Alan Shearer highlights England’s tactical flaws against Denmark with Man City point

Alan Shearer has commented on England’s performance against Denmark, raising questions about the roles of John Stones and Phil Foden in the squad.

On Thursday night, the Three Lions drew with Denmark, 1-1, in a Euro 2024 Group C match in Germany. Harry Kane scored the first goal for England before Morten Hjulmand equalized for Denmark.

England now have their final group game of the tournament against Slovenia next Tuesday. Guaranteed progression to the last 16 looks almost certain, however, there are concerns about the strategy followed by Three Lions manager Gareth Southgate.

Shearer voiced his criticism of England’s tactics during the draw with Denmark. He contrasted the roles of Stones and Foden at Manchester City under Pep Guardiola with the duo’s impact for England at Euro 2024 so far.

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Speaking on BBC Sport, Shearer said: “Let’s use John Stones as an example. How many times do you see him get the ball and go into the middle of the pitch or get the ball with his back and turn the Man City team? So many times He’s brilliant at it. How many times have you seen him in the last two England games?

“How many times do you see Declan Rice get that ball and burst forward? How many times have you seen him do it in an England shirt in the last two games? None.

“How many times do you see Phil Foden go up to the ball in the middle of the park, turn? Maybe once tonight when he shot and hit the bar. So Gareth (Southgate) at the moment is not getting the best of England’s best players. He was very poor, he was not good enough,” added Shearer, reflecting on England’s performance.

“We’ve all been there as players, and yes, you try to take the positives, and yes, it’s tournament football. But it’s our job and the coaches’ job to look at what went wrong and there’s a lot to see there.

“Where do you start? No energy, no guile, I wouldn’t say lack of effort or not trying, but there’s a lot more to do from these players. I look at Jude (Bellingham) tonight, he couldn’t put a foot he could not advance in front of the other.

“I’m looking at Phil Foden on the left – does it affect the game? No chance. I’m looking at (Bukayo) Saka and Harry Kane, I know (Kane) scored his goal and I mentioned it in the running back commentary. At least when (Ollie) Watkins came in, the defenders were behind him, he was very thin and it’s worrying, absolutely.