Bellingham Says England Camp Had Off-Pitch Issues at Euro 2024 Despite Reaching Final

Jude Bellingham said England’s camp at Euro 2024 had issues off the pitch that prevented the group from connecting as well as it could have. The midfielder spoke from inside England’s current camp in the United States. Bellingham told the Lion’s Den that the team was viewed as one of two or three favorites yet did not play well.

“When it came to the tournament, we were seen as one of two or three teams that could win it. We weren’t playing well, which doesn’t help, so even when we were winning, we didn’t get the feeling that we were as happy as we should be,” he said. England reached the final of Euro 2024 in Germany and lost to Spain.

The team advanced past Slovakia in the last 16 after Bellingham scored a last-minute overhead kick that forced extra time, beat Switzerland on penalties in the quarter-finals, and defeated the Netherlands with a last-minute goal in the semi-finals. Bellingham said the Slovakia goal still makes him uncomfortable because of the situation it came from.

“I still remember how I was feeling at the time.

It always makes me feel a bit uncomfortable because it was such a bad situation,” he said. Thomas Tuchel is the current England manager and has spoken of creating a “brotherhood” in the squad as he prepares for the 2026 World Cup. Bellingham said that sense of connection was missing two years ago.

England’s World Cup opener is against Croatia on Wednesday. Tuchel has placed Bellingham and Morgan Rogers in competition for the No 10 position. The two players grew up in the same area in the West Midlands and played junior football together.

Bellingham advanced his case for the starting role with a display in England’s final warm-up match, a win over Costa Rica on Wednesday. He said there are no problems between him and Rogers. “He is a top guy, he can get along with anyone, can have conversations with anyone,” Bellingham said.