Alongside Bellingham & Kane: 55-cap star revived England's Euros hopes (2024)

At half-time in England's drab 0-0 draw with Slovenia during their final match of the group stage, Gareth Southgate was bold, making a substitution at the break.

So, with the Three Lions behind and Southgate's legacy as manager on the line against Slovakia, he made no changes at the interval, despite being a goal down.

In fact, the former defender did very little to change the tide until Cole Palmer came on for Kieran Trippier.

It had been spoken of in the build-up, but Bukayo Saka moved to left-back, a position he no doubt thought he'd left behind. Alas, his positional versatility ultimately helped the game swing.

Though, it didn't swing until a minute before the end. England looked down and out. This was Iceland all over again. Like Italy on Saturday, they were heading for the departure lounge with a whimper after a dire Euro 2024 campaign.

But, step forward Jude Bellingham. "Who else" he bellowed after scoring a remarkable overhead kick five minutes into stoppage time. This was what football is all about.

The Real Madrid star has been touted to win the Ballon d'Or but has flattered to deceive this summer until that very moment. It was certainly a strike worthy of being scored by the world's best.

That goal gave England the momentum. A minute into extra-time, substitute Ivan Toney headed the ball back across goal from Palmer's free-kick and Harry Kane could not miss. He did not miss, firing home to win the game.

So, a sigh of relief, but the Three Lions are finally up and running at this tournament.

Kane and Bellingham both delivered big moments but another of the nation's major players finally came alive too.

Declan Rice's performance in numbers

There has been great criticism towards Arsenal midfielder Declan Rice this summer. Perhaps understandably so.

The mega £105m man was nothing short of a revelation in red and white last term, notably registering a career-best seasonal haul of seven goals and ten assists.

See Also

Arsenal Transfer News LIVE: David PURSUIT, Gunners turn DOWN Sancho, Saliba EXIT?Declan Rice's comments about James McClean speak volumes about England aceDeclan Rice's perfect response after James McClean calls him 'overrated' and 'not world class'

Initially signed to play as a defensive midfielder, Mikel Arteta swiftly moved him into the number 8 role, giving Rice the freedom to move around and get forward more.

For England, however, he's been tasked with playing as the deepest midfielder again. Truth be told, he has struggled. Then again, who hasn't?

One of the reasons has been down to a lack of a consistent partner. For the first one-and-a-half games, it was Trent Alexander-Arnold alongside him. For the first half of the Slovenia game, it was Conor Gallagher and since then it has been Kobbie Mainoo. Next to the Manchester United teen, it has looked more balanced.

So, it wasn't a surprise when Mainoo played the full game to see Rice have his best outing of the tournament.

It wasn't his swashbuckling best and at times, his passing was quite negative but he grew into the clash and ended up being vital to the 2-1 win.

Only two players - John Stones and Marc Guehi - had more than Rice's 110 touches and 80 passes during the 120 minutes of action.

Meanwhile, only Saka and Bellingham won more than the Arsenal midfielder's seven ground duels.

Also succeeding with 100% of his dribbles and 100% of his long balls, this was a much-improved performance from the former West Ham man, one that provides fans with hope that he is now growing into the tournament at just the right time.

To silence his critics, no player in the game made more progressive passes than Rice's 12. To say he's always negative would be wrong.

But, for those who watch Arsenal regularly, that stat will come as no surprise. Over the last year, he ranks inside the top 10% of midfielders in Europe for progressive passes, making 7.69 per 90 minutes.

So, Rice is back in form and England are in the quarter-finals. Here's hoping for a bit more pizazz from this side against Switzerland on Saturday.