England’s quest for only their second piece of men’s international silverware rumbles on as they look to secure qualification for Euro 2024 in Germany next year.
Semi-final and quarter-final eliminations at the 2018 and 2022 World Cup respectively were sandwiched by a run to the Euro 2020 final, when the Three Lions were beaten on penalties by upcoming opponents Italy.
Gareth Southgate’s record remains impressive in qualifying but his side are still waiting to make their collective experience count when it matters most on the international stage.
England have raced through Euro 2024 qualifying and are on the verge of booking their spot in Germany next year. So what do they need against Italy on Tuesday?
England began their Euro 2024 qualifying campaign in celebratory style as a penalty from Harry Kane helped the Bayern Munich striker become his country’s all-time leading men’s goalscorer in a 2-1 win in Italy.
Ukraine were undone by two goals in four minutes as a Bukayo Saka screamer complemented another Kane strike before the perfect record was maintained with a straightforward 4-0 win in Malta.
Saka scored his first England hat-trick in June 2023 in a 7-0 thrashing of North Macedonia, with Kane bagging two and Marcus Rashford and Kalvin Phillips also netting. The winning run was halted by a draw in Ukraine as Kyle Walker scored his first international goal on his 77th cap.
Euro 2024 qualifying – Group C
|
Position |
Nation |
Played |
Won |
Drawn |
Lost |
Goal difference |
Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
1. |
England |
5 |
4 |
1 |
0 |
+14 |
13 |
|
2. |
Italy |
5 |
3 |
1 |
1 |
+6 |
10 |
|
3. |
Ukraine |
6 |
3 |
1 |
2 |
+1 |
10 |
|
4. |
North Macedonia |
6 |
2 |
1 |
3 |
-7 |
7 |
|
5. |
Malta |
6 |
0 |
0 |
6 |
-14 |
0 |
England’s results in Euro 2024 qualifying Group C
|
Date / Kick-off time (UK) |
Fixture |
|---|---|
|
23/03/23 / 19:45 |
Italy 1-2 England |
|
26/03/23 / 17:00 |
England 2-0 Ukraine |
|
16/06/23 / 19:45 |
Malta 0-4 England |
|
19/06/23 / 19:45 |
England 7-0 North Macedonia |
|
09/09/23 / 17:00 |
Ukraine 1-1 England |
Victory against Italy on Tuesday night at Wembley will see England join the list of qualified teams for Euro 2024.
It’s the same scene as one of the two countries’ more recent meetings when the Azzurri triumphed on penalties in the Euro 2020 final little over two years ago. However, England managed to secure their first win against the Italians since 2012 when they triumphed 2-1 earlier in Euro 2024 qualifying.
England will also seal a top two spot if they draw with Italy and Ukraine fail to beat Malta. Italy and Ukraine can neither qualify nor be eliminated from contention on Matchday 8.
If the Three Lions don’t record a win and Ukraine beat minnows Malta, they would have to wait until the last international break of the year in November to rubber stamp their place in Germany.
Germany qualified as hosts when their bid was chosen back in 2018. German football has gone through something of a crisis in the past few years and Julian Nagelsmann is the latest manager tasked with bringing glory back to Die Mannschaft.
Belgium, France and Portugal became the first teams to reach next year’s tournament through qualifying in mid October when they all secured top two finishes at a minimum.
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