Southgate Reflects On England's Midfield Challenges Post Denmark Draw At Euro 2024

Gareth Southgate has acknowledged that England's performance at Euro 2024 has not met expectations, particularly highlighting the difficulty in replacing Kalvin Phillips in midfield. England began their Group C campaign with a narrow 1-0 victory over Serbia but failed to secure top spot after a 1-1 draw with Denmark on Thursday.

Harry Kane gave England an early lead in the 18th minute, but Denmark equalised through Morten Hjulmand's powerful 25-yard strike. Despite being two points clear of Denmark and Slovenia, whom they face next, England's performance has drawn criticism towards Southgate.

England have managed only 17 shots, with seven on target, across their two matches, resulting in a total of 1.85 expected goals (xG). This is only marginally better than Scotland, who have an xG of 0.78 from their two games. Southgate expressed his disappointment during the post-match press conference, stating the need for a thorough analysis to address the issues.

"Clearly, we're disappointed with the level of the two performances we've had," Southgate said. "We know the level can be higher. Maybe the biggest thing is we have to accept the environment that we're in and the expectations that are around us. At the moment, we're falling a little bit short of that."

Trent Alexander-Arnold faced criticism despite creating three chances and making five line-breaking passes before being substituted after 54 minutes. Comparing touch zones from their Euro 2020 semi-final win over Denmark to their recent match shows a significant drop in final third touches from 31 per cent to 17 per cent.

Southgate pointed out that Phillips' absence has been challenging. Phillips was left out of the squad due to limited playing time at Manchester City and West Ham. Addressing Alexander-Arnold's performance, Southgate told BBC Sport: "He has had some moments where he has delivered as we thought. It's an experiment. We don't have a natural replacement for Kalvin Phillips."

Southgate added, "At the moment we're not flowing as we would like. We're not using the ball well enough and have to accept if you do that you will suffer at times, as we have. We know there's another level we have to find."

The upcoming match against Slovenia will be crucial for England as they aim to secure top spot in Group C and advance confidently in Euro 2024.