England share points with Slovenia, both advance to knockout round

(Dan Tri) - With a 0-0 draw in the final match of the group stage, England and Slovenia both qualified to advance to the round of 16 of Euro 2024. England finished first in Group C, while Slovenia finished third.

Highlights of England's draw with Slovenia

England played Slovenia at Cologne Stadium (Germany) in the final match of the Euro 2024 group stage (June 26). The two teams played closely, England was better in all aspects of statistics, with 71% of ball possession and 12 shots, 3 of which were on target. However, on a day when the "Three Lions" strikers were unlucky and did not really put all their efforts into attacking to find victory, coach Gareth Southgate's team could not score against Slovenia. One point was enough for England to finish the group stage with 5 points and continue as the top team in Group C.

Harry Kane still has only one goal at Euro 2024 (Photo: Getty).

Slovenia also focused on defending their net for most of the match, they understood that as long as they did not lose to England, they would definitely advance, so they did not risk competing for a higher position. Coach Matjaz Kek's team only had 5 shots on goal, only one of which hit the opponent's goal and could not score. One point did not change Slovenia's position, they still ranked 3rd in Group C, with 3 points, equal to Denmark but ranked behind due to lower sub-index. In the list of 3rd-placed teams, Slovenia is ranked 2nd and is certainly among the 4 best 3rd-placed teams, so they will get a ticket to the round of 16.

England and Slovenia both qualified for the next round after a draw in Cologne (Photo: Getty).

England are at risk of losing the top spot if they lose to Slovenia, and could even fall to third place in Group C. However, coach Southgate was quite cautious when starting the match with Slovenia. It seems that England are afraid of attacking and being counter-attacked, so they still prioritize defense. That makes the English players not attack strongly in the first half. After the first few minutes of playing high, Slovenia returned to a low formation, organizing a focused defense and waiting for a counter-attack opportunity. In the 20th minute, the English players arranged a good attack, Foden passed the ball to Saka to score from close range, but the goal was not recognized because Foden received the ball in an offside position.

Mainoo (center) will play for the first time at Euro 2024 (Photo: Getty).

In the second half, coach Southgate unexpectedly brought Mainoo in for Gallagher. This adjustment helped England increase their control of the game but did not help the team increase their scoring chances. It was clear that Southgate did not give up on a pragmatic style of play. The truly dangerous situations that England created against Slovenia were almost non-existent. After a long period of lackluster play in the second half, without a single shot on target, England also created a shot on target against Slovenia in the extra time. In the 90+2 minute, Palmer shot on target from the right in the penalty area but Obak caught the ball. Unable to score, England were satisfied with a goalless draw with Slovenia when they knew that Denmark could not beat Serbia either.

Dantri.com.vn

Source: https://dantri.com.vn/the-thao/anh-chia-diem-voi-slovenia-cung-tien-vao-vong-knock-out-20240626042125037.htm