On England vs Serbia
What did you think of England’s opening game at the championship? Do you think the best teams in the tournament would have been frightened by anything they saw in the performance?
I was a little bit disappointed with England’s performance against Serbia. To be honest, after last night, I didn’t think that England looked very strong. They looked like a more competitive team at the last European Championships in 2021; they had better players. England are missing something in defence. The defence at the last Euros was stronger than this one.
I have my doubts about the central defensive partnership of John Stones and Marc Guehi. I’m not sure if that is a partnership that will be strong enough to progress deep into the competition, and the back four doesn’t look like it will be strong enough to become European champions.
Left back is a problem. Luke Shaw is still injured, and we saw last night what happens when you play a right footed player at left back. It disrupts your balance on that side of the pitch. People say that he will be ready for the knock-out rounds, but it’s a big gamble to expect a player that has been injured to be ready to play at this level.
Against Serbia, England won, and they kept a clean sheet, but when you play against a stronger team, I think that the defence is going to be in trouble.
I definitely don't see this England team getting to the final, and that would mean that they have gone backwards since the last European Championships.
Did any England players catch your eye?
I think Declan Rice stood out against Serbia. Rice was probably England’s best player in terms of his all-round performance. That says it all about the performance, when you’re best player is a defensive midfielder against Serbia.
Foden, Saka and Kane were quiet. They weren’t good enough – they didn’t do enough. I know that some of England’s big players are coming into the tournament after a long season, and it can be difficult to make your mark in the opening game of a tournament.
The most important thing is to win the opening game, and sometimes players are scared to not lose the first game. That is what happened yesterday, and it contributed to England’s performance.
For England, the victory will build confidence and the second game will be better because of it. I think England were a bit scared (to lose) against Serbia. Now they have the three points on the board, I expect them to look much better against Denmark.
I’d love to hear your thoughts on Marc Guehi. that was probably the biggest game he’s ever played in – how did you think he did?
What he did, he did it well. He didn't take any risks – he had a very good first game, especially when you consider that this is the first time he’s played on a stage as big as this before.
When you’re a defender at a tournament, you just want to get the first game out of the way as quickly as possible and not make any mistakes. I thought Guehi was really strong in the physical duels. He didn't take any risks with the ball and kept things simple.
His partnership with John Stones is new. This is the first time they have played together on the big stage, and it takes time to build an understanding with your partner. It was an encouraging start to their partnership.
He’ll be used to playing against top strikers, different types of strikers, playing for Crystal Palace, but there are always surprises at international level. He will need to do his homework throughout the tournament because he will be coming up against strikers he’s never played before. That will be a new challenge for him, and he needs to be careful he doesn’t get caught out. At international tournaments, central defenders need to adapt to new challenges very quickly.
Cole Palmer – I know you like him a lot. Were you surprised he wasn’t seen against Serbia? Does he deserve a place in the England starting line-up after his exploits for Chelsea this season?
I don’t know if Palmer should be starting games for England, but he is a player that I hope Gareth Southgate uses at the tournament. He didn’t come on against Serbia, which will have been disappointing for him. I thought he should have come on in that game – he could have replaced Foden, who wasn’t at his best, or Saka, who looked a bit tired in the second half.
Palmer is the kind of player that you need in situations where you are under pressure. You can give him the ball in almost any scenario, and even though he is still young, he is a player that isn’t afraid to take responsibility.
I hope he is given the opportunity to show what he can do on this stage. This is a tournament where he can really show his quality if he is given the chance to do so. I don’t want to see Palmer coming on with a few minutes to go. If England give him the time his talents merits, then he will surprise a lot of people with his ability at this level.
Gareth Southgate. What’s his standing on the world football stage in your opinion, William? Do you think he scares the opposition?
Listen, what Gareth Southgate has done with England over the last few years deserves to be respected. He has done a good job. He took England to the final of the last European Championships, semi-final at a World Cup before that. OK, at the last World Cup, you reached the quarter-finals and were beaten by France, but that could have gone either way.
The question is, is he a winner? Can he win England a trophy. There are some doubts after what happened when you lost the final against Italy. I know what I’m talking about when we’re talking about losing a massive final. I lost the 2006 World Cup final with France – nobody ever remembers the losers! It’s a sad fact, but it’s true. When you finish second, nobody cares.
He has to prove that he can win. That is a big challenge for any manager, but maybe even bigger for the England manager because of the pressure that surrounds the job and the expectations of the team from the fans. Sadly, I don’t think he is going to do it. I don’t think the England squad is good enough to win the European Championships this year.
Outside of England, everyone respects him for what he has done with England, but I don’t think he’s the best manager that England could appoint. I think there are more talented managers out there who could have lifted trophies with this England team.
On Euro 2024
France are the second favourites to win the competition behind England, have the bookies got that wrong William?
Who is the favourite?
England, according to the bookies.
(Laughs) England are the favourites (laughs)! I think some people are having a joke! Come on. Do you seriously think England are going to win it?
We can be a bit optimistic with the national team. OK, in that case, can anyone stop France from winning it?
You will be surprised to hear that I actually don’t think France are going to win the tournament. When I look at the French squad, I have the same concerns as I do when I look at England. If you compare this France team with the one from a few years ago, I don’t think we’re as strong.
Of course, I’ll be supporting France. I want France to do well, but I don’t think we will win the competition. When I look at the defensive line, even though we have really good individual defenders, I think we have a little problem. I think we have little problems all over the squad to be honest. We are not as strong as we have been at previous tournaments.
N’Golo Kante is back in the squad. It’s nice to see him back, but I don’t know if the players around him are as good as the ones that won the World Cup in 2018.
In that case, is there a team that you really like the look of? Who would you tip to win the competition?
For me, when I look at all the teams, the team that looks really strong is Portugal.
Portugal have a brilliant squad of players. When you look at the players, even the guys that are going to be on the bench, most of them play for the biggest clubs in Europe. They all have experience of playing in the biggest matches. Portugal have a great mix of players, and even the younger ones are experienced when it comes to playing in pressure games.
Cristiano is still there. He still wants to win one more big competition before he's going to retire. He still wants to show the world that he can compete on the biggest stages with the best players. He has a manager in Roberto Martinez that is on his side and seems to be able to bring the best out of him. I think Portugal will go very, very far in the competition. I think they can win it.
Do you believe that the 39-year-old can conjure up one last dance on the biggest possible stage?
I have one question. Do you think he's going to play at the next World Cup? I think he will. He will be 41 when the next World Cup comes around, but, if you look at the shape that he’s in and the goals that he’s scoring, then I don’t see why he won’t be targeting that as well.
Look at Pepe. He’s 41 and playing at this tournament – he will be the oldest ever player to appear at a European Championships. Ronaldo will be looking at his inclusion and will think that he can do exactly the same thing. This tournament won’t be a last dance for Ronaldo – his last dance will be at the World Cup in two year’s time.
OK, you could say that this is probably his last European Championship. He’s got a manager that is completely behind him. Everyone knows that, physically, he’s not the same player that he was when he was younger, but that won’t matter. I think the team will be set-up to offset that. All of the players will be covering his ground because they love him in that squad. I expect his style to be similar to what we saw of Messi at the last World Cup in Qatar. All his teammates were running for him, and I think it will be the same story with Portugal here, with Ronaldo lifting the trophy in Berlin.
This Portugal team is really scary and my tip as the team to beat if you want to win EURO 2024.
Do you think that is the secret to a successful Portugal, Roberto Martinez’ man management of Ronaldo?
Roberto Martinez will handle Cristiano Ronaldo really well. He knows what happened at the last World Cup with the former manager; that won’t happen here. You can see that the relationship is different. He has created a system that allows Ronaldo to do what he does best while removing his defensive duties. Martinez is totally behind Ronaldo. He knows that when you have a player as talented as Ronaldo, regardless of how old he is, he has to play. You must keep Ronaldo on the pitch if Portugal need a goal, because if you give him that one opportunity, he will take it. I think the other Portuguese players accept that as well.
Moving back on to France, can we have some of your defenders please (laughs)?
(Laughs) Which one do you want to take?
We’ll take any of them, please William.
You know, I really do worry about the defenders in the England team, especially at centre back. I don’t think they stack up against the best teams. You don’t have much experience there apart from John Stones. Even though it would be nice to do England a favour, to be honest, I prefer to keep all my defenders in the French team (laughs).
There’s one player we always talk about. What is going to happen with William Saliba?
Saliba is going to play. He’s going to be the first choice next to Ibrahima Konate.
Has Deschamps suddenly seen what everyone that watches the Premier League has seen because it's taken a while for him to earn his trust hasn’t it?
Deschamps has been very clever with his management of William Saliba. He resisted the urge to put him into the team straight away and has eased him into the team. When he has played in friendly games over the last year or two, he has made mistakes.
I think it’s excellent management of the player. He’s taken his time, given him some tough love, and now he is ready to start for France. He has been performing very well for Arsenal for the last two seasons – he didn’t miss a game last season – but I also think that Deschamps wanted Saliba to understand there is a difference between playing well for your club and playing well for your country. At Arsenal, he doesn’t have the same competition as he does with the national team, he has had to earn Deschamps trust gradually.
Deschamps has been thinking about his central defensive partnership. I think he always knew that Saliba was going to be his main man at this tournament, and it was more a case of waiting to see which player he would pick to play alongside him, which defender would complement him. It looks like that player will be Konate and it will be a good partnership.
This tournament is William Saliba’s first major international tournament as a starting player. It is a massive test and a massive opportunity for him. Everything is in his hands. He needs to perform like he has done for Arsenal all season to keep his place in the starting eleven.
When you’re given the opportunity to start for a nation like France, where you could cement your place in the team for the next ten years if you play at your level, you have to take it. This is a different type of pressure for him to deal with. He has to be ready for it. I hope he rises to the challenge and takes the opportunity that is in front of him.
There have been suggestions that the France captain Kylian Mbappe is coming into this tournament not at his best.
I think the concerns about Mbappe’s form are normal, especially after what happened with him this season with PSG. When he revealed that he was leaving the club during the season, they dropped him. I actually think that was the wrong thing to do, because he played in the Champions League, and he wasn’t going into those games in any kind of from. He wasn’t sharp because he wasn’t playing, and we didn’t see the best version of Kylian Mbappe in the Champions League knock-out games.
Kylian was upset with what happened at PSG this season. He didn’t like sitting on the bench. It has been a frustrating year for him in many ways, and he’ll be looking to set the record straight on this stage for France. I hope he’s going to perform. He will know that if he wants to win the Balon d’Or this year, then he needs to captain France to victory at this tournament.
Do you think Mabppe is going to take out some of that PSG frustration on this tournament?
Oh yeah, definitely. Mbappe wants to show that he is the best player in the world. I think he can finish the tournament as the top goal scorer. Mbappe with something to prove is a pretty frightening prospect.
It would be fair to say that Chelsea fans haven’t seen the best of Mykhailo Mudryk. Do you think he is ready to answer a lot of his critics with some excellent performances at the tournament? Is he a player that you would tip to shine?
I hope that Mudryk can have a good tournament. Everybody was a little bit disappointed about his performance with Chelsea this season, including me. I had a lot of high hopes for Mudryk last season because sometimes it can take a player a little bit of time to settle into the Premier League, and for the Ukrainian guys, it must be even more difficult.
I played with him at the beginning of the season and saw what he was like up close. It was charity game for Ukraine at Stamford Bridge, and I was really impressed with his pace – there is no doubt that Mudryk has the raw ingredients to be an exceptional football player. I was really pleasantly surprised by his ability after sharing a pitch with him.
I hope he can have a good tournament and make an impact for his country. If he can, then hopefully he can carry that form into the next season with Chelsea, because if he doesn’t deliver next season, in what will be his third season, I think that tells you that he isn’t capable of adapting to the demands of the Premier League. It’s that simple.
On The Premier League
Give me your thoughts on Chelsea’s decision to appoint Enzo Maresca as manager?
In the past, I’ve been critical of the decisions that the Chelsea owners have made for the club, but I actually think that the decision to appoint Enzo Maresca is actually very clever.
Chelsea would have been impressed with what he did at Leicester last season. That was a very positive season for them and also a very positive introduction to Maresca’s managerial career in England.
Maresca is a disciple of Pep Guardiola. He is another coach that has worked under Guariola and shares similar principles. I think the owners of Chelsea have looked at the success that Arsenal have had since they appointed Mikel Arteta and are trying to replicate that at the club. They will be hoping that Maresca can have the same impact as he did, so that’s why it’s an interesting move. Time will tell if this is one of the better decisions that the owners have made at the club, but I think the signs are promising. He’s been given a long-term contract, which shows that this is an appointment they hope to build around.
From a Chelsea standpoint, they will be looking at a top five finish next season. They need to improve on what they did last season, so fifth should be the bare minimum in terms of seasonal objectives.
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