What Gareth Southgate stated about his midfield startled and worried Gary Lineker and Alan Shearer.
Gareth Southgate has come under fire from Gary Lineker and Alan Shearer for allegedly “insulting” England heroes. With England’s terrible performance in the 1-1 draw against Denmark—the Three Lions’ poorest showing at a major tournament since the disgrace against Iceland at the Euros eight years ago—Southgate is coming under increasing pressure.
After being lucky to escape with a point, England was jeered off by irate supporters in Frankfurt after failing to capitalise on Harry Kane’s early strike. They will still undoubtedly go to the knockout stages, but unless Southgate can find a way to address their shortcomings, they won’t likely advance very far.
Unexpectedly, following the Denmark match, the manager brought up Kalvin Phillips’ absence. The out-of-favor Manchester City midfielder has performed admirably in prior championship events, but his dismal play disqualified him from the Euros.
For the past seven or eight years, we have been searching for a midfield answer,” Southgate remarked. “I’m not sure where we would have ended up if Declan Rice hadn’t been there for the past few years.
“Unfortunately, neither Hendo [Jordan Henderson] nor Kalvin [Phillips] could participate in this tournament, so we’re looking for alternatives.”
Lineker and Shearer, who spoke about England’s problems on the most recent episode of The Rest is Football, were concerned about the reference to Phillips. “I didn’t like Gareth’s comments about Kalvin Phillips after the game,” Shearer stated.
In response, Lineker said, “It’s wrong because there are players in that squad that could do it, and it’s insulting to some of the players who are already there.”
“Even the new players he’s added have the potential to succeed. Kobbie Mainoo could definitely pull it off, and Adam Wharton could. However, the players must be given instructions and made aware of their responsibilities.
Shearer concurred and said, “They really can.” I find it really concerning if Kalvin Phillips has been our main source of support for the past few years. I don’t think we [have relied on him]. I completely missed the meaning of his comment.
In the group decider against Slovenia on Tuesday, Southgate is poised to make changes, abandoning his experiment of starting Trent Alexander-Arnold in midfield.
