Alan Shearer tells Gareth Southgate to drop two England stars for Euro 2024 quarter-finals | football

The Three Lions are just three wins away from lifting their first major trophy in men’s football since 1966 as they prepare to face Switzerland in the quarterfinals of the Euros on Saturday.

Southgate’s side lead Group C despite three poor performances against Serbia, Denmark and Slovakia, and then produced a dramatic performance to beat Slovakia in the final.

England were moments away from the Euros premature exit when they trailed Slovakia 1-0 but Jude Bellingham’s injury-time overhead kick and Harry Kane’s extra-time header completed a stunning and unlikely turnaround.

Shearer said the Three Lions must improve to overcome the Swiss side who beat European champions Italy in their last game and asked Southgate to make two changes, dropping Phil Foden and Bukayo Saka for Anthony Gordon and Cole Palmer.

“I can see what Gareth Southgate is doing, but I’d prefer if we were more balanced on the left, so I’d like Anthony Gordon on that side because I don’t think Phil Foden has worked there,” Shearer told Betfair.

“I know he’s unbalanced because Kieran Trippier has to play at left-back, he has to change again because Guehi is suspended.

‘Whether they think it’s right to change the system, we don’t know. I would be surprised if they did.

“I think Phil Foden was unlucky, he wasn’t comfortable with the system that England wanted. The left didn’t look right, we weren’t at the back close enough.

‘The game he wants to go in and someone overlaps. That was difficult for England to do because there was no left foot in Trippier. So, he was out of luck.

“But they have to make changes because they haven’t played well. I know they’ve won and they’ve graduated but they’re lucky.

‘England got lucky last night, they got into the quarter-finals, they didn’t play well. This has to be positive because I believe everything can get better.’

Assessing England’s quarter-final opponents, Shearer added: ‘Switzerland are very good and have very good players.

“The open game probably suits them because of the pace and talent they have up front, three very good players.

‘And of course (former Arsenal captain) Granit Xhaka will want to play the ball and control it like he did against Italy. They really beat Italy from start to finish, they were the better team.

“They like to press from the front, but it could have benefited England, it could have opened up the game.

“Harry Kane after the first two games said he was a bit confused about how and when to press because of the back three he was up against.

“Switzerland play with three backs, so they understand and have time to work on it. I hope they don’t say the same after this game.’

While Shearer wants to see some changes when England kick-off in Dusseldorf on Friday, he expects Southgate to go with ‘pretty much the same line-up’, although reports claim he is considering making a shock formation change.

“I think Gareth will be in the same line-up,” Shearer said. “I don’t think he will go away from what he used in the past, although he will be looking for an improvement in performance.

‘It’s time for you to step up. The Dutch did it in the last 16, Turkey was also outstanding. There are some big games coming up in the quarter-finals, so that’s something to look forward to.’

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