England’s penultimate game before Euro 2024 ended in a 3-0 victory as Cole Palmer, Trent Alexander-Arnold and Harry Kane scored against Bosnia and Herzegovina. The friendly in Newcastle also saw Eberichi Eze make his first start, and the Crystal Palace man was singled out for praise by manager Gareth Southgate, who is yet to name his final squad for the summer tournament.
Gareth Southgate has been “caused to think” about his England squad for Euro 2024, after strong performances from Cole Palmer and Eberechi Eze against Bosnia and Herzegovina.
After a goalless first half in the penultimate warm-up game for the summer tournament, Eze and Palmer made their presence known on their first starts for the Three Lions.
They were key factors in England upping the tempo in the second half in Newcastle, with the goals finally arriving from the hour mark onwards.
Ezri Konza had his shirt pulled as VAR awarded a penalty, which Palmer converted due to regular taker Harry Kane being on the bench. He has netted all 13 spot-kicks in his professional career.
Trent Alexander-Arnold added a second with a super volley, before Kane emerged from the sidelines to prod home a third.
Reflecting on a game in which six members of the much-rotated starting XI had fewer than 10 caps, Southgate told Channel 4: “An opponent that were dogged, determined.
“I felt in the end we would create the chances, and that’s how it turned out. The scoreline reflected the performance. Once you break that resistance, the confidence starts to come.
“With a team that started with not a lot of caps on the field, there was always a chance of a sticky start.”
On the displays of Eze and Palmer – who have been the key men for Crystal Palace and Chelsea respectively this season – he added: “Very good. They both played with a freedom.
“Ebe has got lovely movement to go past people through the centre of the pitch. He’s got power. Really happy with what he did.
“Cole a couple of times was being a bit too precise to get the touch to open up the shot. If he got his shot away earlier a couple of times, he could’ve had a couple himself.”
On whether his side’s performance had given more selection headaches ahead of whittling down his provisional squad for Germany, the manager concluded: “A little bit, but that’s a good thing. I’d rather good performances that cause you to think.”
Palmer himself seemingly agreed with Southgate’s assessment that there was room for improvement: “I sure hope [I’ve done enough to make the squad]. Tonight wasn’t the best game but it’s been a long season, and I’m trying to find my feet.”
However, his new captain was full of praise for the midfielder, who won Premier League Young Player of the Season and PFA Fans’ Player of the Season during a campaign in which he notched 27 goals and 15 assists across all competitions.
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Kane said: “Unbelievable season. It’s never easy moving club. To do what he’s done in his first season at Chelsea is credit to him. We’re very happy to have him.
“Delighted he got his goal there today. We’re going to need all our players chipping in with important goals throughout the tournament in a couple of weeks. The more people feeling good, the better.”
KANE TO START ON FRIDAY AFTER BAYERN ABSENCE ‘WORKED IN HIS FAVOUR’
While Palmer is still fighting for his spot, there is no doubt the Bayern Munich superstar will be leading the line for England at the European Championships.
Following his summer switch to the Bundesliga giants, Kane enjoyed the most prolific campaign of his career, scoring 44 times across all competitions.
England’s all-time top goalscorer took some time off towards the end of the season, once the Bavarian superclub exited the UEFA Champions League and missed out on the league title – and believes that decision will pay dividends.
The 30-year-old continued: “I’m feeling good. The end of the season was precaution – there was obviously a big summer so we didn’t want to take any risk with it.
“In the end, it was a good chance to get a good break at the end of the club season. I’m sure I’ll get some minutes on Friday and should be ready to go for the group stage.
“It’s almost worked in my favour missing the backend of the season, because it gave me a chance to get more rest than I was going to get.
“I’m not someone who takes too long to get sharp and, of course, it was nice to get a goal there to get that feeling back again.”
Southgate confirmed that Kane will feature from the off in the final preparation game for Euro 2024 against Iceland: “Our plan today was half an hour. He’ll start on Friday. He’s trained all week with no problems. He looks in good shape.”