‘We’ve nothing to lose enjoying England – they’re drained and beneath nice stress’
Slovenia have nothing to lose and everything to gain against England.
Which potentially spells more agony for Gareth Southgate’s troubled, out-of-sorts troops at these European Championships. That is the message from former-Slovenia international Ermin Siljak ahead of Tuesday’s crunch clash between the stumbling Group C favourites and increasingly-upbeat underdogs.
Yes, England have individual quality far exceeding anything within Slovenia’s ranks. Yes, Harry Kane and co have an abundance of experience at major finals – unlike their opponents.
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However, as long as Matjaz Kekmen’s side can shake off the devastating blow of conceding a last-gasp equaliser to Serbia in Thursday, they will pose a serious obstacle in Cologne. Ex-Panionios striker Siljak, with 14 goals in 48 Slovakia appearances from 1994-2004, declared: “We’re still recovering from that last second against Serbia. I was working on the game for TV and we were in shock.
“Somehow, we must recover from that psychological blow. It will take the manager and the captain to talk to the players and to lift them mentally. But we have nothing to lose playing England – and everything to win. That’s huge motivation. We’ll be 100%, for sure.
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“Against Denmark, we suffered in the first-half but were much better in the second. Against Serbia, the first-half was without mistakes. We could have scored two or three.
“Except for that error defending the corner at the very end, we’d have made history by reaching the second round. But we still can and the real positive is this was the best performance we’ve seen from this generation.”
Siljak’s optimism surrounds coach Kek devising a system for the team rather than individual. Everybody knows their job, operating as a close-knit unit. Ingredients sorely obviously missing during England’s disappointing opening two games.
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Siljak reckons fatigue allied to immense expectatione is behind the Three Lions’ worrying dip – and genuinely senses Slovenia, who have lost five of six outings against England, can create a massive upset.
The former-Apostolos Terzis boss, 51, added: “It’s true England are tired. They’ve had a long season with the best clubs in the world. And they are under great pressure.
“This is probably Southgate’s last chance to win a big tournament – and Kane’s too. And this our chance to make a surprise.
“In our team, all the players know their role. We are organised and disciplined because we follow the coach’s orders.”
