England at EURO 2024: Southgate's chaos

Poor performance

On the way to the RheinEnergie Stadium in Cologne, a tram full of England fans swayed to the rhythm of Phil Foden's on fire , based on Bruce Springsteen's Dancing in the Dark , and was later repeated in the stands against Slovenia.

Phil Foden.jpg — Foden has not shown much yet

The song left everyone confused. They had Foden, who had just left the team to return home to welcome his third child . But Phil was like he had never existed, a far cry from when he was voted Premier League Player of the Year 2023/24 .

England also has the Bundesliga's top scorer (Harry Kane); or Jude Bellingham is the third-highest scorer in La Liga. But when Gareth Southgate combines these players, the scoring efficiency is only 0.67 goals per game.

This rate is the second worst at EURO 2024, only bettered by Serbia (0.33 goals/match). The problem is not just low goals, but something deeper.

During the broadcast after the 0-0 draw with Slovenia , former player Gary Neville once again criticized Southgate: "England has a huge pool of talent, but we are not capable of managing it and it makes the team poor" .

France also finished the group stage with just two goals but there was a fundamental difference between the two teams. According to StatsBomb , England ranked 6th in terms of the teams with the fewest dangerous chances, based on expected goals (xG).

England's threat level is just 0.81 xG per game. Only Scotland, Slovakia, Serbia, Albania and Slovenia create fewer threats. Meanwhile, Deschamps' France are 5th for attacking threat level: 1.37 xG.

"We would have liked to have scored a few goals, but we've improved since the last game. We've shown more with the ball," Southgate argued on Tuesday night.

In fact, given the number of players Southgate has used, what his team have done with the ball so far has been disappointing.

Bellingham England.jpg — Bellingham also faded after scoring in the opening match.

It was a slow, predictable team lacking energy and daring, and Southgate had yet to find a partner for Declan Rice in midfield to help power the machine.

First, he tried two games with a full-back in Alexander-Arnold. In the Slovenia game, Gallagher and young talent Kobbie Mainoo shared 45 minutes each.

Pass a lot but slowly

He averaged 659 passes per game at EURO 2024. This is the highest number compared to any tournament the "Three Lions" participated in since the European football tournament on home soil in 1996, when StatsBomb started calculating the data.

However, these passes did not bring them closer to a goal. Compare what England did with the ball and Germany's style of play and the difference is clear.

Julian Nagelsmann's side - with eight goals, the most in the league - progress into the final third 73 times per game through passes, dribbles or long balls. Southgate 's team, meanwhile, only manage 46.

England barely appear in the hot zone: they are second in teams making the fewest passes into the opposition penalty area (0.67 per game), only ahead of the Czech Republic (0.50).

"I can understand the frustration of the fans because the team didn't take too many risks," explained John Stones, who is playing a different kind of football than he experienced at Man City.

The slow pace, coupled with Kane and Bellingham not being at their best, makes it difficult for England to cause any surprises. They are among the slowest teams to progress from build-up to a finish.

Southgate England.jpg — England's problem is Southgate

In this respect, England approached the goal at 1.58 metres per second. The slowness gave opponents the chance to set up their defence. Spain, the group winners, were superior, reaching 2.75 metres per second.

Unable to penetrate the penalty area, England could only shoot from long distance. Never before had the "Three Lions" shot from as far away as this EURO: an average of 18.5 meters. 3 years ago, on the way to the final, the average distance of the team's shots was 14 meters.

"It's an unusual atmosphere. I've never seen a team that has qualified for the next round be treated like that," Southgate lamented after being thrown a beer mug by a fan while greeting the crowd.

Every effect has its cause. So does Southgate's criticism.

Vietnamese football fans can fully enjoy the UEFA EURO 2024 Finals for free on TV360 at: https://tv360.vn/

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Two beer glasses were thrown from the stands at manager Southgate, after England's second consecutive drab draw with Slovenia.

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