England are set to face off against Slovakia in the Euro 2024 round of 16 tie later on tonight.
Although the Three Lions managed to top their group with five points, the team's performances and results have garnered Gareth Southgate and his players plenty of criticism.
That criticism has come not just from fans, but also from ex-players, such as Gary Lineker.
The BBC presenter branded the team as "s***" after the 1-1 draw with Denmark last week.
Following the final group stage match against Slovenia, which ended 0-0, Lineker referred to England as "dreadful".
Speaking on The Rest is Football podcast, he said: “In the second half, I thought you could see that if this team continue to play a high press, chances will come.
"And we may have been playing that way because Slovenia knew that a draw would get them through.
"So they were cautious and sat back a little bit. I understand that. But I saw enough to suggest that England are improving slightly.
“Now, I think there were downsides but I think there were real positives, particularly, I thought, when Cole Palmer came on.
“We were still unbalanced on the left, no question about that, and I thought it was a little baffling that he waited so long for Anthony Gordon to come on, because I think [Phil] Foden was playing there but then he was switching with [Jude] Bellingham and I don’t think that really helped either of them in a way, because they were neither here nor there.
“I’m trying to put a positive spin on it.
"What I did see in the second half was energy and I haven’t seen energy, apart from the first half an hour of the first game, in the other performances.
“England have got through, they’ve won the group. they might play the Netherlands in the next round but they might not.
“So, I think there’s enough there in the second half, enough there just to make me think for the first time this England team has some energy, which they hadn’t before.”
With that in mind, do you think Gary Lineker was right to criticise England? Have your say.
