England manager Gareth Southgate has called on his players to dig deep and do everything in their power to beat Switzerland in the quarter-finals of the 2024 European Championship (EURO 2024).
The Three Lions have performed well expectations in Germany this summer. They have lacked creativity, struggled to control the tempo, and their defense has also looked quite shaky at times.
After managing just one win in three Group C fixtures (2 draws), England squared off against Slovakia in the EURO 2024 Round of 16. Slovakia put early pressure on the heavyweights and got their noses in front in the 25th minute. Southgate’s men pushed hard for the equalizer, but it did not arrive until the end of injury time (90+5′). Star midfielder Jude Bellingham dispatched a stunning overhead kick to make it 1-1 for England.
In the first minute of extra time, Harry Kane hit the back of the net, putting England in front. Slovakia created many excellent opportunities to equalize, but their finish let them down. It finally ended 2-1 for England, placing them in the path of Switzerland in the quarter-finals.
Gareth Southgate Commands England Players To Dig Deep For EURO 2024 QFs
The Three Lions will need to play a much better game to beat Switzerland in the EURO 2024 quarter-finals on Saturday evening (July 6). In the pre-match press conference, Southgate discussed the takeaways from the match against Slovakia, instructing his players to dig deeper against Switzerland.
He told UEFA (via RTE):
“We showed great resilience and great character to keep going right until the end, and I think we deserved a draw in the 90 minutes. When you get the goal so early in extra time, you’re able to be in charge of things a little more.
“We have to get ourselves back to the mental stage we were in before the game with Slovakia. Where whatever it takes to win, you’ve got to be ready to go. You’ve got to be ready to go right to the depths again.”
Unlike England, Switzerland did not struggle to book their place in the quarter-finals. They cruised to the final-8 in style, claiming a massive 2-0 victory over reigning European champions Italy.
