Gareth Southgate believes “so many things are starting to come together” for England after they topped Group C with a 0-0 draw with Slovenia.
Despite failing to fully impress once again, another blank between Denmark and Serbia in Munich meant Southgate’s men finished on top of Group C with five points from three games.
England will have to wait until Wednesday to know for sure their last-16 opponents as Netherlands or the third-placed team in Group E await at the weekend.
“I understand some of the reactions but it’s a strange environment we’re playing in,” said Southgate.
“I thought we were much improved with the ball, we’ve created some good openings and at the moment it’s hard work for us because we’re not quite getting that break in front of goal.
“So many things are starting to come together. We had a lot of issues coming into the tournament and today we looked more dangerous, we had a good impact from our substitutes, and we’ve got just now to convert our chances.”
Southgate singled out Kobbie Mainoo and Cole Palmer for particular praise after the pair came off the bench late in the game and injected new life into the England front line.
“They [Mainoo and Palmer] are really young players so we’re balancing blooding them in a different environment, but they had a really good impact when they came on and used the ball really well,” Southgate added.
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Anthony Gordon has urged England fans to stick with Gareth Southgate’s side after a couple of disappointing draws in Group C of Euro 2024
Stones: A lot of improvement
“I think we all wanted to win,” John Stones told ITV.
“But the objective was to top the group and we have done that so I am extremely pleased. It is not always going to be an easy road and it is not going to be easy when everyone has got a target on our backs to beat us.
“Two clean sheets out of three is a great positive for us to take into the next stage and I thought there was a lot of improvement from the previous two games.
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Dean Ashton says England’s performance against Slovenia has left ‘more questions than answers’ for Gareth Southgate
“We tried to be more free-flowing and I thought we did that, found people in the pockets, created more chances and I believe it is another step in the right direction.
“I understand some of the fans’ frustration with us not scoring, not taking our chances. That’s football. We left everything out there and it is never an easy game.”