Alan Shearer has called for Gareth Southgate to make three changes to his side for their last 16 showdown against Slovakia at Euro 2024.
The Three Lions topped their group in reaching the knockout stages of the competition but turned in another woeful display against Slovenia on Tuesday night.
The introduction of Kobbie Mainoo at half-time injected some life into the performance with Cole Palmer joining him midway through the second-half having replaced Bukayo Saka.
The Manchester United and Chelsea stars made incredibly strong cases to start England’s next game, offering poise and invention in midfield and attacking areas, outshining the teammates who had been selected ahead of them in earlier group games.
Anthony Gordon was also brought on for his first minutes of the competition very late on in the contest. The Newcastle United star almost had an immediate impact, helping set up a chance for Palmer that could have won the game.
England discovered their last 16 opponents on Wednesday night with Slovakia awaiting on Sunday night in Gelsenkirchen.
Speaking earlier in the day, former England striker Shearer underlined the need for Mainoo, Palmer and Gordon to all get their chance next time out in wide and central areas – believing the latter two should have also been introduced earlier on in the stalemate against Slovenia.
Analysing England’s performance, Shearer told BBC One ahead of the Ukraine vs Belgium game: ‘He [Southgate] brought Mainoo on at half-time, I thought the other subs were left far too late.
‘But all three had an effect on the game which is what they needed. I thought Mainoo was really good, he came into midfield and offered something totally different in midfield, winning the ball back, creating the option to receive the ball.
‘This guy [Palmer] came in on the right hand side and looked really, really good. He had a big impact, his movement and confidence with the ball was brilliant.
‘[Their combinations] we haven’t seen too much of that at all in the first two games, we certainty didn’t see it until Palmer came on.
‘You can see that passing forward with someone receiving it in a forward position. Then Gordon came on with three minutes. The three linked up really well.
‘We saw more on that left hand side in those three or four minutes when Gordon came on than we’ve seen in the two or three games we’ve had.
‘Absolutely no doubt about it, Gareth has to make changes, particularly on either side and definitely one in the middle of the park.’
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