June 28 – Whilst England’s famed forward line has been criticised for their lack of fire power at Euro 24, the one area of the team that has come good so far is the defence which, ironically, was supposedly the most vulnerable area.
Marc Guehi, the surprise choice at central defence, has been one England’s best players and insists manager Gareth Southgate has the full confidence of his team-mates as the Three Lions prepare for their last-16 tie with Slovakia.
The England team concluded their Group C campaign with a goalless draw against Slovenia in Cologne, topping the group with five points ahead of Denmark. But the sound of the full-time whistle was greeted with boos much of it aimed towards Southgate.
Guehi, who has started every game in Germany so far, has been a shining light for England as he continues to build a solid partnership alongside John Stones. England have conceded only one goal so far.
“Everyone is behind the manager and we have a really close tight-knit group just focused on the next group. Everyone appreciates him, especially me,” said the 23-year old.
As the curtain closed on the group stage on Wednesday, a shock Georgia win against Portugal meant that England would avoid the Netherlands in the knockout stages.
Spain, Germany, Portugal, France and Belgium are in the other half of the draw, adding further hopes of England ending their 58-year win for a major men’s trophy.
However, the Crystal Palace defender believes there are no easy games at this stage of the competition.
“Everyone has seen in this competition that I don’t think there is a favourable side of the draw,” he said. “Every opponent is tough to play against. We just need to remain calm. We put pressure on ourselves, but it’s a very calm and focused environment. We just need to continue focusing on one thing at a time.”
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