PLAYERS PANEL | ENGLAND REACTION AND PREVIEW

Our Players Panel discuss England's performance and look ahead to the next game

We have gathered together a Players Panel, which features players from across all four divisions of the Pitching In Southern League. They will share their thoughts on EURO 2024 as we go through the tournament.

We asked them for their assessment of England’s 1-0 victory over Serbia on Sunday evening and their thoughts on Thursday’s encounter with Denmark…

CONOR McDONAGH | I think everyone was hoping for a more convincing win on Sunday, but a win is a win and I think it will only get better. Jude Bellingham was obviously the standout performer and I thought Guehi at the back was brilliant, which I was happy about as there were doubts about him going into the tournament, however, I think England fans always have their doubts! Thursday’s game will be very similar, I think. Denmark play nice football so they will have their spells, but England have the edge with more quality players. That said, I’m going for a 2-0 win this time round. I can see Harry Kane getting on the scoresheet; he lacked service against Serbia so I’m sure he’ll be desperate to get off the mark in this game.

TOM HANDLEY | A win is a win at the end of the day. There were some good moments on Sunday, but it was a cagey second half. We need to create a lot more especially with the players we have. It’s going to be a different sort of game on Thursday, where I see Denmark being more tactical with their approach. That said, I’m going for 2-0 England.

DAWID REGULA | I think we were very negative as soon as the goal went in; we sat back and were just happy to win 1-0. I didn’t see us really going for it at all after the goal, so that was a very disappointing aspect. However, at least we kept a clean sheet, so that was positive. I would have liked to have seen us do what Germany did to Scotland with us pressing them, giving them no time and really going after them. Thursday’s game will be very different. I think we’ll go after Denmark and make a real statement. I reckon 3-0 to England.

LIBAN IBRAHIM | I thought England’s performance against Serbia was sharp. It was near-perfect in the first half, however they showed some worrying signs in the second period. They need to kill teams off whilst they have the upper hand. Jude Bellingham is on another level, far beyond the rest of the players. Looking ahead to Thursday’s game, I see England winning, but conceding early into the game as Denmark start fast and have quality players that are sometimes underestimated. The midfield battle will be very tense; whoever can control the middle of the park will win the match - and on that basis, I feel like England will come out on top.

AARON ROBERTS | I was very happy with the first half of the game against Serbia; we looked tidy and had tempo even though there wasn’t many goalscoring opportunities. Jude Bellingham’s header was very Shearer-esque and a great opening goal of the tournament for us. The second half petered out to nothing and we looked a little bit disjointed at times. Overall it was a poor performance, but a win is a win and hopefully we build from there. I watched the Denmark game prior to England’s and they didn’t look up to much either against Slovenia, who are no great shakes. I think the less physical approach on Thursday will suit England and the likes of Phil Foden and Harry Kane will be more involved. I’m going 2-0 England!

HENRY SNEE | I thought the first 20 minutes on Sunday were promising for England, but we sat back and invited a mediocre Serbia team on to us. We need to play to our strengths, which is an attacking depth - take the game to teams not sit in. I see Gareth Southgate playing pretty much the same team on Thursday. I think Foden is on thin ice; he may be looking to bring in Gordon and possibly Joe Gomez at left back. Denmark don’t really scare me; they played well in the first half against Slovenia and then it could have gone either way after that.

JOSH COLDICOTT-STEVENS | I thought that our performance on Sunday wasn’t the glitz and the glam that all England fans want to see, throwing caution to the wind and going all-out attack. However, it’s early doors in the tournament so players are getting used to playing with each other and all that matters is getting three points, which the boys did. I think that Denmark will be a tougher test as they’ve got lots of quality with players like Eriksen and Hojlund. I am confident we can get a positive result against them and secure our place in the knockout stages, the quality we have in our team I think we can beat anyone!

MATT BRITTON | On Sunday it was a case of done for me. Yes, they could have played a lot better and created a lot more chances, but this is tournament football. All that matters is the win. You will always get negativity from English fans whatever the outcome. I am feeling positive about Thursday’s game against Denmark, I think the boys will come out the traps quickly after the cobwebs were blown away against Serbia. We need to get Kane firing early doors, so I’m going for a 2-0 win, Kane and Saka with the goals.

OWEN HOWE | I don’t think it was the best performance on Sunday, but we got the win, which in previous tournaments we’ve struggled to do in the first game. Also, we kept a clean sheet, which is always a positive. When you have the players we have, you always know you’ll get chances and against Serbia, Jude Bellingham stepped up and took one. I think it’ll be a similar kind of game on Thursday, but I think now we have the points on the board, we will have confidence going into the game. Denmark drew at the weekend, which means they need to try get a result to help with their chances of qualifying, so that will open the game up and hopefully our front players can produce when it matters.

ADAM HARRISON | I thought that the game on Sunday was a bit boring, to be honest. I feel as though we could have gone a little bit more direct and take the game to them more, but a win is a win and a clean sheet as well. Thursday’s game will be more of a test for us. I watched Denmark’s opening game and they looked like a bit of a threat offensively and moved the ball round very well. They didn’t like the look of long throw-ins and balls into the box, so maybe this is something we can exploit.

DANNY YOUNG | I think first half on Sunday, we were good. We kept the ball well, got at them and looked the better of the two sides. As soon as we scored, we unfortunately seemed to stop doing what we were good at. Second half we were sloppy and allowed them back into the game. It was a nervy last ten minutes, but Pickford made a great save and we managed to see the game out without too many more scares. It’s less about the performances in the group stages and more about results. The win puts us in pole position but we need to find a lot more later in the tournament if we are to do anything in the knockouts! Denmark will be a different test on Thursday. Serbia are a very big and physical side whereas Denmark are more of a technical side. We will need to be better than Sunday with the ball but if we stick to the basics and do what we are good at we should hopefully secure a place into the knockout stages, that’s where the tournament really gets going! I’m going for a 2-0 England win.

NIALL FLINT | Sunday’s performance was underwhelming to say the least, but we won and a notched up a clean sheet, I suppose. We’ve got such an incredible squad with a lot of potential and as the tournament goes on, we’ll get stronger and the quality above others will shine through. It very easily could have ended in a draw; the last 20 minutes were more nerve-wracking than it should have been. Defensively I was impressed with Guehi alongside Stones. Against better teams I don’t believe we can just have the one goal lead going into the final moments of matches; we must be more ruthless to get another goal when on top. Kane was effective in staying high, allowing the midfielders more room and time on the ball to create. It’s an opening win and the excitement continues to build, already looking forward to Thursday’s match. Looking ahead to that one, we can’t afford to take Denmark for granted. They have a decent squad and are strong defensively. I had one of the best nights ever watching England play at Wembley in the last Euros, seeing us beat Denmark to make it to the final. I hope for a repeat of the result, but Harry Kane to put the penalty away first time of asking!

Thank you to our Players Panel for their thoughts…