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Gareth Southgate insists England will head into Euro 2024 ready to handle the expectation that comes with being ranked one of the tournament favourites. The England boss and his players were pitted against Denmark, Serbia and Slovenia in Group C for next summer’s finals in Germany in Saturday night’s draw in Hamburg. Southgate has overseen a transformation of England’s fortunes since he took over in 2016, steering them to a first World Cup semi-final since 1990 at the 2018 tournament in Russia and a first-ever Euro final appearance in 2021. There were further signs of progress in December’s run to the World Cup quarter-finals and the side are firm favourites to take the final step and claim silverware, thanks in no small part to Real Madrid star Jude Bellingham and Bayern Munich sharpshooter Harry Kane. “They are used to playing in big matches and have produced regularly,” Southgate said. “They are used to playing in big matches together and individually, so we are excited and all looking forward to the summer. “We feel the squad has been building for a period of time and England are going to be competitive for the foreseeable future as you look at the young players coming through. When we started at St George’s Park it is what we wanted to happen. “If you are continually in those latter stages, most teams that win go close and then get there.” Denmark were England’s opponents in a tense semi-final at Euro 2020, when Kane scored from a penalty rebound after a spot-kick was controversially awarded for a foul on Raheem Sterling in extra time. But Southgate also well remembers a past encounter with Slovenia. England faced them in his second match in charge as interim manager in October 2016, a qualifier for the 2018 World Cup. England clung on for a point that day in a 0-0 draw, and Southgate saw it as a turning point in his England tenure. “Slovenia takes me back to one of my first games as manager where but for Joe Hart plucking out one of the best saves I’ve ever seen, I wouldn’t be standing here and I would probably still be a caretaker, but at something else,” he said. Serbia are the opponents in the Arena AufSchalke opener on June 16, before England take on Denmark at the Frankfurt Arena on June 20. England round off Group C against Slovenia at Cologne Stadium on June 25 at a tournament they intend to spend based in central Germany. UEFA provided a team base camp catalogue to teams, but the PA news agency understands the Football Association plans to stay at an unlisted venue. Weimarer Land in Blankenhain has been lined up – a remote spa and golf resort that has a 45-hole course and, most importantly, two training pitches. Final Football Association visits are planned at the venue that is around 90 minutes from host venue Leipzig and a 30-minute drive from the city of Erfurt. Asked about England finalising their team base and pre-tournament friendlies, Southgate told PA after the draw: “Today allows us to take those plans to the next stage. “Definitely the friendlies we’ve got an idea on dates, but we can now look at the opponents with more detail. “Similar with the base camp. We know now where our matches will be played, so we can start to cement those plans in the next few days.” Read More Dwight McNeil fires Everton to morale-boosting win at Nottingham Forest New faces but no complete reset – talking points as England take on West Indies Paul Heckingbottom stands by his work as Sheffield United lose again Neal Maupay makes the right impression on his manager Mikel Arteta heaps praise on players as Arsenal pull four points clear at summit Will Jacks looks at positives after England central contract snub

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England manager Sarina Wiegman says the Lionesses “know what we have to do” as they face the Netherlands in a must-win Nations League clash at Wembley. The Lionesses are third in Group A1 after four games, having been beaten 2-1 in September by the Dutch and 3-2 last month by Belgium, who they trail by three and one point respectively. Failure to beat the Netherlands in their penultimate group fixture will end their hopes of the first-placed finish they require to have a chance of securing a Paris 2024 Olympics qualifying spot for Great Britain. "We’re very clear on how we want to play and what we want to do,” Wiegman said. “I see good things on and off pitch, and that gives me confidence that we’re really ready for tomorrow, and of course we all know what we have to do." But England’s fate is not in their hands, however, and things could get complicated as they look to top their Nations League group. Here’s everything you need to know and here are the England vs Netherlands latest odds. How can England finish top of Group A1? The Lionesses must win against the Netherlands. Any other result and they are out of the running to top the group. If England win, they will likely have to beat Scotland at Hampden next Tuesday: a draw at Hampden would only be enough if Belgium lose to Scotland and then draw against the Netherlands, and even then England would need to beat the Netherlands by two goals to take the head-to-head record. If England win both games, they will have 12 points and would need Belgium to drop points either against Scotland or against the Netherlands. If England win both games but Belgium win both games, they cannot top the group. If England win both games and the Netherlands beat Belgium, they will go through only if they win by two goals or better the Dutch’s 2-1 win from the return fixture. The Lionesses must do this to take the head-to-head record. If both England and the Netherlands both finish on 12 points and with identical head-to-head records (ie both games are 2-1 home wins), then it will come down to overall goal difference in Group A1. Coming into the final two rounds, England have a goal difference of 0 while the Netherlands have +5. What would the Lionesses then need to do to qualify for the Olympics? England must reach the Nations League final to be sure of their place at the Olympics next summer, as the nominated side for Team GB. Both Nations League finalists will qualify for the Paris Games - unless one of those teams is France, who qualify automatically. If France reach the Nations final, the automatic qualification spot will go to the winner of the third place playoff in the Nations League finals. France, Denmark and Spain are top of Groups A2, A3 and A4 ahead of the final two rounds of fixtures. How do the Lionesses avoid relegation, or a relegation play-off? Scotland will be relegated automatically if they fail to win both games. England will be forced to go through a relegation play-off if they finish 3rd in the group and fail to overtake either the Netherlands or Belgium. When is England vs Netherlands? The Nations League fixture kicks off at 7:45pm on Friday 1 December at Wembley Stadium. How can I watch it and what TV channel is it on? The fixture will be shown live on ITV 4, with coverage kicking off from 7pm. It will also be available to stream live on the ITV X website. If you’re travelling abroad and want to watch major sporting events then you might need a VPN to unblock your streaming app. Our VPN roundup is here to help: get great deals on the best VPNs in the market. Viewers using a VPN need to make sure that they comply with any local regulations where they are and also with the terms of their service provider. What is the team news? England are without captain Millie Bright after the Chelsea defender withdrew from the squad due to a knee injury. The centre-back was replaced by Manchester United’s Millie Turner and goalkeeper Mary Earps will captain the Lionesses in her absence. Beth Mead is back in the England squad for the first time in over a year after returning from an ACL injury. The Euros golden boot winner adds to Sarina Wiegman’s options in the forward line, with Lauren James, Lauren Hemp and Chloe Kelly all in form. Vivianne Miedema is also set to return for the Netherlands after her own injury absence and could join Lieke Martens and Jill Roord in attack, but Andries Jonker is likely to stick with Juventus forward Lineth Beerensteyn. Predicted line-ups England: Earps; Bronze, Carter, Greenwood, Charles; Walsh, Stanway; Hemp, James, Kelly; Daly Netherlands: Van Domselaar; Dijkstra, Spitse, Janssen; Pelova, Groenen, Van de Donk, Brugts; Roord; Beerensteyn, Martens Read More Is England vs Netherlands on TV? Channel, time and how to watch Lionesses The Lionesses are back in ‘must-win’ mode: Here’s why it can suit them Sarina Wiegman dismisses concerns over inexperienced England defence Keira Walsh ‘feeling fresh’ before latest round of Women’s Nations League games Beth Mead: ‘The things I’ve dealt with have made me a stronger person’ England captain Millie Bright to miss must-win Nations League double-header

Raheem Sterling was the headline absentee as Gareth Southgate handed Eberechi Eze his first England call-up and ended Lewis Dunk’s time in the international wilderness. Having kicked off Euro 2024 qualification with wins over Italy and Ukraine, attention turns to June’s straightforward-looking doubleheader against Malta and North Macedonia. Sterling is the most eye-catching absentee for those games as a difficult first season since swapping Manchester City for Chelsea comes to a frustrating conclusion. The 28-year-old has not played for England since the World Cup quarter-final exit to France – when a burglary at home disrupted his preparations – as injury ruled him out of the March camp. “I spoke with him a week or so ago – a general catch-up,” England boss Southgate said. “He’s not happy physically with his condition, having been carrying a hamstring problem. He really wasn’t in consideration. “So, we didn’t get to the point of whether he should be in or out. He doesn’t think he is operating at the level he needs.” A representative for Sterling called it a “mutual decision” that allows the player to focus on “recuperating his body in preparation for the upcoming season”. The 28-year-old is determined to play a key role for England next term and Southgate says he can get back into the fold ahead of next year’s finals, as can omitted Tottenham defender Eric Dier. “As we’ve shown with Tyrone (Mings) coming back (this time) and other players like Trent (Alexander-Arnold) coming back in, the door is always open when players are playing well,” Southgate told BBC Radio 5 Live. “Eric and Raheem both have physical issues really at the moment that they’re dealing with, so there’s part of that is behind that decision as well. “But there’s another year to go before the Euros and it’s possible for everybody to get in that squad.” Mings, Alexander-Arnold, Callum Wilson and Sam Johnstone returned to the England squad as Southgate has largely stuck with the tried and tested for the Group C games, with Crystal Palace attacking midfielder Eze the only uncapped player named in the group. The 24-year-old finally get his shot with England after an Achilles injury cost him a place in the provisional Euro 2020 squad. “We have liked him for a long time,” Southgate said. “He was very unfortunate just before the Euros. We were going to call him into a prep camp to have a look at him and he got a bad injury. “I remember talking to Roy Hodgson about him then and Roy telling me he’d picked up an injury in training that day. “I think he has finished the season really strongly, he can play in a couple of positions across that attacking line. “He’s a goal threat, he’s got nice ability and bursts of speed to go past people and to take people out of the game with dribbling skills. “We’re looking forward to seeing him a bit closer and everybody I speak to talks brilliantly about him as a person as well.” Dunk has played for England but the Brighton captain has not been selected since winning his first cap against the United States in November 2018. “Brighton’s football this year has been exceptional and Lewis Dunk and Levi Cowell have been a big part of that,” Southgate said. “He’s shown great composure with the ball, he’s asked to defend very often one against one situations and he thoroughly deserves his call.” The squad also includes Marcus Rashford, who missed March’s fixtures and last featured for England in a qualifier in the run to the last Euros. “He’s a super player who’s had a really good season, so he’s an important player for us,” Southgate told talkSPORT. “We’ve not been blessed with having him to be able to put in the team too often but we’re hoping that’s different. And we’re looking forward to seeing him again.” There is no place for Ben White, who has not featured for England since leaving Qatar after the World Cup group stage due to personal reasons. “I spoke with Ben before the camp in March,” Southgate added. “But at the moment, we’ve got (Kieran) Trippier and (Kyle) Walker in that area of the pitch. “He’s had a very good season, as have the whole Arsenal team, but he’s not ahead of those guys at the moment.” Read More Eberechi Eze and Callum Wilson called up as England name squad for Euro 2024 qualifiers Gareth Southgate critical of Ivan Toney ban: ‘We’ve got to look after people’ Gareth Southgate hopes racist abuse suffered by Vinicius Jr forces change Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live

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