England vs Slovakia LIVE: Euro 2024 team news 'leaked' as Gareth Southgate dismisses exit talk – The Mirror

England take on Slovakia in the last-16 of Euro 2024 in Gelesenkirchen this evening, with a quarter-final clash against Switzerland the prize after they knocked out reigning champions Italy
England are gearing up for their Euro 2024 last-16 clash against Slovakia, having reached the knockout phase despite a string of lacklustre performances.
A goalless draw with Slovenia in their last group game saw manager Gareth Southgate face some fan frustration, with some hurling bottles and cups in his direction at full-time in Cologne, and he will be hoping his side can put in a much improved performance against Slovakia.
A quarter-final match against Switzerland awaits the winner of tonight's match after Murat Yakin's side eliminated defending champions Italy 2-0 on Saturday. Southgate has made just one change to his XI for Slovakia, with Kobbie Mainoo coming in for Conor Gallagher.
England XI: Pickford; Walker, Stones, Guehi, Trippier; Rice, Mainoo; Foden, Bellingham, Saka; Kane.
Keep scrolling as Mirror Football brings you the latest news surrounding England at Euro 2024.
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Neat build-up play from England's own box sees Bellingham play a beautiful pass over to Trippier just inside the box. Despite being unmarked, the fullback snatches at his shot and the ball goes flying over the bar. England 0-0 Slovakia
Mainoo's been shown a yellow card now too, for a late stamp on Duda. The referee is a bit card happy with just seven minutes gone. England 0-0 Slovakia
Slovakia get in down the left through an unmarked Hancko, he puts the ball right across the face of goal and England breath a sigh of relief as it goes behind for a goalkick. England 0-0 Slovakia
A poor pass from Trippier draws Guehi out from defence, he trips up a Slovakian attacker and gets booked. If England go through the centre-back will be suspended. England 0-0 Slovakia
We're underway in England's last 16 clash against Slovakia!
England fans booed Gareth Southgate's name it was read out by the stadium PA after running through the England XI.
A select group of England fans in place for kick-off reportedly booed Southgate's name as it was read aloud. The England boss was the target of people throwing glasses after the Slovenia draw.
Pickford left England's warm-up early with what appeared to be a problem with his left hand. Aaron Ramsdale came up and gave him a hug, but the Everton man did not look happy. Hopefully he'll be ok to play, Joe Hart thinks he will.
"Occupational hazard. I saw it, he'll be fine. He made a low save and he looked like he just got his little finger caught in the ground," Hart told BBC Radio 5 Live.
"You fear the worst straight away but it's nothing to be worried about. He'll be absolutely fine."
Kobbie Mainoo starts – and in doing so he joins illustrious company.
The Manchester United midfielder is just 19 years and 72 days old – only Wayne Rooney and Michael Owen have started a knockout stage game for England at a younger age.
Harry Kane says he has learnt from his penalty miss against France in the quarter-finals of the Qatar World Cup.
Kane said: "I think from my point of view, whenever I miss a penalty, no matter what game it is, I always pride myself on then making sure I go on another good run. I have a technique I've always used and I don’t change that. I go through the process, I look at the keeper and go through what penalty is going to be best in that situation.
"Then I execute to the best of my ability on the day. Whether I’m on long streaks of scoring or not, I just take it one by one and I think that process has really helped me to be consistent over time.”
Gareth Southgate was never likely to rip up his starting line-up and make wholesale changes.
The England boss is known for his conservative approach and the tweak of Kobbie Mainoo for Conor Gallagher hasn't satisfied the masses, who were pining for attacking alterations.
'No Palmer' is currently trending on Twitter, where England fans are annoyed that Chelsea star Cole Palmer hasn't been handed a chance after impressing off the bench against Slovenia. Anthony Gordon is another who has many backers, but still could make an impact off the bench again.
For those of us not lucky enough to be in Gelsenkirchen for the match, we will be watching on ITV 1 this evening.
Mark Pougatch is the presenter, with Ian Wright, Gary Neville and Roy Keane as the studio pundits in Berlin. The broadcaster will also have Karen Carney alongside Laura Woods at the stadium.
England will have to overcome the infamous 'ITV curse' if they are to get through tonight…
So, Kobbie Mainoo gets the opportunity to start alongside Declan Rice in England's midfield.
It's a big moment for the Manchester United midfielder, who is preferred to Gallagher and Trent Alexander-Arnold. Southgate said: "[Mainoo] he used the ball really well and we know that's the way he plays and he'll help us get through their high-pressure and he's looked really comfortable in an England shirt. [He's] definitely [embraced the big occasion], he's played some huge games already for his club and he looks totally at ease in our environment and you saw when he came into the game the other night exactly the impact he can have."
Here are the two teams for tonight's game.
Gareth Southgate has resisted making wholesale changes – but there is a chance for Kobbie Mainoo in midfield and I thought the signs were really positive from his performance as a second half substitute against Slovenia.
That night, England dominated Slovenia, pinned them back and just could not find the final pass. What I liked about Mainoo was that he always looked forward. He passed it well, used the ball effectively and helped England control the game.
England face another team in Slovakia with a low block as they sit deep and it may be another game where they have to be patient in trying to find a way through. They are still looking for the right formula. Let's hope that maybe Luke Shaw can get some minutes as a substitute.
But, most of all, England need a win, some positivity and some momentum.
Gareth Southgate has made just one change to the England line-up to face Slovakia, with Kobbie Mainoo replacing Conor Gallagher.
That means Jude Bellingham, Kieran Trippier and Phil Foden have all kept their places.
The stadium is gradually filling up with England fans.
England vs Slovakia. Veltins-Arena, Gelsenkirchen. #Euro2024 @MirrorFootball pic.twitter.com/S1GoEvMVOc
Around one and a half hours until kick-off and Harry Kane leads the England players out onto the pitch.
There appears to be more flags than fans inside the stadium at the moment … and every one of those flags is English. The players look suitably relaxed, but not too relaxed, hopefully.
In a strange way – considering their uninspiring form in the group games, complacency could be a danger to Gareth Southgate’s men this evening. A straw poll of the pundits and the press men and women in the media hub came up with a unanimous verdict in favour of an England win in normal time.
But while it might not be so straightforward – these games rarely are – I am fully expecting England to get the job done.
Lewis Dunk may not have got onto the pitch for England yet at Euro 2024 – but he does have an important role off it.
The i reports that the Brighton defender and a member of the backroom staff have taken on the challenge of building a 6,000-piece lego model of Hogwarts at their Weimarer Land Spa and Golf Resort training base.
There are supposed to be 6,500 England fans here in Gelsenkirchen in a stadium which holds just over 48,000.
Clearly, that's just the number of official tickets sold to members because, this being a last 16 tie, a lot of tickets were sold through UEFA and there are WAY MORE England fans than 6,500.
I've got to admit that Gelsenkirchen is not my favourite place. The stadium is showing signs of age, it's badly signposted and organised. The transport is horrendous with people spilling out of trams. If you haven't got a car… forget it. So the giant car parks nearby resemble trailer parks with England fans everywhere. They are loud and have been creating a super atmosphere.
Slovakia fans are here in force – but will still be drastically outnumbered. What I'm really looking for today is whether Gareth Southgate's message got through. Even if they've had enough of the manager, get behind the team.
It feels a bit fractious so I wonder whether England can build a few bridges with a decent performance… Bring it on!
There was a carnival atmosphere in Gelsenkirchen this afternoon as many England fans turned up in fancy dress. They sang in the sunshine – after the predicted heavy rain stayed away.
There were Four Lions ready to cheer England on: Glenn Hawkins, 59, from Cholesey, Oxfordshire and son Howard, 29, a plasterer, Chris Hawkins, 45, an engineer from Southampton, Hants and son Emilio, seven. Glenn said: “We’re four lions not three lions – ready to cheer the team on tonight.”
Pals from Bristol dressed up as knights. Richard Dawes, 59, retired, Paul Stanscombe, 60, retired, Tony Walker, 60, a driving instructor and Paul Bull, 57, who works in the building trade. Richard said: “This is our first game of the tournament. Let’s hope we can bring the lads some luck.”
Schoolboy Max Ash, 13, is from Bromsgrove, Worcs and has written “Come on England” on his sunglasses. Dad Hays Ash, 51, a tax accountant said: “We’ve taken him out of school for a couple of days. “It’s an experience of a lifetime for him. He’s even been learning German!”
Remarkably, there are still tickets for sale on UEFA's official portal for tonight's match.
There are just two hours left until kick-off in Gelsenkirchen between England and Slovakia – and some fans have clearly decided they don't fancy it. The fixture was sold-out, so these must be re-sales from people who have returned theirs'. Pretty pricey!
With tonight's game being shown by ITV, that has given the BBC's pundits some time off in Germany.
Rio Ferdinand has chosen to use it by getting into the spirit of things with the England supporters in Dusseldorf ahead of tonight's 5pm kick-off in nearby Gelsenkirchen…
ENGLAND taking over Dusseldorf… love it! #EURO2024 pic.twitter.com/hdIhGy4Gt2
England have been slammed for playing "walking football" in the final third by Darren Anderton.
Asked by Bojoko what the most disappointing thing about the Three Lions was so far at Euro 2024, Anderton said: "It’s the movement, honestly it’s like watching walking football most of the time when we get in the final third.
"Much like everyone, I’m a bit underwhelmed. The substitutes are the ones playing without fear, [Jude] Bellingham and [Bukayo] Saka are playing with fear."
This is what we've got to look forward to today. England are up first at 5pm for the first course, before – hopefully – Spain and Georgia provide a nice piece of dessert.
It's day two of the knockout rounds at #EURO2024

England vs Slovakia
Spain vs Georgia pic.twitter.com/Mjl5qIOvEE
A mum and dad paid £10,000 for their son’s special 18th birthday present to fly him to Germany to watch England today at the Euros.
Brandan O’Connell is one of the 40,000 England fans in Gelsenkirchen for the big game with Slovakia. He has joined the Three Lions army in Germany having flown in from Australia for the tournament.
Brandan celebrates his 18th next week but has already had “the present of a life-time.” Dad Terry, an electrician, and mum Michelle decided to pay out £10,000 for his hotel, match tickets and flights from Perth, in Western Australia, to Germany.
Brandan, a Manchester United fan, said: “It has been fantastic. I will never forget it and I can’t thank mum and dad enough. What an 18th birthday present … being taken to the Euros to watch England. It’s something I will be able to tell my own children in the future. I’ve loved every minute of it.”
The overall Euros package for Brandan and his dad cost around £20,000 and Terry said: “It’s been worth every penny – despite the football!”
Neal Maupay has developed a well-earned reputation as something of a troll on social media and on the pitch.
The Brentford striker enjoys a wind-up and has got himself into many a scrape by performing silly celebrations and baiting fans online. The Frenchman has enjoyed England's poor showing at Euro 2024 so far, yet appears to be supporting them this evening. You can bet your bottom dollar that might change if all goes wrong later…
All jokes aside I live here so got to get on board with the lads pic.twitter.com/VPX0OWUquS
A man was arrested by armed police officers after climbing onto the roof of the stadium during Germany’s win over Denmark at Euro 2024.
Videos posted on social media showed a young man wearing a dark hoodie, a face covering and a backpack walking along the walkway above before climbing over a barrier and along the structure of the roof itself. Two armed officers soon arrived and ordered him down, where they arrested him and marched him away.
He has now been charged with trespassing and an investigation is underway into how he got into the roof of the stadium. The 21-year-old man told police he climbed up there to take photos.
Emma Raducanu is preparing to play at Wimbledon – but she still has one eye on the football today.
The 21-year-old has been practising at the All England Club today in a Three Lions shirt.
Belgium have been forced to make a grovelling apology to Kylian Mbappe over a now-deleted video in which midfielder Amadou Onana claimed he would tackle the Frenchman 'in the shin'.
The video came about after Belgian fans started a new chant about Onana fouling Mbappe. The Everton star then repeated it in a clip posted by the Belgian FA in the build-up to the last-16 clash between their team and France at Euro 2024.
In the video, Brussels-based comedian Pablo Andres says: "Who will kick Mbappe in the shin?" before Onana chants his own name. Belgium have now been forced into an embarrassing climbdown.
Ahead of their press conference on Saturday at their training base, the team's press officer Stefan Van Loock issued an apology and said the clip had been removed from their social media.
"It was not the intention to attack anyone. We have been working with comedian Pablo Andres for a long time, this video also had to be funny," Van Loock said. "But we misjudged that and also took the video offline. We would like to apologise to anyone we may have offended with this. For us, this is the end of the matter."
Luciano Spalletti will stay as Italy's manager for the 2026 World Cup, despite their poor showing at Euro 2024.
The defending champions were knocked out by Switzerland in a shock 2-0 loss last night, prompting questions about Spalletti's future.
But the Italian FA have poured cold water on rumours he could be sacked, by confirming Spalletti will stay in charge and look towards the 2026 World Cup.
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