Southgate and England team under fire after lackluster display at Euro 2024

England manager Gareth Southgate reacts during their Euro 2024 — Group C — match against Denmark at Frankfurt Arena, Frankfurt, on Jun. 20, 2024. (Reuters)
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Updated 22 June 2024
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Southgate and England team under fire after lackluster display at Euro 2024

  • After Thursday’s uninspiring 1-1 draw with Denmark, the coach acknowledged “we understand what that will mean for the next few days”
  • former England captain Gary Lineker said: “I can’t imagine anybody, who is English, that would have enjoyed England’s performance because it was lethargic, it was dour...”

GELSENKIRCHEN, Germany: Gareth Southgate said he knew it was coming. He was right.
Negativity surrounds the England team — despite leading their group after two games at Euro 2024 and likely to advance to the knockout phase.
After Thursday’s uninspiring 1-1 draw with Denmark, the coach acknowledged “we understand what that will mean for the next few days.”
Indeed, it has fueled concern among fans, English media and former players.
“We have to reflect the mood of the nation,” former England captain Gary Lineker said on his podcast, The Rest is Football. “I can’t imagine anybody, who is English, that would have enjoyed England’s performance because it was lethargic, it was dour...
“You can think of all sorts of words and expletives if you like,” he added, before using one himself.
Lineker’s political opinions have upset the UK government in the recent past — now he has delivered a brutal assessment of the England team.
His comments about England appear to have summed up the mood of many fans.
Southgate’s team were a pre-tournament favorite and beaten finalists at the last Euros.
BBC pundit Alan Shearer described the second half against Denmark as “awful.”
Southgate’s handling of a squad that includes Harry Kane, Jude Bellingham and Phil Foden has been brought into question.
“We have world class players so it’s the manager’s job to get the best out of those players,” said Shearer, a former England striker.
Southgate has transformed England’s fortunes since he was appointed in 2016 — leading the country to the semifinals of the World Cup in 2018.
England missed out on a first trophy since winning the 1966 World Cup when they lost on penalties to Italy in the final of the last Euros three years ago.
The 2022 World Cup was England’s worst performance under Southgate when they lost to defending champion France in the quarterfinals.
England were unconvincing in their opener — a 1-0 win over Serbia — and have a few days off before their final Group C game Tuesday against Slovenia.
So, what has gone wrong in Germany?
Expectation
It has been a longstanding complaint that too much is expected of England at international tournaments. Despite having the most popular league in the world — the Premier League — and some of the most successful clubs, England’s sole success on the international stage remains the World Cup it won in 1966. The last Euros was England’s best performance at any tournament since then when finishing runner-up.
Southgate
Ahead of the tournament, Southgate said this would likely be his last in charge of England if he failed to deliver a trophy.
“I’ve been here for almost eight years now and we’ve come close. So, I know that you can’t keep standing in front of the public and saying ‘please do a little more’, because at some point people will lose faith in your message,” he said before the Euros began.
No left side
The England team are looking unbalanced because they essentially have no left side. Luke Shaw is the only designated left back in the squad, but he is still not fully fit after a long-term injury, leaving Kieran Trippier — a right back — to play on the left. Foden is playing as a nominal left winger, but he prefers to drift inside. England are essentially attacking down the right or down the middle, hugely restricting their options and making the team easier to defend against.
Midfield dilemma
England’s longtime midfield issue has not gone away. In fact, it might be worse than ever. Southgate has admitted to doing an “experiment” by selecting right back Trent Alexander-Arnold as a central midfielder alongside Declan Rice. Alexander-Arnold was substituted early in both games. Quite apart from the oddness of Southgate experimenting in such a key position at a major tournament, he is also overlooking three midfielders who finished the English domestic season strongly — Kobbie Mainoo, Adam Wharton and Conor Gallagher.


Mbappe scores twice and Madrid win again to trail Barcelona by 4 points ahead of ‘clasico’

Updated 05 May 2025
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Mbappe scores twice and Madrid win again to trail Barcelona by 4 points ahead of ‘clasico’

  • It was the fourth straight league win for Madrid, who last Saturday lost the Copa del Rey final to Barcelona and last month was eliminated by Arsenal in the quarterfinals of the Champions League
  • The Basque Country derby ended in a 0-0 draw between Athletic Bilbao and host Real Sociedad

MADRID: Real Madrid survived a late scare but kept pace with leader Barcelona again on Sunday, ahead of their Spanish league “clasico” next weekend.

Kylian Mbappe scored in each half as Madrid held on to beat Celta Vigo 3-2 and remain four points behind the Catalan rivals going into next Sunday’s match in Barcelona.

“La Liga is in Barcelona’s hands, but we’ll have more chances if we’re able to win,” Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti said. “It’s a great opportunity. We’re going to prepare well for Sunday’s game, which I’m not saying will be decisive, but almost.”

Arda Guler also scored for Madrid, who opened a 3-0 lead early in the second half but saw Celta get back into the game toward the end of the match at the Santiago Bernabeu stadium.

Celta had a couple of great chances to complete its comeback, including a shot by Pablo Durán that stopped just short of the goal line after a deflection by Madrid goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois in the 78th minute. Courtois had to make a couple of saves near the end to secure the win.

“We did very well for an hour, we could have managed the lead a little better, but in the end it was a nice win,” Ancelotti said.

Barcelona came from behind to defeat last-placed Valladolid 2-1 on Saturday, when coach Hansi Flick rested most of the team’s regular starters ahead of its Champions League semifinal match at Inter Milan on Tuesday. Barcelona and Inter drew 3-3 in the first leg.

Madrid get a scare

Guler put Madrid ahead with a shot into the top corner in the 33rd, and Mbappe scored in the 39th — also finding the top corner — and in a breakaway in the 48th. The France star hadn’t scored in the league since March.

The match appeared under control until Javi Rodríguez pulled the visitors closer in the 69th and Williot Swedberg scored Celta’s second goal in the 76th.

A couple of minutes later, Duran’s shot agonizingly stopped just in front of the goal line after the ball picked up some backspin as it struck Courtois.

“It was a shame,” Celta striker Borja Iglesias said. “We had our chances. That shot by Pablo almost went in. It wasn’t meant to be.”

Celta, which was coming off a 3-0 win over Villarreal, stayed in seventh place.

There were a few jeers from the Bernabeu crowd as Madrid struggled to hold on to its lead late in the game.

‘All the confidence in the world’

It was the fourth straight league win for Madrid, who last Saturday lost the Copa del Rey final to Barcelona and last month was eliminated by Arsenal in the quarterfinals of the Champions League.

“We played the last game (against Barcelona) a week ago. It was a very competitive game and we came close to winning,” Ancelotti said. “We don’t have to invent a lot of things. We’re going to play a serious game. It’s very important. We’re going to play with all the confidence in the world. Despite all the difficulties, we’re there and to be able to fight this match is something nice.”

He said having Mbappe in top form will be key.

“He’s going to be a very important player in this match due to the fact that Barcelona play with a very high line,” Ancelotti said. “His runs in behind are going to be very important and decisive.”

Forward Rodrygo was not included in the squad because of illness.

Basque Country derby draw

The Basque Country derby ended in a 0-0 draw between Athletic Bilbao and host Real Sociedad.

Athletic are three points ahead of fifth-placed Villarreal and six points behind third-placed Atletico Madrid. Athletic was coming off a 3-0 home loss to Manchester United in the first leg of the Europa League semifinals.

Midtable Sociedad is winless in four matches.

Also Sunday, 15th-placed Sevilla drew 2-2 with second-to-last Leganes, while sixth-placed Real Betis beat 14th-placed Espanyol 2-1.


Chelsea move closer to top-five finish, Newcastle salvage draw

Updated 04 May 2025
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Chelsea move closer to top-five finish, Newcastle salvage draw

  • Palmer ended a lengthy drought with his first goal since mid-January
  • Magpies salvaged a point thanks to a last-gasp Alexander Isak penalty

LONDON: Chelsea moved a step closer to securing Champions League qualification with a 3-1 victory over weakened champions Liverpool on Sunday, while Newcastle United slipped up in a 1-1 draw with Brighton & Hove Albion.

Newcastle salvaged a point thanks to a last-gasp Alexander Isak penalty, while Brentford edged a young Manchester United side 4-3, and West Ham United and Tottenham Hotspur’s disappointing form continued in a 1-1 draw.

Enzo Maresca’s Chelsea are fifth in the Premier League on 63 points, separated from fourth-placed Newcastle only by goals scored. Both teams trail third-placed Manchester City by a point with three games remaining.

The game at Stamford Bridge was less than three minutes old when Cole Palmer found Neto whose cut-back fell to the unmarked Enzo Fernandez and the Argentine whipped the ball low into the net. Palmer was also instrumental in the second goal after he clipped the ball into the area and Liverpool captain Virgil van Dijk’s attempted clearance bounced off teammate Jarell Quansah and into the goal.

Palmer ended a lengthy drought with his first goal since mid-January from the spot in the 96th minute after Quansah’s foul on Moises Caicedo.

“I think we did well the team showed character,” Caicedo told Sky Sports. “We are happy that we won this game.

“(Palmer) deserves it. He is working hard to get goals. Now was his opportunity and he scored.”

Van Dijk had pulled one back for Liverpool, who made six changes to their starting lineup after clinching the title last weekend, in the 84th minute from a corner.

“There was chances for us to score — in the end they deserve the win,” Van Dijk said.

At Brighton, Isak’s last-gasp penalty earned a potentially crucial point for Newcastle in their chase of Champions League qualification.

Brighton looked poised for victory after winger Yankuba Minteh struck in the first half, but Isak’s 89th-minute spot kick sent goalkeeper Bart Verbruggen the wrong way for his 23rd league goal of the season.

“It’s all to play for,” Newcastle boss Eddie Howe told Sky Sports. “We have three huge games, three very tough games in different ways. Two of them are at home and we hope that can make the difference.”

Minteh scored in the 28th minute with a blistering shot through a crowd into the far corner.

BRENTFORD MOMENTUM
Two goals from Kevin Schade guided Brentford up to ninth in the table on 52 points, while defeat left Manchester United in 15th with 39 points.

“We definitely have momentum... we’ve had a really good run of games, there’s a flow of playing well,” Brentford boss Thomas Frank told the BBC.

With an eye on the Europa League semifinal second leg against Athletic Bilbao, United manager Ruben Amorim named the club’s youngest starting lineup in Premier League history. Seventeen-year-old forward Chido Obi became their youngest starter.

United scored against the run of play through Alejandro Garnacho, but Brentford equalized with Mikkel Damsgaard’s shot deflecting off Luke Shaw for an own goal.

Brentford took the lead six minutes later as Schade rose above the defense to head home and he completed his brace with another header in the 70th minute.

Less than four minutes later, Yoane Wissa scored with a tap-in into an empty net to make it 4-1 before United came to life.

Garnacho pulled the trigger from outside the box in the 82nd minute, and then Amad Diallo’s deflected shot in added time went through Flekken’s legs to make it 4-3.

But United ran out of time as they fell to a club record 16th league defeat in a season in the Premier League era.

“I know there’s a big game on Thursday but first and foremost was today. We needed to win the game but we didn’t,” Mount said.

TOUGH GAME
London rivals West Ham and Tottenham remain just above the relegation places after their 1-1 draw.

A much-changed Spurs scored the opener after 15 minutes through Wilson Odobert but the lead lasted 13 minutes before Jarrod Bowen equalized for the home team.

The draw left Spurs in 16th spot and facing their worst finish since 1977, a single point above the 17th-placed Hammers whose winless run in the league was extended to eight games.

“We knew it was going to be a tough game, we made a lot of changes which doesn’t help the cohesion and fluency but the lads worked really hard,” Spurs manager Ange Postecoglou said.

Crystal Palace host Nottingham Forest on Monday.


Arsenal suffer Bournemouth defeat ahead of PSG showdown

Updated 03 May 2025
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Arsenal suffer Bournemouth defeat ahead of PSG showdown

  • Mikel Arteta’s side took the lead through Declan Rice’s opener on his 100th appearance for the club
  • Arteta admitted this week that it was “very painful” to watch Liverpool celebrate winning the Premier League title last weekend

LONDON: Arsenal suffered a blow ahead of their Champions League showdown with Paris Saint-Germain as Evanilson fired Bournemouth to a 2-1 victory at the Emirates Stadium on Saturday.
Mikel Arteta’s side took the lead through Declan Rice’s opener on his 100th appearance for the club.
But Dean Huijsen equalized in the second half and Evanilson completed the comeback to give Bournemouth their first ever away win over Arsenal.
Beaten 1-0 by PSG in the Champions League semifinal first leg on Tuesday, Arsenal will need a much-improved performance in the second leg in Paris on Wednesday.
The second-placed Gunners also still require six points to guarantee Champions League qualification for next season via a top five finish in the Premier League.
Arteta admitted this week that it was “very painful” to watch Liverpool celebrate winning the Premier League title last weekend.
The Gunners finished as runners-up behind Manchester City for the last two seasons and the Champions League is their last hope of a trophy this term.
Arteta is still waiting to win the second trophy of his six-year Arsenal reign, with his last silverware coming in the 2020 FA Cup.
Arsenal last reached the Champions League final in 2006 and have never won the tournament.
With so much at stake in the Parc des Princes next week, it was intriguing to see Arteta select a full strength side for a relatively meaningless game against Bournemouth.
Instead of resting, key stars Rice, Bukayo Saka, Martin Odegaard and William Saliba were all in Arsenal’s starting line-up.
Jurrien Timber and Mikel Merino were the notable absentees for Arsenal, with Arteta revealing the former will need a fitness test to determine his availability for the PSG game.
Bournemouth arrived in north London with an outside chance of qualifying for Europe and had already beaten Arsenal at the Vitality Stadium in October.
Evanilson started for Bournemouth after his red card against Manchester United was overturned.
The Brazilian forward wasted a golden opportunity when he headed over after Jakub Kiwior slipped while trying to clear Milos Kerkez’s cross.
Leandro Trossard went close to the opener as the Arsenal forward stooped to meet Martinelli’s cross with a header that forced a good save from Kepa Arrizabalaga.
Rice made the breakthrough in the 34th minute, running onto Odegaard’s precise pass and rounding Kepa to slot into the empty net before celebrating with a bow to the crowd.
Evanilson nearly caught out David Raya with a lob from 40 yards after the Arsenal keeper miscued a pass to the striker.
Saka should have done better than head tamely at Kepa from Martinelli’s cross immediately after the interval.
Saka went closer moments later, nimbly cutting inside for a curler that fizzed past the far post.
Arsenal had failed to win nine league games in which they held the lead this season, a failing that played a major role in their title race surrender.
And once again Arteta’s side were rocked by a sucker punch as Bournemouth levelled with their first effort on target in the 67th minute.
Antoine Semenyo launched a long throw into the Arsenal area and Huijsen eluded Rice as he climbed to loop a header over Raya into the far corner from six yards.
The Gunners had lost their way and Evanilson made them pay in the 75th minute.
Marcus Tavernier flicked the ball toward the far post and Evanilson poked home, with Bournemouth finally able to celebrate after a VAR check for a potential handball.


Asian Glory for Al-Ahli with Champions League triumph

Updated 04 May 2025
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Asian Glory for Al-Ahli with Champions League triumph

  • Deserved win in front of 60,000 ecstatic fans at the King Abdullah Sport City Stadium
  • First-half goals from Galeno and Franck Kessie did the damage

JEDDAH: Al-Ahli are the champions of Asia for the first time after a 2-0 victory over Kawasaki Frontale in Jeddah on Saturday.

It was a deserved win in front of 60,000 ecstatic fans at the King Abdullah Sport City Stadium as the green giants join local rivals Al-Ittihad as well as Al-Hilal in that exclusive club — Saudi Arabian champions of Asia.

First-half goals from Galeno, a beauty, and Franck Kessie did the damage and once Al-Ahli were ahead, they never looked like letting the trophy slip after being runners-up in 1986 and 2012. 

Roared on by the home fans who produced another stunning exhibition of tifos before kick-off and did not let the energy levels drop, the home team starting brightly. Ivan Toney turned smartly on the right corner of the penalty area in the fifth minute, and the England striker’s strong shot forced a flying save from Louis-Thebault Yamaguchi. Moments later, it was Ziyad Al-Johani in the air on the edge of the six-yard box but his shot was also blocked by the keeper.

It was not all one-way traffic, and Marcinho’s shot from the left went just wide of the opposite post. It seemed to spur Al-Ahli on, however, and they kept pushing forward. Toney, Ibanez and Galeno all had shots, although not enough to trouble the goalkeeper too much.

Al-Ahli were on top and just when it started to look like it could be a frustrating evening, Galeno produced a moment of magic. Receiving the ball from Roberto Firmino outside the area, the Brazilian winger was given a little too much time and space. Even so, few expected the outcome — a perfect shot curled into the top corner to repay a considerable slice of that transfer fee paid to FC Porto in January.

For the five-time Japanese champions it was then crucial that they did not concede again before the break but that is exactly what happened. Firmino crossed from the right and there was former AC Milan and Barcelona midfielder Kessie to head home from close range. Kawasaki were shellshocked and desperately trying to stay in the game and not fall even further behind.

Their best chance came just before the hour. A cross from the left went all the way to the far post and perhaps Sai van Wermeskerken should have done better with the header but it went high and wide. 

Al-Ahli were able to sit back and then look to break and cause problems. Riyad Mahrez, with nine goals already in the tournament, shot just wide from the edge of the area and it was all looking too comfortable for his side.

Kawasaki could not create clear chances with only Tatsuya Ito, scorer of a stunner in that 3-2 semi-final win over Al-Nassr on Wednesday, causing a few nerves among the home ranks. He shot just wide from the edge of the area with 15 minutes remaining and then came closer soon after, making a little space for himself outside Toney on the right side of the area and firing just across the face of goal.

That was as good as it got. It was a professional performance from Al-Ahli who never looked like letting their two-goal lead slip. It was a deserved win on the night and also the tournament, finishing as the only unbeaten team throughout the group and knockout stages.

The celebrations at the final whistle may well have been heard in Riyadh but the message has certainly been sent loud and clear to the rest of Asia: Al-Ahli are the new champions of the world’s biggest continent and it looks like there is more to come.


Dortmund crush Wolfsburg 4-0 to get back into Champions League mix

Updated 03 May 2025
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Dortmund crush Wolfsburg 4-0 to get back into Champions League mix

  • The Ruhr Valley club climbed to fourth place on 51 points
  • The top four teams earn an automatic spot in next season’s lucrative Champions League

DORTMUND: Borussia Dortmund cruised past VfL Wolfsburg 4-0 in the Bundesliga on Saturday, with Serhou Guirassy and Karim Adeyemi both scoring twice, to get back into the top four and boost their chances of a Champions League spot next season.
The Ruhr Valley club, last season’s Champions League finalists who for weeks looked at risk of missing out on Europe’s premier club competition, climbed to fourth place on 51 points with their fifth win in the last six league games.
They are ahead on goal difference of Freiburg, who host Bayer Leverkusen on Sunday, and a point ahead of sixth-placed RB Leipzig, who drew 3-3 with league leaders Bayern Munich.
The top four teams earn an automatic spot in next season’s lucrative Champions League.
Guinea international Guirassy struck after three minutes, charging into the box and pouncing on some sloppy defending to tuck the ball home before adding another just before the hour after a superb passing move for his 19th league goal.
Substitute Adeyemi then took matters into his own hands with two goals in four minutes. He struck in the 69th, two minutes after coming on, following a superb solo 35-meter run and then made it 4-0 with a similar effort to put the game to bed.