GARETH SOUTHGATE has the best players in the Premier League, Bundesliga and La Liga at his disposal.
And yet, England still couldn’t beat a team ranked 57th in the world.
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England produced another uninspiring display Credit: Getty
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Gareth Southgate’s side have failed to get going so far this summerCredit: Getty
Currently, the boss of the Three Lions is a reverse alchemist, turning gold into base metal.
They may go through to the knockout stages, but this England team is frustrating the entire nation after another poor draw in Group C.
We thought it couldn’t get any worse than last Thursday’s 1-1 draw with Denmark, but this was another performance that will have you pulling your hair out and swearing at the TV.
How can a side possessing Harry Kane, Jude Bellingham and Phil Foden be so bad?
Slovenia is not very good and never wanted to outplay England like the Danes did.
But despite dominating possession, England hardly ever looked like scoring.
Bellingham was anonymous for the second straight game, Foden was flattered to cheat and Kane again lacked top-end sharpness.
Apart from a wild individual display from Declan Rice, there was little to get excited about.
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Bukayo Saka went closest for England with an offside goalCredit: AFP
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Nothing to whet the appetite for the knockout stage, nothing to instill confidence that they can improve much more.
England have won just two of their last eight games and are in a real old two and eight.
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This win means England cannot play Germany, France, Spain or Portugal before the final, with those top four teams in this tournament all in the second half of the draw.
England could play any number of third-placed teams in the last 16 – including the Netherlands – in Gelsenkirchen on Sunday.
But it’s hard to make England favorites against anyone in this tournament right now.
They have strung together five bad football halves since Serbia’s decent opening.
As expected, Southgate dropped Trent Alexander-Arnold in midfield as a bad deal, bringing in Conor Gallagher in a move that hardly set the nation’s pulse.
And Gallagher was duly hauled off at half-time after a shock performance.
Rice’s brave pre-match speech about England’s hard and fast pressing and ‘in your faces’ was probably not the reason for such stiflingly hot weather even with a 9pm local kick-off.
Slovenia was unchanged after two decent draws and was certainly not easy meat.
But England got off to a messy start – long balls from Pickford, they easily lost possession and gave the first real chance to Benjamin Sesko, who shot a header straight at the English goalkeeper.
Kieran Trippier was booked early on as England struggled for control.
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Fans weren’t exactly on the edge of their seats from the actionCredit: Getty
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Foden was given much more license to roam, while Jude Bellingham tended to hang wide on the left.
Just as England started to play their passing game, they thought they had taken the lead midway through the first half.
Rice, surely shaking off the effects of his poor performance against the Danes, picked out a tricky pass for Foden, who was offside, before playing Buyako Saka.
Of the three England midfields, Gallagher was terrible, Bellingham was so frustrated by his lack of impact that he eventually pulled the plug, but Rice was sensational.
The Arsenal man talked a good game ahead of the game – all fired up and ready – and he played the same game, winning the ball high up the pitch and in the heart of England’s best business.
Kane, who was more lively than in the previous two games, shot towards the goal, and then Foden’s curved free kick from 30 meters was comfortably saved by Jan Oblak.
After a positive pass from John Stones, a dangerous cross from Trippier was missed by Gallagher with a head and Kane with his feet.
There were more whistles at half-time, but at least England showed more desire than against the Danes.
At half-time, Southgate bowed to the inevitable and replaced Gallagher with Mainoo.
England player ratings: Southgate’s Gallagher experiment failed infamously against Slovenia
ENGLAND produced another unconvincing performance – but still managed to top Group C.
England dominated possession but Southgate will have plenty of questions to answer after a third consecutive game that lacked inspiration.
SunSport’s Tom Barclay has given his assessment of England’s players.
Jordan Pickford – 6
Mainly a spectator due to England’s dominance of the ball. Asked on the touchline what Denmark’s score was during one stoppage in the second half.
Kieran Trippier – 6
One positive side of the right-footed player playing left-back is that he can make sharp crosses, and Conor Gallagher should have sent one before the break.
Marc Guehi – 7
Cruyff’s early goal turn showed his confidence from excellent games against Serbia and Denmark, and the omission of one lost pass was again good.
John Stones – 6
One of the many who missed the mark with his passing. He was not bad, but, like others, far from what he did for his club.
Kyle Walker – 5
He played so safe, rarely looking ahead. I was lucky at one point that Pickford survived for his attempted return pass. A slashing cross after the break summed up his off night.
Conor Gallagher – 4
He was given the nod following the end of the Trent Alexander-Arnold midfield experiment, but was poor, particularly in possession, and was replaced at half-time by Kobbie Mainoo.
Declan Rice – 7
He promised his team an “in your face” performance, but he was actually the only one who produced it. Very good from possession, much better than against Denmark.
Phil Foden – 7
England’s most lively striker four by a mile and went close with a free-kick. Penalized for dissent, summing up England’s frustration.
Jude Bellingham – 5
He was a very frustrating figure as he and Harry Kane occasionally got in each other’s way, while he was often turned left as Phil Foden moved into the middle.
Bukayo Saka – 6
The home team scored in the 20th minute, but it was ruled out due to the backfield in stoppage time. Okay, but transferred once again after the break, maybe due to fitness issues.
Harry Kane – 6
He insists he’s 100 percent fit, and maybe he is. What is 100 per cent certain is that he was nowhere near as effective in this tournament as he normally is for England, although he was marginally better here.
Substitutions
Kobbie Mainoo (for Gallagher at half-time) – 7
Made the difference when he came on, making England much more positive in the game. Much more confident with his touch than Gallagher.
Cole Palmer (for Bukayo Saka on 71) – 7
He finally appeared in this tournament and one wise ball for Mainoo showed what he can do.
Trent Alexander-Arnold (for Kieran Trippier on 84) – 6
He came on for the last few minutes at right back, while Walker went to left back.
Anthony Gordon (for Phil Foden on 88) – 6
Like Palmer, the first minutes at the Euros, but too late to make an impact.
The Chelsea man is an honest worker, but not an international footballer.
England started dictating the game in the second half, repelling the Slovenians, winning corners, but they couldn’t find the last ball.
When Slovenia broke, Stones and Guehi had a terrible fight, and the latter received a yellow card for pulling Andraž Šporar.
With 20 minutes to go, Cole Palmer replaced Saka for his first appearance of the tournament
Kane was pulled down by Jaka Bijol after turning the centre-half near the edge of the box, but Foden wasted the free-kick.
It was difficult to pin down Gallagher at half-time… but Mainoo showed he is the answer, says Jack Wilshere
KOBBIE MAINOO was always my choice to replace Trent Alexander-Arnold in the England midfield, writes Jack Wilshere.
I think he showed why in the second half against Slovenia.
But I still think it was harsh on Conor Gallagher to be taken off at half-time.
First because it was probably our best half of the tournament.
And secondly, because it didn’t seem like a Gareth Southgate thing to do.
It will surely knock Gallagher’s confidence.
He probably thought this was his chance, but he’s only getting half of it.
Having said that, despite the disappointing result, the second half was better and Mainoo proved he is the man – or boy – to play there in the future.
Read Jack Wilshere’s post-match verdict in full.
Or check out all of Jack’s Euro 2024 columns.
Then Rice took matters into his own hands, ran into the penalty area, but exploded wide.
After a quick late change, Kane fed Palmer the ball but the Chelsea player sent his shot straight at Oblak.
It was just as bad as the Denmark game, just as bad as other tournaments saw draws against Scotland, the United States, Algeria and Costa Rica.
Yes, England passed. Yes, the draw looks tempting.
But how is it possible to feel any positivity after going through this?
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Southgate tried to make changes but couldn’t find an answer. Credit: Reuters
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