England finally know who they will face in the last-16.
England’s opponents in the round-of-16 at Euro 2024 have been confirmed, as has the Three Lions’ potential route to the final.
On Wednesday the group stage of Euro 2024 drew to a close with the final fixtures in Groups E and F, with England fans and players watching keenly to find out who will play them in the last-16.
Gareth Southgate’s side secured top spot in Group C on Tuesday with a dull goalless draw against Slovenia.
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It was another underwhelming performance from England, who struggled to break down a side ranked 57th in the world despite fielding some of the most exciting talents on the planet.
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Finishing top of Group C ensured a round-of-16 meeting with the third place team from either Group D, E or F.
UEFA’s formula for pairing up group winners with third-place teams in the round-of-16 depends on which groups have a third place team qualify for the knockout rounds.
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Following Wednesday’s matches, England now know that they will take on Slovakia at 5pm BST on Sunday in Gelsenkirchen.
That’s because on Wednesday Slovakia drew 1-1 with Romania and Ukraine drew 0-0 with Belgium in Group E. Slovakia finished third in that group.
Meanwhile, in Group F, Turkiye beat Czechia 2-1 while Georgia pulled off a shock 2-0 defeat of Portugal.
Those results confirmed Georgia, the Netherlands, Slovakia and Slovenia as the four best third place teams, meaning they qualify for the last-16.
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Because the four best third place finishers came from groups C, D, E and F, UEFA’s formula dictates that England play the team that finished third in Group E, which is Slovakia.
Should England beat Slovakia on Sunday, then Southgate’s side will face either Switzerland or Italy in the quarter-finals on Saturday, July 6.
A win in that last-eight would set up a semi-final showdown against one of Austria, Turkiye, Romania or Netherlands.
Traditional heavyweights Germany, Spain, France and Portugal are all in the other side of the knockout tree, so England wouldn’t be able to face any of them until the final.
