Ben, Derby

Nick, Castleton: Hi Phil. Is it time to play either Phil Foden or Jude Bellingham behind Harry Kane. Are we seeing the Lampard /Gerrard scenario? Both are not clicking. Cole Palmer surely starts now?

Phil: The age-old Lampard/Gerrard conundrum has been mentioned. My solution would have been to move Bellingham alongside Rice, put Foden in as the “10” then pick Anthony Gordon in his natural position on the left. And you’re right, Cole Palmer made a very strong case for a start with his performance as a substitute against Slovenia.

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Anon: Do you think that Southgate is that ‘thick skinned’ he is able to ignore what’s going on in the media. I can’t believe for one minute that he or the team are enjoying life at the moment. What do you think is going on in his mind?

Phil: I would never presume to know what is going on in Gareth Southgate’s mind but I can guess no-one will be happy with England’s performances out here so far. I think managers in such a high-profile position try to block the external noise (to use one of Southgate’s phrases) and they just learn to be thick-skinned. Managing the England team is not a job for the thin-skinned.

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We just took a free ferry across the River Rhine put on specifically for Euro 2024 fans.

It’s a short hop across the water to the other side of the Cologne railway bridge.

When we got off, we were met by a Cologne resident who was wearing a sticker with the words "we miss the Scots".

She recorded a video message for us in which she says: “We miss you very, very much. Please come again. We need your joy and happiness.”

Ray: Hi Phil. England seem to be playing as individuals rather than a team. They pass the ball and stay static. Is this to do with coaching, caution, physical conditioning or something else?

Phil: Morning, Ray. I think at the moment England are simply not playing well. The midfield has not been functioning, hence Southgate’s changing of partners for Declan Rice, while the balance on the left is not right. What is worrying is Harry Kane saying they did not know when to press against Denmark and Southgate questioning whether they had the energy to do it.

This is why I would expect him to freshen things up against Slovakia in the last 16. Kobbie Mainoo looks likely to continue in midfield while Cole Palmer made a real case for his inclusion with his performance as a substitute against Slovenia.

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When it comes to a penalty shootout there isn't just the physical aspect of taking the kick but a mental one too.

Psychologist Bradley Bush was on BBC Radio 5 Live speaking about the psychology behind them. He said: "The England team over the last few years have done a lot of work on the psychology of penalties. We see their approach remarkably different to how they used to do it.

"I think you usually hear the losing team describe to as a lottery. Penalties aren't a test of technique, but a test of pressure. Your ability to handle stress. There are things players can do to tip things in their favour.

"One of the most basic ones is research shows teams who go first tend to win 60% of the time because going second increases the pressure. Another one we typically see is where pressure and stress manifests itself, this is true in life as well as penalties, people tend to rush... We know those who take a penalty about two seconds after the referee blows their whistle, 50% of them tend to miss.

"There's a really interesting thing goalkeepers can do to increase the chance of them saving it. We know 15% of penalties go down the middle but only 2% of goalkeepers choose to stand still. If you stand still and you don't dive but the player scores the goalkeeper gets all of the blame. whereas if you dive, even if you don't save it no one is criticising the goalkeeper."

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England defender Marc Guehi says the team have been “doing a lot of work” on penalties as they prepare for the Euro 2024 knockout stages.

England finished top of their group to reach the last 16 and will play Slovakia on Sunday.

Asked if time had been spent on penalties, Crystal Palace centre-back Guehi said: “Yes, we’ve been doing a lot of work.

“The work’s been going really well across the team on penalties. It’s important to make sure we’re ready.”

England were beaten by Italy on penalties in the final of the last European Championship, having looked like they were improving in shootouts.

They beat Colombia on spot-kicks in the last 16 of the 2018 World Cup, while they also won against Switzerland on penalties in a 2019 Nations League third-placed play-off.

“It [practising penalties] is something we've been doing anyway, it was regardless of if we went through or not,” added Aston Villa player Ezri Konsa.

“It's something that we like to practise anyway. We've been practising them after training, a few players go off and practise penalties.

“Look, we're not thinking about going to penalties on Sunday, but if it comes to it, we'll be well prepared.”

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David: Hi Phil. Could part of England’s problem be that once again the players are spread across several leagues so not playing together frequently? Last few tournaments have seen the squad mainly in the Premier League.

Phil: Hello, David. I think that’s a situation pretty much every other country and coach has to deal with as a common denominator in international football. England simply should be playing an awful lot better with the quality they have. Harry Kane and Jude Bellingham have been brilliant for Bayern Munich and Real Madrid but they are hardly strangers to their colleagues.

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ENGLAND

• England have won five or the last six meetings against Slovakia. A goalless draw at Euro 2016 in France was the only time the Three Lions failed to get the win.
• Across the last two European Championship tournaments, England have kept more clean sheets than any other side (seven in 10 games). All seven of those have been achieved with Jordan Pickford in goal. The only goalkeepers with more clean sheets at the European Championship are Spain's Iker Casillas (nine), Netherlands' Edwin Van Der Sar and Italy's Gianluigi Buffon (both eight).

• Harry Kane has scored six goals in his last six appearances in the knockout stages of major tournaments for England (two in two at the 2022 World Cup, four in four at Euro 2020). His seven goals in the knockout stages overall are also the most of any England player.

SLOVAKIA

• Slovakia have scored first in three of their six matches against England but have gone on to lose each of those games 2-1 - in the two Euro 2004 qualifiers and in a qualifier for the 2018 World Cup.

• Slovakia had 37 shots overall and 13 shots on target in the Euro 2024 group stage, both highs for them in the group stage of a major tournament. In Euro 2020 they mustered just two shots on target in three games.

• Only Germany's Toni Kroos (130) played more forward passes in the Euro 2024 group stage than Slovakia's Milan Skriniar (92), whose 203 successful passes so far at this tournament are the most ever by a Slovakian player in a single edition of a major tournament.

David in Changsha, China: Is England ruing the day that Gareth Southgate made the weird decision not to select Jack Grealish? One of the few players who can change a game.

Phil: I don’t think so, David. Grealish did not have a great season at Manchester City. Remember Pep Guardiola did not even bring him on when they desperately needed a goal against Manchester United in the FA Cup final.

England have good options in players like Anthony Gordon and Cole Palmer so I don’t believe Southgate will be regretting not picking Jack Grealish.

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England's Phil Foden has returned to camp after witnessing the birth of his third child.

Take a look at the video of the team welcoming him back:

Giles, Isle of Wight: Hi Phil. Do you think Bellingham could work in a deeper role alongside Rice? I know he plays further forward for Real Madrid and is a goal threat, but he has the ability to pick the ball up from the defence, turn, and play forward passes or dribble. Isn’t afraid of a tackle either, and has played deeper plenty of times in his career. Worth a try surely?

Phil: If there is one question against Jude Bellingham, it is about his tactical discipline, which is perfectly understandable because we sometimes forget he is still a very young player, but he could certainly play in that role.

When I was asked to pick my England team for the game against Slovenia, I actually suggested exactly the same as you with Phil Foden as the “10” and Anthony Gordon on the left.

In the wider context, England will be hoping for better very soon from Bellingham because he has been very poor in their last two games.

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Slovakia's Milan Skriniar has spoken about the prospect of facing England on Sunday in the last 16 of Euro 2024:

"Of course it will be something special. Not only for me but for all the people of Slovakia and if Slovakia beat England I think it will be the best result for Slovakia in history. I hope and I believe that we can do it."

On going up against Harry Kane: "I played against him I think two or three times already, so I know how strong he is. It will be a really good game with good duels, I am happy and I cannot wait to play the game."

On the England squad: "England are full of really big stars, good players. But we saw some games in the group and they are not at their best so far. So this could be our opportunity to beat them. If we play as a team like we did in qualification and in the group, I believe and I hope that we can beat them."

Andy, Leeds: Can Bukayo Saka play on the left?

Phil: He certainly can, Andy. He has done it before. It would be serious tactical shift from Gareth Southgate to try him, but he can do it.

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Ryan

Martin from Leicestershire: Hi Phil, really enjoy your intelligent writing. I have been a big supporter of Southgate. I think he has brought intelligence, professionalism and respect to the England set-up but I do feel now he has reached his limits tactically. When he does step down, do you think there is a place for him to remain a technical director or similar at FA?

Phil: Thanks for your kind words, Martin. I totally agree with everything you say about what Gareth Southgate has brought to England and the Football Association.

I think if Southgate desired some continued involvement, the FA would want to keep him as he has been such an integral part of the set-up for so long, first as England Under-21 coach then manager of the senior team.

If, as I suspect, this is his last tournament then I actually believe he will want to make a clean break from the FA, take time to reflect and refresh, then take on another challenge.

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Mike, Hythe

Adam, Sheffield: Hi Phil. Why do you think there is a feeling of unpreparedness around the tournament? It seems strange to me that we haven't decided on an effective system even though we've had months to prepare.

Phil: Hello, Adam. Preparing for tournaments is not an exact science. A manager can have plans in his head from way out but then see them disrupted by injuries, loss of form etc.

Luke Shaw would have been a key figure out here in Germany but was injured in early February. Shaw’s potential importance at left-back was illustrated by the fact Southgate picked him even though he had not played for so long – and so far has not played out here and has been badly missed.

I think midfield was one area where I would question preparation.

The idea of using Trent Alexander-Arnold as a midfield player was touted some time ago but, to use the manager’s own word, was still regarded as an “experiment” when it was used against Serbia in the opening game of Euro 2024 before being ditched after 54 minutes against Denmark.

Major tournaments are no time to be conducting experiments and it looks even worse when they fail and you have to admit defeat.

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Tim

Robert, High Wickham: Hi Phil. Hindsight is a wonderful thing, but looking at how Toni Kroos is the metronome for the German team, do you agree that James Maddison is the only type of player we have in England that could have given us that metronomic balance we sadly miss?

Phil: Hello, Robert. I can’t change my tune now because I thought Gareth Southgate made the right choices when he named his squad and James Maddison did have a poor second half of the season at Tottenham after suffering an injury. Kobbie Mainoo did well but I think in time Adam Wharton might be best suited to being the sort of player you are talking about.

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