Gary Neville was just made quite an interesting comparison between the current England national team and a former Chelsea side.
England are currently mid-tournament at Euro 2024.
Gareth Southgate’s side has come under-fire for criticism because of the performances so far at the Euros, with so many high-profile players struggling to find form.
From a Chelsea perspective, it’s infuriating that Cole Palmer is still yet to start a match at this summer tournament.
However, England take on Switzerland this Saturday in the quarter-finals. Incidentally, the winners will face either the Netherlands or Turkey in the semis.
The Three Lions didn’t set the world alight in a group they topped, scoring just twice in three games. Afterwards, they needed extra-time and some late heroics to beat Slovakia 2-1 in the last-16 stage.
Gary Neville compares England to Chelsea’s Champions League winning team
Gary Neville has made a comparison between England at Euro 2024 and the Chelsea squad that lifted the Champions League trophy in 2012.
He’s reflected on Chelsea’s bumpy ride to winning the Champions League 12 years ago. He can see similarities with Southgate’s team at the Euros.
When discussing England at Euro 2024 via The Overlap’s Substack newsletter, Neville said: “I last felt like this when Chelsea had a run to the Champions League final and won it in 2012.
“It was against all the odds. On one level, they didn’t deserve it in that they weren’t the best team in many of the games. Yet sometimes football brings together a weird combination of fates, be it a bit of good fortune, or moments coming together, or the strength of personality in special individuals, whereby something just falls into your path like it was meant be be.
“Words can’t explain it. Sometimes a team just won’t lie down and accept their fate and refuse to capitulate to the shame awaiting them.
“… England aren’t gelling, we’re not seeing any coached patterns of play, they’re passive on the pitch and passive off it, in the lack of substitutions and interventions Gareth Southgate is making. But something happened [against Slovakia]. Results matter.”
How the Blues won their first Champions League
Chelsea beat Bayern Munich in their own backyard to win Europe’s elite club competition for the very first time back in 2012. The story itself of Didier Drogba scoring the winning penalty kick is well known.
But it was an extremely turbulent ride for the Blues in that 2011/12 season before lifting the Champions League. This included a managerial change midway through the year.
Chelsea had to overturn a 3-1 deficit against Napoli to eventually beat them 5–4 in the Round of 16.
Next, they edged past Benfica 3-1 on aggregate in the quarter-finals.
There was then the drama of winning 3–2 on aggregate against Barcelona in the semi-finals, but it was a torturous second leg where they defended heroically with 10 men for most of the game.
Basically, England fans will hope to see their side battle all the way to the Euro 2024 trophy.
The main difference is that there’s much more pressure and expectancy on them to win, though.