Erik ten Hag tells Gareth Southgate what England must change following win vs Serbia

Manchester United boss Erik ten Hag has advised Gareth Southgate on what England must change following their win over Serbia on Sunday evening.

England opened their bid for the 2024 European Championship title with a 1-0 win over Serbia, thanks to a brilliant header from Jude Bellingham.

Manchester United starlet Kobbie Mainoo also made his competitive debut for Gareth Southgate‘s team in the latter stages of the tie, while Luke Shaw was named on the bench during his return from injury but did not feature.

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While the win is the most important part of the result, Serbia certainly posed a significant threat, and the goalkeeper Jordan Pickford was called into action many times across the 90 minutes.

Erik ten Hag, who was a pundit for the fixture on Dutch television station NOS, has issued his thoughts on the game. He explained that he feels Southgate made England play too passive football.

“England were playing very passive,” the Dutchman said on Sunday evening, suggesting that this may be something Southgate should look to change. “I actually saw them moving backwards, they kept Serbia coming at them.”

Continuing, he said: “It’s the vision of the manager. England will take a 1-0 lead, then he [Southgate] decides to start gambling with making his team compact and relying on moments for the remaining minutes of the game.”

Ten Hag further explained that he really enjoyed watching Real Madrid’s Jude Bellingham play, who was substituted for Mainoo in the final minutes.

“In the first half, I really enjoyed Jude Bellingham,” Ten Hag said. “He took England by the hand and lifted them to a higher level.”

England will next face Denmark on Thursday before rounding off the group stage with a game against Slovenia. The two aforementioned sides were held in a 1-1 stalemate earlier on Sunday afternoon, meaning England is top of Group C after one game.

Mainoo and Shaw will face off against fellow Old Trafford teammates Rasmus Højlund and Christian Eriksen. Eriksen scored a lovely goal on his return to the Euros.

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