- Gareth Southgate has ordered his England stars to rise above any criticism
- Alexander-Arnold and Foden have faced the heat after England’s opening match
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England head coach Gareth Southgate has told his players to block out the noise as he prepares to keep faith with Trent Alexander-Arnold and Phil Foden against Denmark on Thursday night.
Southgate’s side have faced criticism from ex-players and pundits despite winning their first game of Euro 2024 versus Serbia last weekend.
Alexander-Arnold’s unfamiliar role in midfield and Foden’s performance have both been under the spotlight in the aftermath of Sunday’s victory.
But speaking here in Germany ahead of their second Group C encounter on Thursday night, Southgate said: ‘There’s going to be a narrative over a player, a couple of players, after every England game.
‘This is a different world to the one you experience at clubs. The players as a collective recognise that now after the last couple of days. We talked with them about it.
‘It’s very rare at their club they’d win a game and experience what they’ve experienced over the last couple of days.
‘I have to make sure I can guide them through that, let them understand it and recognise it’s the reality of our world but that we shouldn’t be thrown off track by it.
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‘We’re in a good position, we know we want to play better, there are lot of things we did really well and we move towards tomorrow’s game.’
Alexander-Arnold is expected to keep his place in England’s midfield against the Danes.
Southgate raised eyebrows by picking the Liverpool vice-captain, who plays at right-back at club level, in central midfield next to Declan Rice in the victory over Serbia.
Alexander-Arnold was substituted in place of Conor Gallagher in the second half as England sought to see out their victory.
But the Anfield star is hopeful of retaining his place in the starting XI for the game here in Frankfurt on Thursday evening as Southgate prepares to give his midfield experiment another test in what is likely to be an unchanged team.
Foden is set to continue on England’s left hand side – while Kieran Trippier, who appeared to be in some discomfort during the closing stages of the win against Serbia, is in line to win his 50th cap.
Southgate praised Foden for his performance versus Serbia, saying: ‘I thought Phil did an exceptional job for us on Sunday. Other players grabbed the attention, but the way he worked for the team, defended the spaces, real intelligence in how he played. Towards the end of the game retained the ball for us in really crucial moments.
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‘He had a half chance in the first couple of minutes where a slightly better touch and a shot away on goal we could be talking about something very different. He linked the game well in that opening period with the others.
‘There was a lot going on in the game, a lot tactically to solve. And we were happy with what Phil did.’
Meanwhile, Luke Shaw’s will miss the game versus Denmark as he continues to recover from a hamstring injury.
The Manchester United left-back, who hasn’t played since February due to a hamstring injury, didn’t train with his team-mates on Wednesday.
The FA say Shaw was continuing on his individualised programme away from the rest of the squad and Southgate has since confirmed he will not be included against the Danes.
It was hoped that Shaw would be fit enough to make a return to action, most likely as a substitute in either Thursday’s game or the final Group C clash against Slovenia on Tuesday.
But it now remains to be seen if Shaw can prove his fitness before the knockout stages commence.