Brown Advocates For Gordon Or Palmer Inclusion In England's Euro 2024 Quarter-Final

Former England defender Wes Brown suggests Gareth Southgate should consider starting Anthony Gordon or Cole Palmer in the Euro 2024 quarter-final against Switzerland on Saturday. England narrowly avoided elimination in the last 16, thanks to Jude Bellingham's spectacular 95th-minute overhead kick, which sent the match into extra time against Slovakia. Harry Kane then scored the decisive goal just after the restart, securing a 2-1 victory for England.

Southgate has largely kept his line-up unchanged throughout the tournament, making only two changes in four games. Brown believes introducing youthful attackers like Gordon or Palmer could benefit the team. "He's [Southgate] the manager and he's stayed with the same four at the top with Bellingham there," Brown told Stats Perform in Berlin. "And I think we've all seen the likes of Palmer come on and do really well."

Brown emphasised that while no player has performed poorly, none have excelled either. He suggested that bringing in Gordon or Palmer could provide a needed balance and spark. "It's not like any of the lads have done anything bad, but no one's played brilliantly as well," he said. "I think that's where people talk about balance and maybe we should bring Gordon on, or Palmer especially to change it, because he is the in-form player at the moment."

England topped Group C with one win and two draws but scored only two goals during this stage. Their matches produced the fewest expected goals (xG) among all teams (2.26 for, 1.13 against). Despite these statistics, Brown praised the team's mentality to persevere until the end. "The way we've been playing, we've not really created much," he noted.

Bellingham's equaliser against Slovakia was England's first shot on target in that match. Brown acknowledged that while England hasn't played their best football, they managed to advance. "We've managed and done enough to get through to where we are," he said. "I think that speaks for itself considering we've not played great, fluent football."

Defensive Dilemma

England faces a defensive challenge as Marc Guehi received his second booking of the tournament early in their last 16 match, ruling him out of Saturday's game against Switzerland. The Crystal Palace centre-back has been praised for his performances so far, leaving Southgate with a decision on who will partner John Stones in defence.

"It's a tough one," Brown admitted. "The obvious choice is either [Ezri] Konza or [Lewis] Dunk." He noted that Dunk hasn't had any game time yet, while Konza played out of position when he came on last time. "But if you're talking like-for-like, you've probably got to bring Konza in," Brown concluded.

The upcoming match against Switzerland offers another opportunity for England to improve their performance and advance further in Euro 2024.