England came agonizingly close to claiming their first men’s international title since 1966 when they faced Italy in the penalty shootout. However, misses from Marcus Rashford, Jadon Sancho, and Bukayo Saka meant that the Three Lions once again stumbled in a major tournament.
According to The Daily Mail, England players have been engaging in additional training sessions focused on penalty-taking, as Gareth Southgate aims to ensure all squad members are thoroughly prepared should a shootout occur during the current tournament. This preparation extends even to defenders like Ezri Konsa and Marc Guehi.
Speaking to reporters, Konsa mentioned, “We’ve been practising it after training, a few players go off and practice penalties. Look, we’re not thinking about going to penalties on Sunday, but if it comes to it, we’ll be well prepared.”
Guehi added, “We’ve been doing a lot of work. The work’s been going really well across the team on penalties. It’s important to make sure we’re ready.”
Southgate himself understands the anguish of shootouts, having missed a critical penalty for England against Germany in the Euro 1996 semi-finals. Therefore, he has made it a priority to instill confidence in all his players from the penalty spot.
The Three Lions are set to face Slovakia in the Euro 2024 round of 16 on June 30, aiming to regain momentum and advance to the quarter-finals.
England performance and stats
England
It will be England ended the league in the position with points.
It has a even goal difference after scoring goals and conceding .
