England continue their Euro 2024 campaign on Saturday afternoon when they face Switzerland in the quarter-finals in Dusseldorf.
The Three Lions were dire in their last 16 clash with Slovakia and just seconds away from an early exit, but Jude Bellingham’s remarkable overhead kick spared their blushes. Harry Kane grabbed the winner at the beginning of extra-time but Gareth Southgate and his players still came in for significant criticism after another underwhelming display.
England are yet to score more than a single goal in regulation time during their four Euro 2024 outings, winning just once in 90 minutes. Southgate’s team selection has been questionable, while the performances of key stars have been subpar to put it gently.
Meanwhile, Switzerland will be full of confidence heading into the last eight and not just because they have seen England play. Murat Yakin’s men dumped reigning champions Italy out of the competition with a convincing 2-0 victory and remain unbeaten in their four matches – including a 1-1 draw with hosts Germany in the group stage.
Here is 90min’s guide to England vs Switzerland in the last eight of Euro 2024.
England vs Switzerland H2H Record (Last Five Games)
Current form (all competitions)
|
England |
Switzerland |
|---|---|
|
England 2-1 Slovakia (AET) – 30/06/24 |
Switzerland 2-0 Italy – 29/06/24 |
|
England 0-0 Slovenia – 25/06/24 |
Switzerland 1-1 Germany – 23/06/24 |
|
Denmark 1-1 England – 20/06/24 |
Scotland 1-1 Switzerland – 19/06/24 |
|
Serbia 0-1 England – 16/06/24 |
Hungary 1-3 Switzerland – 15/06/24 |
|
England 0-1 Iceland – 07/06/24 |
Switzerland 1-1 Austria – 08/06/24 |
|
Country |
TV channel / live stream |
|---|---|
|
United Kingdom |
BBC One, BBC iPlayer, BBC Sport Website |
|
United States |
fuboTV, Sling, TUDN.com, foxsports.com, TUDN App, ViX, Fox Sports App, Fox Network, TUDN USA |
|
Canada |
CTV, CTV App, TSN3, TSN4, TVA Sports, TVA+ |
England will be forced into making at least one alteration with Marc Guehi suspended for the last 16 after picking up his second yellow card of the tournament against Slovakia. Lewis Dunk and Ezri Konsa are candidates to step in for the Crystal Palace centre-back.
Luke Shaw is still yet to play a single minute at Euro 2024 but is closing in on his first outing since February. Kieran Trippier’s underwhelming displays mean the Manchester United defender could be chucked into the starting XI on Saturday.
Bellingham has also seemingly avoided a ban for the quarter-final after making a lewd gesture following his goal in the last 16.
According to recent reports, Southgate is set to revert to a back three for the clash with Switzerland in an attempt to get England back on track. Moving to such a system, which he has employed before at major tournaments, will force a change in personnel.
England predicted lineup vs Switzerland (3-4-2-1): Pickford; Walker, Stones, Konsa; Alexander-Arnold, Mainoo, Rice, Saka; Foden, Bellingham; Kane.
Switzerland have a fully-fit squad available to them and will even welcome full-back Silvan Widmer back into the fold. He served his one-game suspension for two bookings during the 2-0 win over Italy in the last 16.
Yakin should restore Widmer to the starting lineup but is unlikely to make too many alterations elsewhere. Ruben Vargas will be one to watch out for from an England perspective after netting a beautiful goal and providing a lovely assist in the victory over the Azzurri.
Switzerland predicted lineup vs England (3-4-2-1): Sommer; Schar, Akanji, Rodriguez; Widmer, Xhaka, Freuler, Aebischer; Ndoye, Vargas; Embolo.
Having been thoroughly disappointing to date, England will be hoping a change of formation can spark rapid improvements and help this incredibly talented squad play with greater freedom and control. That could be wishful thinking.
However, it’s worth remembering that they have still managed to reach the quarter-finals of Euro 2024, even if they have scraped by in each round.
They may well do that again against a resilient Switzerland side and should reach the last four – perhaps in similar circumstances to the victory over Slovakia last time out.