Euro 2024 LIVE: Latest England news and Germany vs Scotland buildup

There has been a clamour for Southgate to accommodate as many of his world-class offensive talents as possible in his starting line-up for the tournament in Germany, with attack-minded players starring at club level both at home and abroad.

But former England and Liverpool winger Barnes insists the side’s balance is all-important as the Three Lions bid for their first major trophy since 1966.

Three years on from the agonising penalty shoot-out defeat to Italy in the Covid-delayed Euro 2020 final, they head to Germany among the favourites to go one better this time around.

It is little wonder when you look at a rich, talented pool of players underpinned by leadership, experience and a drive to make up for going so close at the last three tournaments.

Boss Gareth Southgate has had to deal with several absentees and fitness concerns in the build-up to Euro 2024.

All 26 players were able to train on Tuesday – their first session after arriving in Germany – including Stones, who went off with an injury in Friday’s friendly against Iceland.

The parallels felt uncanny. A Germany team at its lowest ebb for years, having been dispatched ignominiously from the group stages of two of the three previous tournaments, having ditched one manager and parachuting in another, were the hosts with the low expectations.

If the 2006 World Cup came to symbolise a national footballing rebirth for Germany, surprise semi-finalists who played endearingly attacking football with a likeable bunch of players, it seemed as though the best-case scenario was a repeat of sorts in Euro 2024. Further embarrassment started to look more probable.

Because the 2022 World Cup brought as an early an exit as in 2018, the ultimate Turniermannschaft discovering the tournament would go on without them. And arguably 2023 was still worse; only partly because of the release of the Amazon documentary of the World Cup campaign in which Hansi Flick tried to motivate his players by comparing them to geese. It wasn’t the major reason why Flick became the first Germany manager to be sacked but it did contribute to rendering him a lame duck.

Gelsenkirchen police said this week: “It is just the England game which will have the low-strength beer.

“Fans are not allowed to drink alcohol in the city’s main square, Heinrich-Konig-Platz. An England fan with a can or bottle of beer in the square will be asked to put it away, or it will be taken away. They will not immediately be arrested.

“The square will be a fan zone for other games in the city, but not for England. Fans can however drink alcohol in the city’s bars and in a fan zone for England fans at the racecourse.”

England fans will only be allowed to buy low-alcohol beer at their opening Euro 2024 match with Serbia on Sunday after the fixture was identified as “high risk” by German authorities.

The full-strength Bitburger Premium lager (4.8%) usually served inside the Arena AufSchalke in Gelsenkirchen has been replaced by a 2.5% alternative in a bid to keep a lid on potential disturbances at the game, and fans will only be allowed to buy two pints at a time.

More than 1,000 police officers will be deployed in a major security operation amid fears of trouble between supporters.

Spain’s young and talented core of players have worked extensively with manager Luis de la Fuente, who was part of the national team’s youth set-up between 2013 and 2022 before taking charge of the senior team.

“I think that these last few days we have talked about it, that the greatest asset we have is that we are a team, we are a family both on and off the field,” Barcelona’s Pedri told reporters on Tuesday.

“The leader is the team as a whole. There are many players that are captains that help us a lot, they act as leaders, but I think the big difference with all the teams is that we are a team and there is no leader who stands out from the rest.”

Bradley registered his first senior brace with goals in the 16th and 23rd minutes, but Michael O’Neill’s men could not add to that lead despite clear chances for Callum Marshall and Jamal Lewis before half-time.

As expected, Northern Ireland bossed possession but the extra goals O’Neill would no doubt have hoped to see his men conjure against opposition ranked 91 places below them did not materialise after the break.

Euro 2024 is upon us, as Germany hosts its first major men’s tournament since 2006 – with the national team seeking its first trophy in a decade.

Some fancy Julian Nagelsmann’s team to defy expectations on home soil, while there is naturally significant faith in France, as the 2018 world champions and 2022 runners-up.

Can England finally get over the line under Gareth Southgate, three years after losing the delayed Euro 2020 final to Italy at Wembley? And if so, will Harry Kane claim his second international Golden Boot?

Or will a younger star steal the spotlight, as clubs and coaches around Europe keep an eye out for the ‘next big thing’ in the summer transfer market?

Below, we predict the teams, players and moments that could define Euro 2024. Without further ado…