Gareth Southgate’s selection dilemmas ahead of England’s clash with Slovakia

Gareth Southgate has been heavily criticised throughout England’s Euro 2024 group games.

Despite topping Group C and setting up a last-16 clash with Slovakia in Gelsenkirchen on Sunday, fans, pundits and former players have questioned Southgate’s tactics and starting line-ups.

Here, the PA news agency looks at the selection dilemmas the England manager faces heading into the knockout stage in Germany.

Southgate opted to select Luke Shaw as the only natural left-back in his 26-man squad, despite the fact the Manchester United defender has not played since a hamstring injury in February.

Shaw is now back training with the rest of his team-mates and his return could be timely, especially with fitness concerns over Kieran Trippier, who has been filling in on the left side of defence despite being right-footed.

If neither can face Slovakia, Southgate will have to choose between Joe Gomez and Ezri Konsa to fill the gap or move Kyle Walker across from right-back. He could even take the radical step of dropping Bukayo Saka out of his attack and into a position he has not operated in for years.

Following the 1-1 draw with Denmark in Frankfurt, Southgate bemoaned the fact he had been unable to find a replacement for Kalvin Phillips, who played so well alongside Declan Rice in recent years.

Rice remains a mainstay of the England midfield but selecting the right partner for Arsenal’s £105million (€124 million) club-record signing has seen Southgate trial a number of options across the group stage.

Liverpool right-back Trent Alexander-Arnold was the first to be given a go, only to be substituted off in the first two games as Southgate admitted the “experiment” may not have worked out.

Conor Gallagher, who replaced Alexander-Arnold in