Gary Lineker has launched a brutal attack on England and Gareth Southgate following their performance in their Euro 2024 draw against Denmark.
The Three Lions have been widely criticised for their showing in their second game of Euro 2024, having sat off their opponents after going 1-0 up, conceding, and struggling to take control of the game.
It was a more-than below par performance from the pre-tournament favourites, with Southgate, post-match, admitting his side have struggled and that he was finding it difficult to find a replacement for Kalvin Phillips.
There was no place to hide when it came to criticism from fans and pundits, however, with Lineker reverting from his presenter role to chipping in with his views during BBC‘s coverage of the game on Thursday night.
Speaking on The Rest Is Football podcast, meanwhile, the former England man laid into the nation, with a brutal one-word verdict on what he throught of the performance.
Gary Lineker has launched a brutal attack on England following their performance against Denmark
The Three Lions have received widespread criticism for their showing in their second Euro 2024 showing
Lineker questioned the tactics of Gareth Southgate (pictured), who admitted his side had struggled in the game
[data-podcast-container] #embed-iframe-wrapper { min-height: 160px; } [data-podcast-container] header#podcast-container-header { transform: none !important; }
‘I mean, you can think of all sorts of words and expletives if you like, but it was s***,’ Lineker said. ‘Was it tactically inept? It’s really hard to be critical of Gareth Southgate because, overall in the England role, he’s turned England’s fortunes around in many ways.’
The Match of the Day host continued to question Southgate, querying how he has struggled to get the best out of a squad stacked with talent.
Harry Kane, Phil Foden and Bukayo Saka were all taken off early in the game, replaced by Ollie Watkins, Eberechi Eze and Jarrod Bowen, while Declan Rice and Trent Alexander-Arnold struggled throughout in midfield.
‘If anyone says that the England team is not trying or not giving 100 per cent, that is nonsense,’ he added. ‘They’re just a little bit lost tactically. And that comes from the manager, I’m afraid.
‘It really does. He’s got to get England playing higher up the pitch, as a unit. Because, at the moment, they’re not a unit.’
Following the game, England captain Harry Kane raised eyebrows when he suggested England aren’t clear on how to press their opponents.
Kane said: ‘We are starting games well. But when the teams are dropping a few players deeper we are not quite sure how to get the pressure on, and who is the one who is supposed to be going.’
Lineker addressed the comments post-match on BBC, again pointing to Southgate for the reason why his side are struggling without the ball.
After the game, captain Harry Kane said his side are ‘not quite sure how to get the pressure on’
Lineker admitted the comments made by the England forward are ‘beyond concerning’
‘It comes from the manager,’ he said. ‘And I hate to say it, but it’s not too late because England are top of the group and all that, and they can get through. But with this, he’s blessed with the players he’s got.
‘But you’ve got to play high now. Now, high line, it must come from the manager. And Harry Kane said in his interview, didn’t he? We don’t really know how to do it.’
Micah Richards, also speaking on BBC, described the comments as ‘concerning’, with Lineker replying: ‘Beyond concerning.’
England had struggled without the ball in their final fixture before the tournament got underway, which saw them lose 1-0 agaisnt Iceland in a friendly at Wembley.
It was hoped and somewhat exected that the return of Jude Bellingham, who had just won the Champions League with Real Madrid, would help that, but little progress has been made.
Contnuing on the press, Linker added: ‘What I find inexplicable, to be honest… we watched Spain play just now, compeltley high press, really high, they have excelelnt technical players – so do England. Why do they not play the high press? Are the not coached to do that?
‘Can you do it with Harry Kane? I think you can. However good he is, you’ve got to buy into this, Harry. That’s got to come from the management.’
Lineker said that the high press that hasn’t been on show ‘has got to come from the management’
He questioned why England aren’t being coached to defend high up the pitch given the quality of players they have at their disposal
There have been calls for a number of changes to be made, with the likes of Cole Palmer (left) and Anthony Gordon (centre) yet to see a minute
Southgate is expected to make changes to his side for England’s final group game against Slovenia on Tuesday, though Kane will more than likely keep his place.
There have been calls for Cole Palmer to see some action having not played a minute yet at the tournament, while Trent Alexander-Arnold’s trial in midfield is unlikely to continue.
Other options in attack include the likes of Anthony Gordon, who is also yet to play a minute, while there have been calls for Adam Wharton to be introduced in midfield.
Read More: World News | Entertainment News | Celeb News
Mail Online
