Cole Palmer sends message to Gareth Southgate after earning Roy Keane praise | Football

England finished top of Group C with five points but delivered another uninspiring performance in the goalless draw with Slovenia on Tuesday evening.

The result means Southgate’s side will now play one of the best third-placed teams in the last 16 this Sunday at 5pm, which could be any one of the Netherlands, Romania, Slovakia, Ukraine or Belgium.

Palmer was handed his first appearance in this summer’s tournament as he replaced Bukayo Saka in the 71st minute and Chelsea’s talisman quickly became England’s biggest attacking threat.

Speaking in the ITV studio after the game, Keane said Southgate would be under ‘huge pressure’ to start Palmer in England’s next game, and the 22-year-old admitted he would relish that opportunity.

‘It’s always nice to hear, especially from someone like Roy Keane who played internationally and at Manchester United,’ Palmer said of the Irishman’s comments. ‘It’s up to the manager now what he wants to do.

‘I’m full of belief. After the season I’ve had, I don’t see why I should be down. I’ll just try and take every chance and make an impact.’

On his cameo more generally, Palmer added: ‘It was exciting – I really enjoyed it. I just tried to play my game when I came on and I think I did that. I tried to create chances and be positive.’

However, the Three Lions manager gave little indication in his post-match press conference if either were likely to start on Sunday.

When asked about Palmer’s performance after England’s stalemate, Southgate said: ‘He showed what he’s been showing in training.

‘I think with him and Kobbie we had in our mind to get them into the game tonight, they offer something different.

‘We wanted to start with Conor [Gallagher], we felt it helped us to press better and we haven’t been winning the ball high enough up the pitch.

‘The part of his game we weren’t able to get were his forward runs that can exploit opposition defences, so he was ending up receiving a bit deeper.

‘Therefore it was logical to bring Kobbie into the game who has different attributes to be able to connect the game through midfield, so very pleased with that.

‘In the end, we almost had a goal where [Anthony] Gordon, Mainoo and Palmer connect and it was a super piece of play.

‘It’s so important that the players who come in realise they’re going to get opportunities if they keep training the way they’re training, they’re supporting the team brilliantly.

‘We know we have some good options to be able to change games which is crucial with the five substitutions especially.’

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