Alan Shearer has claimed that one England player was ‘not happy’ with Gareth Southgate during the Euro 2024 final against Spain.
The Three Lions lost 2-1 to Spain in Berlin, with Cole Palmer’s 73rd-minute equaliser ultimately proving not to be enough.
Instead, second half goals from Nico Williams and Mikel Oyarzabal was enough to end Spain’s 12-year trophy drought.
It was more heartbreak for Southgate and his side, who placed in exactly the same position they were in three years ago when they lost to Italy – although this time Spain were clearly superior on the night.
It was a night which started out with hope from an England perspective, and even Williams’ opener just two minutes into the second half didn’t dampen spirits hugely. The Three Lions had, after all, come back from this before.
Southgate made his expected substitutions relatively early in proceedings, with Cole Palmer and Ollie Watkins replacing Kobbie Mainoo and Harry Kane.
Those changes allowed Jude Bellingham to move into a more central role, which is where he was in order to set up Palmer’s equaliser.
In the first half, though, Bellingham had often been positioned on the left side of midfield, with Phil Foden the one to run forward and join Kane in attack.
And Shearer, speaking on the latest edition of The Rest is Football, believes that the Real Madrid star was not happy to be playing in such a position during the final.
He explained: “Bellingham wasn’t happy. He was stuck on the left again. You could tell he wasn’t happy at all.
“He had a disappointed look about him, his arms were up, he was looking towards the bench for guidance. He could see things weren’t going well, and he wasn’t happy with the lack of press and everything else.
“He’s not a left midfielder is he, so I sort of understood his emotions.”
Shearer added: “I was really surprised Gareth Southgate went back to four at the back.
“Our best 45 minutes of football in the whole tournament was when we played three at the back in the first half against the Netherlands.
“I thought he would go for that system again. It’s clear that Foden and Bellingham don’t want to play on the left in that system.”
England fans think one player may have played his final game for his country after the Euro 2024 final defeat to Spain.
The Three Lions suffered more final heartbreak on Sunday in Berlin, losing 2-1 through goals from Nico Williams and substitute Mikel Oyarzabal.
The defeat follows on from their penalty shootout defeat to Italy in the Euro 2020 final three years, with Cole Palmer’s 74th-minute equaliser ultimately not enough to inspire another England tournament comeback this time around.
There will doubtless be major analysis of what went wrong over the coming days, including on manager Gareth Southgate’s position after nearly eight years in charge.
The question for the 53-year-old and the FA will surround whether he feels he can go again ahead of the 2026 World Cup – or whether it is agreed that a new manager should take the team forward.
Questions surrounding individual players will not be as necessary, given that the majority of England’s squad are either just starting their careers or at peak ages.
But fans think the reaction of one of their more senior players at full-time could say a lot.
Right-back Kyle Walker appeared to be in tears as full-time, with the Manchester City defender shielding his face inside his shirt.
Walker will be 36 years of age when the 2026 World Cup rolls around, and his current deal with City expires in the same summer.
He was also spotted simply staring into the distance after full-time, with a member of coaching staff trying to console him.
And many fans thought that his reaction suggests that Euro 2024 may have been his final chance at winning a trophy with England.
One wrote: “Kyle Walker is 100 per cent retiring from international duty in the coming months.”
A second said: “Definitely see Kane and Walker retiring from international football.”
A third stated: “Kyle Walker retires from international football for me.”
And a fourth agreed: “Fairly certain Gareth Southgate will announce his leaving and Kyle Walker will retire now too.”
The reaction, though, may simply be borne out of pure emotion after comments made by the 34-year-old pre-match.
He told talkSPORT’s Faye Carruthers that he would trade away one of each of his trophies won at City in order to get his hands on a trophy with England.
Walker said: “Not all the trophies that I’ve won for Manchester City – I’d like to keep one of each – but every other one I’d quite happily swap for this one. Without a question. I’d give it you now.”
