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The England manager, Gareth Southgate, is getting severe criticism from fans after their underwhelming performances in the group stage of the UEFA Euro 2024 despite making it through to the round of 16. After a 0-0 draw against Slovenia at the RheinEnergieStadion in Cologne, Gareth Southgate went to the English fans to applaud them, but they booed and threw empty beer cups at him, which he called an “unusual environment.”
Notably, England topped Group C with two draws against Slovenia and Denmark apart from defeating Serbia by a narrow margin of 1-0 in their UEFA Euro 2024 opener. Southgate’s men finished with five points in the group, ahead of Denmark and Slovenia, who played out three consecutive draws, while Serbia bowed out of the competition with two draws and a loss.
In the post-match press conference, when Gareth Southgate was asked about the behaviour of the fans towards him in the aftermath of England’s 0-0 draw against Slovenia, he remarked, “I understand it. I'm not going to back away from it. The most important thing here is that the supporters stay with the team.”
“I understand the narrative towards me and that's better for than it being towards them. But it is creating an unusual environment to operate in. I've not seen any team qualify and receive similar. I recognise that when you have moments at the end of the game, I'm asking the players to be fearless, I'm not going to back down from going over and thanking the fans who were brilliant during the game,” Southgate added.
Notably, a “Kicker Bible” was also thrown onto the pitch by a fan during the England versus Slovenia clash in the UEFA Euro 2024.
Slovenia players celebrate first-ever Euro knockout stage qualification
Following a 0-0 draw against England in the UEFA Euro 2024 Group C clash at the RheinEnergieStadion in Cologne, Slovenia made it to the knockout stage of the tournament for their first-time in history. The players of the Slovenian football team celebrated the moment in style in front of their fans with a belly dive.
Slovenia had the same points, goal difference, goals scored, and disciplinary record as Denmark in the UEFA Euro 2024, they progressed via a third place in Group C on the basis of their UEFA ranking, which is used as a tie-breaker.
