“There was no energy, no pace to the game" - Alan Shearer slams England's performance in Denmark draw at Euro 2024
Alan Shearer slammed England for their lackluster performance against Denmark at UEFA Euro 2024 at the Deutsche Bank Park in Frankfurt on Thursday, June 20. He rued the lack of energy and quality and asserted that Denmark were the better team.
The Three Lions played out a 1-1 draw against Denmark in their second game at Euro 2024 after beating Serbia 1-0 in their previous game. They were the second-best side for the majority of the game. Kasper Hjulmand's side had 51% possession and had 7/16 attempts on target as compared to England's 4/12.
After the game, former Newcastle United striker Alan Shearer slammed the Three Lions' performance, saying on BBC:
“You can see players lying on their backs – they look absolutely shattered, the England players. There’s no excuse for that. There was no energy, no pace to the game. We didn’t run in behind until the last 10 or 15 minutes, we got caught too many times on the ball, too many sloppy passes and in truth, Denmark were the better team and deserved to win.
“It was very poor, it wasn’t good enough. I wouldn’t say lack of effort, not trying, but there’s so much more to come from those players.”
England still sits atop Group C at Euro 2024 with four points, with just one game remaining in the group stages.
Rio Ferdinand reckons Denmark were tactically better than England in Euro 2024 clash
Former Manchester United defender also slammed the Three Lions' performance and praised Denmark's tactics. He said:
“Lacklustre, lacked any sort of direction in my eyes, tactically well below par – we were overshadowed tactically, I thought, by the Denmark team. You have to give them that respect, they were well-drilled, tactically superior, pressed us better, pressed us together."
He added:
“I thought England looked very average. Our best players, our most decisive players, our best players (are) at the top of the pitch and we choose to set up to defend.
“We’ve got too good players to sit back and hope to get through a game. We need to get to the bottom of, are they being told to do this, or are the players actually just being forced to do that by the opposition?”
Gareth Southgate's side will next face Slovenia on Tuesday, June 25. They will qualify for the Round of 16 if they avoid defeat or if Denmark vs Serbia ends in a draw.