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As England prepare to face Denmark at the Wembley Stadium with a place in the Euro 2020 final up for grabs, there's a lot of buzz and excitement around the country. The squad looks extremely well drilled and everyone seems to know what their job is, as they edge ever closer to winning their first international trophy since 1966.
Gareth Southgate is one of the most talked-about managers in world football and has often been criticized for being overly cautious with his approach to games at Euro 2020, but he's got the balance of the team right. I don't remember seeing an England team as solid as this; the right personnel are in the right positions and this is a group that's working extremely well together. We've seen a lot of promising England teams over the years, but the current group of players have a completeness about them that could well turn out to be the winning formula at Euro 2020.
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Another thing I've liked about England is their ball retention at Euro 2020. I've watched many an England side in major tournaments over the years, but when push came to shove, they never had the ability to retain the ball and see off games. A change at the grassroots level has seen a bunch of technically gifted English youngsters burst onto the scene - that's come home for them! This new, technical breed of talent is different from what we've seen in the past, as all the little things have been addressed.
As I said earlier in one of my columns, you don't need to play brilliant football to win major tournaments. That said, in terms of spirit, togetherness and that sense of solidarity, this is as good an England side as I've seen and they can beat anyone at the moment.
There was massive pressure on the team in the build-up to the Germany game due to the history between the two sides, but the result turned out to be a huge relief for the fans. The Euro 2020 quarterfinal against Ukraine was a memorable one for the squad, as they recorded a convincing 4-0 victory at the Stadio Olimpico in Italy. Rome was a good change of scenery for Southgate and co, but they return to the Wembley Stadium for the business end of the tournament and will look to complete the job by getting their hands on the European Championships for the first time in their history.
There have been suggestions that Southgate could revert to a back-three like he did against Germany, but I'm not convinced he'll do that for the Euro 2020 semifin. I predicted that to be the case ahead of the massive game against the Germans, but he might look at Denmark and think why upset the apple cart? I could well be wrong, but my understanding of the situation is very simple - if it's not broken, don't try to fix it. Denmark are a really good side, but I don't believe Southgate will be concerned to the extent of making wholesale changes to a side that is yet to concede a goal at Euro 2020.
I think the current England team is relatively untouchable and I expect Gareth Southgate to start with 10 of the players who started against Ukraine.
Goalkeeper - Jordan Pickford
Jordan Pickford didn't enjoy the best season with Everton, but he has shown his class since the turn of the year and has been one of England's best players at Euro 2020. Over the years, he's been jittery with the ball at his feet and has sometimes rashly gone at things and got himself into sticky situations.
Ahead of Euro 2020, Pickford revealed that he's been working with a sports psychologist to take his game to the next level and it seems to have worked wonders. There's a picture of calm about him and he seems like a different personality at the back for England. The communication line with his defenders has been a massive boost for Southgate, with Harry Maguire's return adding more steel to their rearguard. There seems to be the right know-how and the mental stance between him and the rest of his backline.
Pickford has made a string of fine saves to maintain England's run of clean sheets at Euro 2020 and has stepped up massively at the grandest stage. Now is not the time for slip-ups, though, so he needs to carry on his rich vein of form against a Denmark side that has been the surprise package of the competition.
Defense - Kyle Walker, John Stones, Harry Maguire, Luke Shaw
Kyle Walker made an error against Ukraine, but Jordan Pickford made a smart save at his near post to spare his blushes. Apart from that, he's a strong and reliable presence at the back for Gareth Southgate at Euro 2020 and is likely to keep his spot in the starting XI ahead of Kieran Trippier and Reece James.
When you look at the two center backs, Harry Maguire has done an awful lot of fitness work behind the scenes to return to the starting XI. He has been carefully nursed after picking up an injury with Manchester United and it has seemingly paid off, as he adds that sense of reassurance to England's backline. John Stones, on the other hand, has kept his place in the starting XI throughout the tournament and has turned his career around after a fantastic season with Manchester City. They know what they are doing and have a good understanding between them.
If you look at the England backline, the right side has a Manchester City connection with Walker and Stones, while the left side has a Manchester United pairing with Maguire and Luke Shaw. The latter also has a good little thing going with Raheem Sterling on the left flank and that's another combination that's working really well for them at Euro 2020. A few years ago for Manchester City, Sterling and David Silva enjoyed a fruitful partnership in the final third and I used to refer to it as a left-sided bias. Come to think of it, something similar is happening with England, as Shaw and Sterling continue to establish themselves as key players for Southgate.
On the right flank, Walker hasn't combined particularly well with Phil Foden, Jadon Sancho or Bukayo Saka at Euro 2020, indicating that there's work to be done there. It's not too late, though, as a defining contribution at the business end of the tournament could turn out to be absolutely priceless for England. They are a very well-drilled side, so we can't mess around with the goalkeeper and the back four, based on what we've seen so far at least.
Also Read: 5 players who have surprised everyone with their performances at Euro 2020
Midfield - Declan Rice, Kalvin Phillips, Mason Mount
Against Ukraine, Declan Rice and Kalvin Phillips ran the risk of being suspended for the semi-finals if they picked up a booking on the night. However, England got the job done with a lot of time left on the clock, so both players were withdrawn to give them a bit of extra rest and protection. If you look at how they operate together, they are very slick and efficient and have quickly become key players for England. They are very uncomplicated in how they go about their games and have focused on winning the ball back to feed it to the more skillful players ahead of them.
In the game against Croatia, Phillips was stationed in a bit of an advanced position and was the best player on the pitch, as he capped off a fine display in midfield by providing the assist for Raheem Sterling's goal. In recent games, he's played slightly deeper in a 4-2-3-1, with Southgate making slight adjustments to his team based on the opposition. In the quarterfinals, England started really well and got a deserved lead, but Ukraine had an impetus and a belief about their game just before the half-time whistle. They were just beginning to come back into the game, so the interval came at the worst time for them. Harry Kane was also seen gesturing to his teammates that they'll change shape to a 4-4-2, with Sterling joining the England captain in attack. The tactical switch paid dividends, as they scored an early goal in the second half and eventually recorded a resounding 4-0 victory.
I fancy Mason Mount to complete the midfield. He wasn't one of the standout players against Ukraine, but his work rate was top-notch as usual. He's playing his part in a well-oiled England side that is functioning really nicely as a unit.
Attack - Bukayo Saka, Harry Kane, Raheem Sterling
I didn't have Raheem Sterling in my preferred XI against Croatia, but he's absolutely loving life at the moment and has emerged as England's main man at Euro 2020. The 2020-21 season wasn't his greatest for Manchester City, as he found himself in and out of the starting XI and failed to produce the goods consistently. For England, though, he's scored goals, provided assists and been an absolute menace to play against with his low center of gravity and ability to turn really quickly.
Sterling just has that aura about him when you look at the bigger picture. I thought the way he slid the ball through to Harry Kane against Ukraine was absolutely brilliant, that's the kind of incision I want to see. He has a little thing going with Kane and that's another one of those partnerships that's working really well for England. The fact that all these combinations are working so well is making them look so much better.
Harry Kane looked out of sorts in the first few games and was questioned quite rightly, but his instincts seem to have kicked in now. He's combining well with Sterling and the other players around him and is waiting to get to the end of moves without having to drop back as he does for Tottenham Hotspur. He has a lot of talented players around him and will get the required service to find the back of the net, so it's all looking very good for England.
The right-wing spot is a bit of a tricky one. Jadon Sancho started against Ukraine and was given a rating of four by L'Equipe, which in my opinion, was a bit harsh. He was involved in a few good moments, but he didn't hurt the opposition defenders in the grand scheme of things, as he did all the better stuff away from the penalty area. Sancho was preferred to Phil Foden to seemingly stretch Ukraine's back-three, but an injury to Serhiy Kryvtsov forced Andriy Shevchenko to switch to a 4-3-3.
Gareth Southgate will weigh up his options ahead of the Denmark game. When Phil Foden played, he didn't set the world alight either, but in my opinion, Bukayo Saka did to a certain degree, which is why I'm inclined towards him. He deserves his place in the team and when he has played, he has done more than Foden and Sancho.
During the 2020-21 season, I remember discussing a few other pundits about Saka's best position. A lot of them suggested that he could be brilliant as a full-back, but I think would be wasted in that position. Having played there myself, I have no qualms in admitting that I wasn't nearly as skilled as Saka on the ball, so he has all the required tools to flourish in an attacking role while also keeping one eye on his defensive duties.
If you're in the England team now, you've already bought into what's happening. There are big things at stake, so when a team is functioning as efficiently as they are currently, you buy into their philosophy. I know Saka will be playing on his wrong side, but that shouldn't be a problem for a player as talented as him, as he is more than capable of hitting the byline and crossing the ball into the box with his weaker foot. He's a left-footed player, but his right foot can be quite useful. Having said that, it remains to be seen what Southgate makes of the situation, as he is blessed with a handful of talented attacking options.
England head into the game as the favorites and I fancy them to make it through to the final, but they are coming up against a determined Denmark side that has been spurred on by the awful incident involving Christian Eriksen. They became the first side in the history of the European Championships to make it through to the knockout stages despite losing their first two group games, so they have a lovely vibe going and will look to emulate their historic achievement from 1992 when they won the competition.
I was at the Parken Stadium in Copenhagen a few years ago when I was involved with one of the broadcasters for the Ireland game. Denmark completely outplayed us, but we scored a late equalizer to get a 1-1 draw. On that night, I remember thinking to myself that this is a team that is capable of beating some of the best sides in the world and they've shown exactly that on the grandest stage.
You have to admire the way they've played throughout the tournament, but it remains to be seen how they approach the game against England. Will they be adventurous and look to start the game on the front foot, or will they enter protection mode right from the get-go and adopt a more cautious approach? Only time will tell.
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