England are ready to make UEFA Euro “headlines” as the Group C favorites prepare to launch their bid for a first major trophy in 58 years.
Gareth Southgate’s side, who face Serbia, Denmark and Slovenia in the group stage, head to Germany as one of the leading contenders for Euro glory after a series of painful near misses in recent tournaments.
England lost on penalties to Italy in the delayed European Championship final at Wembley in 2021.
Photo: AFP
The Three Lions were defeated by Croatia in the 2018 FIFA World Cup semi-finals and were eliminated by France in the 2022 World Cup quarter-finals after Harry Kane missed a late penalty.
Those agonizing failures have only sharpened England’s desire to get their hands on major silverware for the first time since Bobby Moore lifted the 1966 World Cup.
Able to call on world-class talent, including Kane, Jude Bellingham and Phil Foden, England are ranked alongside France — World Cup runners-up two years ago — and hosts Germany as the bookmakers’ three top title contenders.
In what could be his final tournament in charge, England boss Southgate, whose contract expires in December, is embracing those expectations as he eyes a place in the final in Berlin on July 14.
“Everybody is waiting for that headline,” Southgate said. “I would be an idiot if I said ‘no,’ and equally if I said ‘yes.’ That doesn’t mean there’s not a lot of work ahead of us.”
“There is no doubt what’s possible, they have gone close already,” he said. “Are we one of those teams that can win? Yes, absolutely.”
“They know what is possible, they know what they’ve won at club level and what that’s taken. You can see cup football, you have to navigate game by game,” he added.
England’s first game is in Gelsenkirchen on June 16 against Serbia, who finished second in their qualifying group behind Hungary.
It is to be England’s first encounter with Serbia since their split with Montenegro in 2006.
Southgate’s men, unbeaten in their eight qualifying matches, are to take on Denmark four days later in Frankfurt before finishing the group stage against Slovenia in Cologne on June 25.
England fans will recall that their side, then managed by Fabio Capello, beat Slovenia 1-0 in a must-win group game to reach the knockout stages at the 2010 World Cup.
If they are to win the Euros for the first time, England would greatly benefit from finishing top of Group C.
As group winners, they would face a last-16 tie against a team who finishes third in Group D, E or F, while they would probably face a daunting last-16 clash against Germany if they finish second.
England’s toughest group game is likely to come against Denmark, who pushed them to the brink in a dramatic Euro 2020 semi-final eventually won 2-1 by Southgate’s side after extra-time.
Denmark famously won the 1992 Euros and, while Kasper Hjulmand’s squad failed to make it out of their group at the last World Cup, they are still capable of causing a surprise in Germany.
Slovenia are participating in a major tournament for only the fourth time and the first since the 2010 World Cup.
Having reached their first Euros for 24 years, Matjaz Kek’s team are hoping to make the knockout stages of a major event for the first time.
Serbia will rely on Juventus striker Dusan Vlahovic, Fenerbahce forward Dusan Tadic and AC Milan striker Luka Jovic to fuel their bid for a place in the last 16.
In warmup games, Kylian Mbappe on Wednesday scored late in his first game since joining Real Madrid to help France build momentum for the Euros with a dominant 3-0 win over Luxembourg.
Mbappe, whose Madrid move was finally confirmed on Monday, was a constant threat for Luxembourg’s hard-working defenders, but the France captain had to wait until the 85th minute before he could crown his performance with a goal.
Bradley Barcola made his France debut as a substitute and promptly won the ball, ran to the penalty area and drew in more defenders before laying the ball off for Mbappe to tuck inside the left post.
In Copenhagen, Christian Eriksen scored late to give Denmark a 2-1 win over Sweden, while Mikel Oyarzabal scored a hat-trick after the break to help Spain rout Andorra 5-0.
Belgium earned a 2-0 win over Montenegro with Kevin de Bruyne scoring on his 100th appearance for the Red Devils and Slovakia enjoyed a 4-0 win over San Marino.
Additional reporting by AP
When Paddy Dwyer arrived in China in 1976, crowds jostled to catch a glimpse of him and his companions — the first Western soccer team to play in the country. China was emerging from the chaos of the Cultural Revolution, and on the brink of market reforms that would take the country from economic stagnation to explosive growth. “All we could see was lines of people running beside our bus, trying to look in the windows, to see their first visual of a white person,” he said. “It was all bicycles,” he said. “There were very few cars to be seen.” Dwyer,
Jannik Sinner continued his quest to become the first man in history to win five Masters 1000 tournaments in a row with a 6-2, 6-3 victory over Danish qualifier Elmer Moller at the Madrid Open on Sunday. The world leader extended his winning streak to 19 matches, a run that began early March in Indian Wells, and he has captured 24 consecutive victories at the Masters 1000 level, dating back to the Paris Masters last October. Searching for a maiden title at this level on clay, Sinner advanced to the round of 16 at the Caja Magica with a 77-minute performance against
Tennis players are facing an unexpected opponent at the Madrid Open. A stomach virus or food poisoning has affected Iga Swiatek, Coco Gauff, Marin Cilic and others, raising concerns. World No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka avoided an upset by Naomi Osaka on the court on Monday and said she is trying to avoid illness by sticking to a diet of chicken breasts, rice and salad. The rumor among the players was bad shrimp tacos were to blame. Sabalenka knocked on wood for luck and said, “So far, so good. I heard that I have to avoid those tacos,” she laughed, adding “I stick to the
Some of Clearlake Capital Group’s largest investors are growing increasingly concerned about how much time the company’s co-founders are spending on sports investments as they have struggled to complete the fundraising for the private equity firm’s latest flagship fund. One of Clearlake’s co-founders, Behdad Eghbali, has been spending what some investors described as a disproportionate amount of time on the firm’s investment in Chelsea Football Club in recent months. Now, co-founder Jose E. Feliciano and his wife, Kwanza Jones, are nearing a record US$3.9 billion deal to acquire the San Diego Padres. That personal investment by Feliciano has set off the latest
RSS