England manager Gareth Southgate has revealed he plans to speak with midfielder Jude Bellingham to get to the bottom of his struggles during the group stage at Euro 2024.
Bellingham arrived at the tournament as one of the favourites to win the Ballon d’Or after a dazzling debut campaign with Real Madrid but, after impressing in the opening victory over Serbia, struggled horribly during draws with both Denmark and Slovenia.
With some even calling for Southgate to bench Bellingham for the last-16 clash with Slovakia on Sunday, the manager stressed he is working to find a solution to England’s turgid attack.
“I will have those messages with [Bellingham] rather than plaster them over the papers,” Southgate told the media.
“It’s about the team. We have to play as a team at all times and some days the space will be where there is more opportunity for our wingers. As Slovenia defended narrow, our wingers could show what they could do.
“It was a little bit harder to play through the middle. I thought Phil Foden and Bukayo Saka did very well and Cole Palmer obviously had a good impact when he came on. That is what a team is.
“For everyone else, you have to focus on individuals but for me it is about the team functioning and we were closer to where we want to be.”
England and Manchester United legend Wayne Rooney admitted there is something “not quite right” with Bellingham this summer.
“Jude starts the first game well but I’m sure he’d tell you himself he hasn’t the best games in the last two games,” Rooney told the Football Daily podcast.
“For me he’s looked very frustrated, I’ve been there, exactly the position he’s in, even the game [against Slovenia], you saw him throwing his arms up in the air.
“As a talisman for England and Real Madrid, I haven’t heard him speak. What is the reason for that? As one of the iconic players now for England in the squad, he should be fronting that. That tells me that he’s probably not quite right in the tournament.
“He’s giving it his all, 100%, I don’t think that’s the problem. You want players demanding more from their teammates, and I think that’s what he was trying to do.
“So, it’s not a criticism, it is a compliment in some ways but you just don’t want that to boil over to the point where he might pick up a silly red card.”
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