Euro 2020 LIVE: England vs Germany latest plus Wales v Denmark last 16 build-up
Keep track with all the latest Euro 2020 news and build-up to Wales v Denmark and Italy v Austria as the round of 16 matches begin
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Keep up to date with all the latest news from Euro 2020 as England prepare to face Germany with Wales poised to kick off the round of 16 against Denmark on Saturday.
Leon Goretzka came on to their rescue Germany in the dying stages of Wednesday’s Group F conclusion, which of course means Germany travel to Wembley next Tuesday to take on England.
Though Die Mannschaft represent a tough first opponent in the knockouts, England can still count themselves lucky to have fallen on the favourable side of the draw. Wales on the other hand have a very tough run through to the latter stages of the tournament, with Denmark up first, but they also feature in the same side of the draw as France, Italy, Spain and Croatia, while Belgium take on Portugal in the standout fixture, with Cristiano Ronaldo fresh from breaking yet another international record.
Jordan Henderson, who banked a half of football in the Three Lions’ final game against Czech Republic, has moved to rally his teammates: “We’ve got quite a young squad but I think that can be a positive thing. A lot of these lads just go out and play, enjoy the game, play with no fear. And that’s what they need to do again on Tuesday. Go and enjoy it, go and show everybody how good they are. Use the emotion and passion in the right way to give you energy for the game, because that can be the difference really. As an experienced player I can help with that and make sure we’re in the right frame of mind going into the game and make sure training’s at the level it needs to be over the next few days to prepare for that one. Everybody’s confident, everybody’s feeling good and we’ve got a good few days to prepare for a huge game. But a lot of the lads have played in huge games already: Champions League finals, Champions League games, cup finals, big games for England. They’re used to big games even though they’re young and I’m sure they’re looking forward to this one.”
Follow all the latest news from the tournament as we build up to the first round of knockout games:
Euro 2020: Gary Neville’s starting England team
Former England defender and current pundit Gary Neville has weighed in on who he thinks should play for England when they take on Germany in the Round of 16.
The inclusion of the relatively inexperienced Bukayo Saka may come as a surprise, while the omission of Jack Grealish is sure to result in some raised eyebrows.
Euro 2020: England need to improve on their set-pieces
England boss Gareth Southgate thinks that his side need to improve on their use of set-pieces in Euro 2020.
“Our delivery hasn’t been good, really,” Southgate admitted,” he said. “We had an issue [against Czech Republic] as yesterday in training it was Foden and Mount so that wasn’t helpful. There was the one where [John] Stones hit the post, which was bang on the money, and [Kieran] Trippier’s delivery in the first game was excellent. We haven’t matched that since. It’s quite rare for us. We have gone four or five matches without a set-piece goal, and that’s an area we can improve on.”
Read more here from Miguel Delaney
Gareth Southgate: Set-pieces can be England’s decisive weapon
Head coach believes his side will improve in the last 16 after disjointed performances in the group
Euro 2020: Portugal did what they had to do
Portugal head coach Fernando Santos believes that his side did everything that they needed to against France last night. Their 2-2 draw saw them finish third and they will now progress to the round of 16 as one of the four best fourth-placed teams.
“I couldn’t be sure of anything,” Santos said.
“I could have tried to make us go for a third goal but if we’d lost, Germany would have gone through ahead of us. What mattered was trying to win while maintaining our quality and shape
“We did what we had to do. I even warned the players to not think about the other results as it wouldn’t bring us anything positive. But the players lived so intensely that when I screamed to go forward my voice no longer reached them
“The team always wanted to win, but we also knew we couldn’t lose. Portugal did everything to win
Euro 2020: More injury woes for France
France are already without Ousmane Dembele who needs to undergo surgery, and there are now worries about two more players.
Speaking after their 2-2 draw with France, Didier Deschamps said: “The most worrying [injury] is Lucas Digne, he felt a muscle injury. It was pulling behind the thigh. It’s not a good sign.
“Lucas Hernandez had a little problem in his knee, I didn’t want to take the risk as he also had a yellow card.”
Euro 2020: What went well for England in the Group stage?
England cruised through the group, winning all three matches on offer while not conceding. A change in tactics saw increased defensive solidity, although it did come at the expense of attacking chances.
Mark Critchley has analysed what went well for Southgate’s side in the group stage:
England Euro 2020 group stage review: What went well?
The Three Lions topped Group D with relative ease but are yet to show their full potential
Euro 2020: Saka says it was always going to be difficult for him to get into the team
England youngster Bukayo Saka has said that he always had the expectation that getting into Southgate’s starting lineup. would not be an easy task for him.
He impressed after doing just that against the Czech Republic and has now staked a claim for starting in the Germany game.
Saka said: “I think in tournaments it’s about the opportunity. For me, there’s some players that are ahead of me, some top-class winners here so it was always going to be difficult for me to get into the team from the onset.
“We’d already qualified and I was just waiting and training so that if I got my opportunity then I’d be ready. I tried to take it and give my all.”
Euro 2020: Löw happy to get through the game
Germany head coach Joachim Löw was pleased to see his side progress through Euro 2020’s ‘group of death’ last night after their 2-2 draw with Hungary saw them finish second in Group F.
“We showed great morale, but we also made mistakes. It was good to see that we fought hard until we got the equaliser. It was a nervy match,” he said after the game.
“We knew Hungary would give it their all. I am just happy we got through in this group. All the ‘small’ teams invest so much work and defend well. Hungary played with ten men in their own half and they had nothing to lose.
“It’s great that we got through in this tough group. Now we can look forward to a match against England.”
Euro 2020: Could England progress past Germany?
England have faced criticism from many for the lack of goals in their group stage matches, but Southgate’s tactical pragmatism has resulted in a far stronger defence.
The attack has, without a doubt, suffered, but things seem to be getting better. Bukayo Saka was excellent on the right against the Czech Republic and it would be reasonable to expect that he will start ahead of Phil Foden. Saka is rather unique as a winger, and the fact he is skilled both going forwards but also in defence will be helpful.
Strong defensive attributes will be needed to stop Joachim Löw’s Germany, whose wing-backs have been strong this year, and it could be important for England’s chances of progression.
Euro 2020: England to face Germany in next round
The Euro 2020 draw has brought together England and Germany for another instalment of an historic tie between two old rivals.
Southgate’s side will face off with the Germans next Tuesday at Wembley, and here’s all the information you need about past ties and what the odds are for the game:
Who will win England vs Germany Euro 2020 last-16 match and what are the odds?
The Three Lions qualified from Group D and will now play Germany in the knockout stages of Euro 2020
EURO 2020: GROUP F DRAMA SETS UP LAST 16
Welcome to The Independent’s live coverage as we review the late drama in Group F after Germany found a last-gasp equaliser to avoid a stunning exit and bring you all the latest news ahead of the first knockout ties, headlined by none other than England vs Germany at Wembley on Tuesday.
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