EURO2024
A “gentleman” and young wild ones: England’s EM pillars
England’s national team will face Serbia at the start of the European Championship. Photo
© Robert Michael/dpa
The bookmakers have England as the favourites for the European Championship. But in recent years things have always gone wrong. Despite bumpy preparations, the current constellation promises great things.
The list of failures is long – and stretches back several decades. The Three Lions lost the European Championship final in Wembley three years ago – on penalties, of course. And Gelsenkirchen, where Harry Kane and Co. will start the tournament against Serbia on Sunday (9 p.m./ZDF/MagentaTV), is also a special place for England’s football: In 2006, the national team lost in the quarter-finals against Portugal – on penalties, of course.
At this European Championship, England is the most valuable team in the tournament if you add up the market values of the individual players. The bookmakers see head coach Gareth Southgate’s team as the top favorite. But will the title drought end 58 years after the first and so far only major triumph at the 1966 World Cup at home? These are the pillars that matter for the European runner-up:
Harry Kane
The 30-year-old Bayern star has been captain for years. He is considered a leader in terms of both his sporting ability and character, and former international player Owen Hargreaves recently called him “a gentleman”. Kane is considered unfinished because he has yet to win a title for both the club and the national team. No one really held his penalty miss against France in the World Cup quarter-finals in Qatar. But the versatile, world-class striker is in demand in his adopted homeland, and the team is heavily dependent on Kane.
Jude Bellingham
The captain has probably already been replaced as the best player – by Champions League winner Bellingham. The former Dortmund player has had a steep rise in recent years and could even be a candidate for World Footballer of the Year 2024 after being crowned Champions League champions with Real Madrid. “He will have a huge influence on our game,” said Southgate of the 20-year-old. Bellingham is a playmaker in the attacking midfield. In the past league season in Spain, he scored as many goals as Robert Lewandowski (19) – in significantly fewer appearances.
Gareth Southgate
Title or most likely departure. This is what the former football professional announced about his own future before the European Championship. After the 2018 World Cup (fourth place), the 2021 European Championship (defeat in the final) and the 2022 World Cup (quarter-final exit), this is already the fourth attempt at a major tournament under Southgate. The player material is excellent, only the silver trophy counts. Unlike in previous tournaments, the 53-year-old made bold nominations this time. Raheem Sterling and Marcus Rashford were left out, and veteran Jordan Henderson and the ailing Harry Maguire are also not there. Henderson and Maguire were considered Southgate’s favorites and were part of the starting eleven in Qatar.
Young stars on the offensive
Bukayo Saka (22), Cole Palmer (22) and Phil Foden (24) – hardly any other European Championship participant has such great offensive potential as England. The Premier League stars have to fight for their regular places, however, because Southgate traditionally sets up his team more defensively. Declan Rice and Bellingham are set in midfield, and a second number six usually plays alongside Rice. Besides Kane in the middle, that leaves only two regular places in the first eleven for Saka, Palmer and Foden on the wings.