Gary Neville believes Kobbie Mainoo must start in England’s midfield for their Euro 2024 last-16 tie on Sunday.
The Three Lions delivered another disjointed display in their final game in Group C on Tuesday evening as they were held to a goalless draw by Slovenia.
But the result was enough to see Gareth Southgate’s side finish top of the group, which means they will play one of Netherlands, Romania, Slovakia, Ukraine or Belgium in their first game of the knockout stage on Sunday at 5pm.
Southgate saw similar problems in the stalemate with Slovenia which have plagued England throughout the tournament so far and the biggest issue remains the lack of balance in England’s midfield.
Trent Alexander-Arnold lost his place for the match against Slovenia but his replacement, Conor Gallagher, struggled to make an impact and last just 45 minutes before he was replaced at the break by Mainoo.
The Manchester United player immediately improved England’s cohesion in midfield and Neville is adamant that the 19-year-old has done enough to start the last-16 tie this weekend.
‘I’m certain Mainoo will start in the next game,’ Neville told ITV.
‘He thought Gallagher may be the option, obviously, for the energy we talked about before the game.
‘But I think it was quite obvious that we need someone in there who would get us playing and Mainoo does that. I think Wharton is capable of that as well.
‘I think the more substitutes we made the less rigid we looked.
‘We looked so basic in the first half, it was a struggle to watch that, it moved forward a lot in the second half, we didn’t get the result but there were sort of glimpses of what it can be.’
WHO ENGLAND COULD PLAY IN THE LAST-16?
Netherlands, Romania, Slovakia, Ukraine or Belgium.
Meanwhile, Southgate praised the impact both Mainoo and Chelsea’s Cole Palmer made during the second half.
‘Cole Palmer was very good,’ Southgate said.
‘He finds space well, he’s got lovely technique, he’s calm. You really fancied him when he got that chance at the end.
‘They’re really young players, so we’re balancing blooding them in a difficult environment. They came on and played really well for us.
‘There’s lots to build on from tonight. Tonight we started with Conor who pressed well, then we thought Kobbie’s ability to move the ball up the pitch would help us and it did.’
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