England head coach, Gareth Southgate has reacted to his side’s 1-0 defeat to Belgium in their final Group G game of the Russia 2018 FIFA World Cup played on Thursday night.
Southgate rested some key players which backfired as they lost to Adnan Januzaj’s stunning strike which saw England finish second in the Group.
Speaking in his post-match press conference, Southgate said, “I think it’s an even game. I thought they had better controlled possession than us at times.
“It was a good test for us. This was a game that we wanted to win, but the knockout game is the biggest game for a decade for us so we had to make sure our key players were preserved.”
He added, “The players who’ve played tonight have given absolutely everything and never stopped. Everyone has seen the level that we’ve been playing at and we’ve got to keep improving.”
Southgate’s men will face Colombia in the round of 16 on Tuesday.
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