some energy, which they hadn’t before."

Former England and Man Utd star Paul Scholes appeared to agree.

After criticising Southgate's decision not to start Kobbie Mainoo, he took to Instagram to write: "Might surprise a few... Very encouraged by that performance.

"At some point during that game the right players were on the pitch at the same time... Think this team is ready to click."

England broke an unwanted European Championship record following Tuesday's match against Slovenia.

Having topped Group C with five points and two goals scored, the Three Lions contributed to the joint lowest-scoring group in European Championship history.

England are set to play in the round-of-16 on Sunday.


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Emillia Hawkins

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