England star Kieran Trippier has claimed Harry Kane and Gareth Southgate ‘had a few words’ for the squad ahead of Tuesday’s clash with Slovenia.
The Three Lions have been poor at the tournament so far, with a lacklustre 1-0 win over Serbia followed by a 1-1 draw with Denmark.
Southgate has been criticised amid England’s slow start to the summer, with the 53-year-old’s tactics coming under fire.
Yet Trippier insists players are staying ‘positive’, though does admit they could be ‘more happy’ out in Germany.
England star Kieran Trippier has claimed Harry Kane and Gareth Southgate ‘had a few words’ for the squad ahead of Tuesday’s clash with Slovenia
PA
“We’re all positive in the camp,” said the Newcastle star, who picked up his 50th cap for his country earlier in the week.
“We could be more happy, but the most important thing is that we stay together.”
Trippier then revealed that Southgate and Kane ‘had a few words’ for the squad after the result at the Frankfurt Arena.
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Southgate has suggested England players are struggling physically after a gruelling campaign for their clubs.
And Trippier, who has played at left-back in the absence of Luke Shaw, has revealed everyone is grouping together as they seek Euro 2024 glory.
“I know mentally how hard it is sometimes when you’re the one who has to train the next day when everyone else is recovering and doing extra training and stuff,” he added.
‘I get it, I’ve been there, and that’s why I try to relate to the other players, who maybe it’s the first camp or first tournament, but a lot of people have come to me and asked me questions.
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England star Kieran Trippier has opened up ahead of Tuesday’s Euro 2024 clash with Slovenia
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“It’s always important that the young players lean on us.
“You don’t have to be my age to be a leader, look at Jude [Bellingham], for example, he’s a 20-year-old and he leads in different ways, so you can be any age.
“But myself, H, Walks (Kyle Walker), have been here for a long time.
“They know that I’m here if they need to speak to me and, yes, I spoke to a few of the boys.”
One player yet to take to the field for England at Euro 2024 is Anthony Gordon.
England striker Harry Kane has struggled under Gareth Southgate at Euro 2024 so far
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And Trippier has urged his Newcastle team-mate to knuckle down to boost his chances of winning Southgate round.
“I took Anthony under my wing a little bit at Newcastle, explaining to him and trying to help guide him when he went away with the Under-21s in the Euros,” he said.
“I said ‘don’t take a holiday, come straight back into pre-season and try and hit the ground running’, and he’s done that.
“I’ll just be having another chat with him after training because obviously he’s not played in the two games.
“But I was just saying to him ‘this is tournament football and I’ve been in your position, you’ve got to keep training well and working hard”, which he is doing.”
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