International Friendly: England lose against Iceland
England 0 - 1 Iceland
England wrapped up their preparations for Euro 2024 with a dismal defeat against Iceland at Wembley.
Manager Gareth Southgate made several changes following Monday’s win against Bosnia-Herzegovina at St James’ Park in Newcastle, but he will have been deeply disappointed with the team's lacklustre performance.
Iceland, notorious for their victory over England at Euro 2016, easily exploited England's poor defending. Goalkeeper Aaron Ramsdale, who replaced Jordan Pickford, might have done better with Jon Dagur Thorsteinsson’s low shot after 12 minutes.
Harry Kane missed a great chance for England, while Chelsea’s Cole Palmer, one of the brighter performers, also had opportunities. However, Southgate’s side looked rusty as they finalised plans for their opening Euro 2024 match against Serbia in Gelsenkirchen on 16 June.
England appeared vulnerable at the back throughout the match, with Iceland creating chances to extend their lead after the break.
International Friendly: England start Euros prep with a win
Key defender John Stones was substituted at half-time after taking a heavy knock early on. Southgate desperately hopes it’s not a serious issue, especially with his regular defensive partner Harry Maguire already ruled out of the tournament due to injury.
England cannot complain about this embarrassing loss to a team ranked 72nd in the FIFA rankings. The loud jeers at half-time and the final whistle accurately reflected a poor performance.
If Southgate was searching for any final clues to his Euro 2024 starting line-up, this was a wasted exercise. While this game was primarily about preparation, assessing the squad, and avoiding injuries before the serious competition starts next week, losing to international minnows like Iceland at Wembley is always disappointing.
Opinion: England poor but Mainoo criticism unjustified
This was a poor England performance but some of the criticism has been a little over the top. The Telegraph gave the teenage Manchester United Kobbie Mainoo a rating of 4/10 and appeared to put him at fault for not only Iceland's goal but for the wider problems in England's defeat.
Our view was supported by Twitter user Sam Khan who said: "Anyone who blames Mainoo, believes in that Telegraph agenda and thinks he is overrated, doesn't know anything about football at all."
European Super Football explores the rise of Mainoo
Clearly, the performance was not up to the required standard. The players need to know that It's important to stay calm because, from my experience as a fan, these pre-tournament games often bring more concern about avoiding injuries than winning.
At times in the opening part of the match, England moved the ball really well. However, after conceding the goal, they seemed to lose a bit of confidence which is a bit worrying. Ultimately, nobody will remember these matches if England wins Euro 2024.
More reaction
England booed off after 1-0 home defeat against Iceland, ahead of Euro 2024.
— Chris Cowlin (@ChrisCowlin) June 7, 2024
The team then walked around the pitch, most of the fans had gone home.
• England's next game: v Serbia in 9 days time, in Germany.#England #Euro2024 pic.twitter.com/kZTY4wM1vU
The video above shows how England fans inside Wembley Stadium responded to the defeat. Let's explore what other fans were saying.
Liam Jones from Manchester told us: "Awful game and an awful performance. That being said, people are forgetting it's only a friendly. Some of the reaction to the defeat has been absurd."
This was a view supported by Olivia Taylor from Chorlton. She said: "It's all about preparation for the tournament. If we had beaten Iceland 10-0, it would have meant nothing in the grand scheme of things."
