Gareth Southgate says he is not pinning England’s hopes of winning Euro 2024 solely on Real Madrid midfielder Jude Bellingham, insisting a squad effort will be required to succeed in Germany.
Bellingham enjoyed a stunning first season in Spain, culminating in a La Liga and Champions League double, and is set to be one of the Three Lions’ most important players as they seek just a second ever major international trophy over the next few months.
The former Borussia Dortmund midfielder was absent from the pre-tournament friendlies against Bosnia and Herzegovina and Iceland but is expected to start in England’s Euro 2024 opener next Sunday.
Speaking to the press, Southgate revealed: “I’m sure he will but it is not his responsibility to do that.”
Asked if Bellingham can handle the growing pressure attached to being the country’s new talisman, Southgate added: “I’m sure he is but we are not putting everything on Jude. We’ve got a lot of good players and it is a collective thing to go and try to win this tournament.
“He is, of course, a player with a fabulous mentality and will have a big impact on the whole group.”
In Bellingham’s absence, Cole Palmer played in the number 10 role in the 3-0 victory over Bosnia and Herzegovina, scoring a penalty shortly before his withdrawal, while Phil Foden was deployed in the position for the surprise 1-0 defeat to Iceland.
However, neither is thought to have done enough in those runouts to displace Bellingham from the starting lineup Southgate will pick for England‘s tournament opener against Serbia a week on Sunday.
On Palmer, the manager added: “He’s had a fabulous season and got himself into a couple of fabulous positions. He probably took a touch too many on both occasions, but the fact is he was in there on both occasions and looked dangerous.”
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