Euro 2024 News

GRAEME SOUNESS: Sunday isn't about 'mighty' Slovakia, a country with a 5.4million population, around half that of London, it's about 'mighty' England turning up. If the true England we know, with great attacking players, finally shows itself, then we don't need to be concerned about Slovakia, England should win with goals to spare. In my seven years at Liverpool, I can only remember us paying special attention to the opposition once. That was the 1981 European Cup semi final in Munich when Sammy Lee was asked to go man for man on Bayern Munich great Paul Breitner. On every other occasion it was: 'don't worry about the opposition, concentrate on getting your own game right'.

CRAIG HOPE AND NIK SIMON IN BLANKENHAIN: Anthony Gordon says the injuries he suffered when thrown '10 feet in the air' from his bike could have been much worse - and has vowed to celebrate with the stabilisers given to him by Mail Sport (pictured top right) if he scores on Sunday.  The England winger had a lucky escape when he went over the handlebars of his electric bike at the team's Blankenhain base this week.  Gordon has grazes on his chin, legs, arms and hands but he is fine to feature in the last-16 tie against Slovakia in Gelsenkirchen. 

TOM COLLOMOSSE: Barely an hour after Italy had avoided an early Euro 2024 exit by the tiniest of margins, Luciano Spalletti decided to let rip. The Azzurri coach has always been a spiky character but even by his standards, this was particularly acidic. Spalletti had taken exception to the suggestion that the switch to a 3-5-2 formation for the 1-1 draw with Croatia on Monday was the result of a 'pact' with the players and launched into a foul-mouthed response. 'How old are you?' Spalletti asked the reporter, who was 51. 'You're 51, so you've got 14 more years of w*****g to go to get to 65, which is my age. I speak to the players. I use my eyes and ears. What's the problem? What sort of a pact are you talking about?'

Fans have heaped praise on Kobbie Mainoo after England released a clip of the 19-year-old in training on social media. In less than a year since making his first senior league start, Mainoo has announced himself as an integral member of Erik ten Hag's Man United side and one of England's brightest prospects. After a sensational breakthrough campaign at Old Trafford, Mainoo was handed his first England cap in March in a friendly against Brazil before starting against Belgium three days later.

TOM COLLOMOSSE: Stanislav Lobotka is the ultra-crafty playmaker aiming to follow in the footsteps of Andrea Pirlo and Luka Modric by passing England into submission. Standing at 5ft 6ins, with his unfussy haircut and understated manner, Lobotka looks an unlikely modern footballer. Yet anyone who watches him play is unlikely to forget him in a hurry. Operating at the heart of Slovakia's central three, Lobotka is an old-style midfield artist for the modern game. Like an expert snooker or chess player, he is always thinking three or four steps ahead.

In a fierce Friday press conference, Milan Skriniar laid bare England's vulnerabilities and emphasised Slovakia's self-belief ahead of their last-16 showdown on Sunday. England will face a Slovakia side who scraped through the Euro 2024 group stages as one of the better third-placed teams. An opening-game victory over Belgium proved their ability to claim a marquee scalp but they subsequently lost to Ukraine and drew with Romania.

England's most likely full route to Euro 2024 glory has been named by Opta's supercomputer. The Three Lions are preparing for the knockout phase of the tournament in Germany, with a last-16 clash against Slovakia on Sunday. Despite topping Group C, the Three Lions have been criticised for their performances after a 1-0 victory over Serbia was followed by a pair of drab draws against Denmark and Slovenia. Despite this, they find themselves on the more favourable side of the draw, meaning they won't play any of Spain, Germany, France, Portugal or Belgium until the final.

Euro 2024's round of 16 could be disrupted by severe thunderstorms in Germany this weekend. The knockout phase will begin on Saturday with Switzerland taking on Italy in Berlin, followed by a game between hosts Germany and Denmark in Dortmund. Sunday will then see England face Slovakia in Gelsenkirchen, before Spain clash with Georgia in Cologne. Of those matches, it is the game in Dortmund that is most likely to be played under heavy rain.

There were own goals and wonder goals. There were script-changing late goals. Records were shattered, hearts broken and noses busted in the group stage of Euro 2024. There were bright shiny newbies and great golden oldies. Unlikely heroes burst from the fringes. There were pink kits and pretzels, armies of tartan, invasions of orange. Blaring car horns of late-night celebration, doner kebabs and mighty steins of ale.

Foden's partner Rebecca Cooke has had a baby boy and Foden has made a swift return to Germany. He is back in training at England's Weimar base, ahead of their last-16 clash with Slovakia on Sunday. It was revealed in April that the 24-year-old and Cooke, 22, were expecting their third child. The family posed in front of a blue and white balloon arch that had eye-catching LED letters that spelt 'Baby Foden' on it.

SAMI MOKBEL: Just minutes before England's training session at their Weimar HQ on Thursday, Declan Rice (pictured right), ball in hand, steamed in towards the stumps. Captain Harry Kane (pictured inset), batting at the opposite end, drove the slow-to-medium pace delivery straight back at Rice, only for the Arsenal midfielder to fumble the opportunity for a caught and bowled. Hands on head, Rice could not believe it. Kane, by contrast, could not contain his laughter.

Phil Foden is set to return to England's training camp tonight after attending the birth of his third baby. The Football Association confirmed on Wednesday that the Manchester City star had returned to the UK to due to a 'pressing family matter'. Foden boarded a plane back to England straight after Tuesday's draw against Slovenia to be with his family.

MIKE KEEGAN: The family members of some of England's players were soaked in beer after angry fans launched cups at the end of the Three Lions' disappointing stalemate with Slovenia. While manager Gareth Southgate had plastic pots launched at him as he applauded supporters on the pitch, defender Ezri Konsa revealed projectiles were 'coming from all angles' in the stands - with panicked stars forced to check in on their loved ones after the game to ensure they had not been harmed. A group in the bottom tier of the stadium in Cologne exchanged angry words with those sat above them following the final whistle of the 0-0 draw. It is not thought that the players' partners and friends were recognised or targeted. 

England delivered a listless performance in their final Group C fixture adding to the criticism the team has faced since the start of the Euro 2024 tournament. Jude Bellingham has opened up one factor in Cologne which impacted on his performance in their drab goalless draw with Slovenia.

Anthony Gordon was seen sporting a nasty cut on his chin during England's training session on Thursday after the Newcastle forward had fallen off his bike on Wednesday at England's training base.  The Newcastle midfielder also had several cuts on his hands and had a plaster on his leg but seemed in good spirits as he trained with the rest of the squad on Thursday ahead of their Euro 2024 knockout clash against Slovakia on Sunday.  It appears Gordon, 23, had sustained the graze after England had been riding bikes around their training base at the Spa & Golf Resort Weimarer Land in Blankenhain, Germany. 

Portugal comfortably advanced to the last-16 of Euro 2024 and their stars are now enjoying family time ahead of the knockouts.   Roberto Martinez's side ended their group stage campaign with a whimper as they suffered a 2-0 defeat against Georgia, but topped the group to set up a last 16 tie against Slovenia. Khvicha Kvaratskhelia and Georges Mikautadze were on hand to net for the Georgians, who will take on Spain in a historic clash for the nation as they too progressed from Group F.

MIKE KEEGAN: The family members of some of England's players were soaked in beer after angry fans launched cups at the end of the Three Lions' disappointing stalemate with Slovenia. Mail Sport understands that a group in the bottom tier of the stadium in Cologne exchanged angry words with those sat above them following the final whistle of the 0-0 draw at which manager Gareth Southgate also had plastic cups hurled at him.

Beore Euro 2024 kicked off, fans were privy to the full list of TV picks for the tournament this summer. Every single game has and will be free-to-air for fans in the UK as they are broadcasted across the BBC and ITVs channels. With the exception of the final, only one of the broadcasting companies will be the sole host of a game.

Georgia hero Khvicha Kvaratskhelia waited a moment before joining his team-mates in their wild post-match celebrations after beating Portugal at Euro 2024. Wednesday's 2-0 victory delivered Georgia - a country with a population of less than 4 million people - the best night in its football history. Georgia's reward for the win was a place in the round of 16 in their first major tournament appearance as an independent nation. But Kvaratskhelia - who scored the game's opening goal inside the first two minutes - had another prize in his sights at full-time.

After months of excitement and anticipation, the stage is finally set for the European Championships to kick off in Germany this week, with several teams in with a shot of lifting the trophy when it's all said and done. Gareth Southgate's Three Lions will be hoping to go one better than their runners-up finish at Euro 2020, having lost to Italy in the final on penalties, with Harry Kane, Jude Bellingham and Phil Foden leading a star-studded England squad heading to Germany this summer. Italy still pose a major threat as the reigning champions, with Nicolo Barella, Federico Dimarco and Alessandro Bastoni showing excellent form during Inter's dominant Serie A title triumph last season, with the trio accompanied by the likes of Gianluigi Donnarumma, Federico Chiesa and Giovanni Di Lorenzo. Mail Sport provides you with the ultimate guide to Euro 2024, taking a look at every team's squad, kits, preferred formation as they gear up for the tournament...