Can England Go And Beat Germany In The European Championship Round Of 16 Tie?
(COMBO) This combination of pictures created on June 27, 2021, shows England's coach Gareth ... [+] Southgate in London on June 22, 2021; Germany's coach Joachim Loew in Munich on June 15, 2021. - England will face Germany in their UEFA EURO 2020 round of 16 football match at Wembley Stadium in London on June 29, 2021. (Photos by Laurence Griffiths and FRANCK FIFE / POOL / AFP) (Photo by LAURENCE GRIFFITHS,FRANCK FIFE/POOL/AFP via Getty Images) POOL/AFP via Getty Images  After topping Group D with seven points against Croatia, Czech Republic and Scotland, England will match up against old enemies Germany in the Round of 16 come Tuesday afternoon. Gareth Southgate have his team playing with a rigidness and defensive security that perhaps England fans are not used to. One of the few nations who have not yet conceded a goal, the Three Lions have shown their assuredness in defence, especially against Croatia and Czech Republic. England have not had it easy in front of goal, however, with some poor decision making in the final third. Southgates players have not looked completely fluid when transitioning from defence into attack, even if results are going their way. Fans of England will be happy overall. It might have landed them a difficult Round of 16 tie against Germany, a team they have notoriously struggled against in major tournaments, but should they come through this, the road to the final looks attainable. Germany's forward Kai Havertz (L) celebrates scoring his team's first goal with his teammates during ... [+] the UEFA EURO 2020 Group F football match between Germany and Hungary at the Allianz Arena in Munich on June 23, 2021. (Photo by KAI PFAFFENBACH / POOL / AFP) (Photo by KAI PFAFFENBACH/POOL/AFP via Getty Images) POOL/AFP via Getty Images  Germany, under Joachim Lw, have looked hit-and-miss in their opening three games. While placed in a hugely difficult group alongside Portugal, France, and Hungary, Die Mannschaft picked their moments to show their quality. Against Portugal, their best performance in the tournament, Germany showed their quality throughout with everything clicking into place when using their 3-back formation in defence. The wing backs of Joshua Kimmich and Robin Gosens certainly look dangerous, which England need to be especially wary of when heading into this crunch match. It is thought that Southgate will switch to a 3-back formation to match that of Germanys and attempt to halt the attack of Lws team. Aside from Harry Maguire returning into the defence of England, one of the most important cogs of Southgates team is an all-firing Harry Kane. It is fair to say that the Tottenham talisman has been underwhelming in the opening three games, which looks like it could be down to an ankle injury he has been harnessing. With such a testing domestic campaign for their club sides, it is no wonder that more and more players are suffering from niggles and injuries with the stress that is inflicted on their bodies. And so, England fans will be hoping that Kane feels fit in his body to make an impact in this Round of 16 match, especially after telling worldwide media that he is ready to peak in the knockout rounds. LONDON, ENGLAND - JUNE 28: In this handout picture provided by UEFA, Harry Kane of England speaks to ... [+] the media during the England Press Conference ahead of the UEFA Euro 2020 Round of 16 match between England and Germany at the London Marriott Maida Vale on June 28, 2021 in London, England. (Photo by UEFA/UEFA via Getty Images) UEFA via Getty Images  Southgate is likely to take a more cautious approach to the game, just as he did in their opening group fixture against Croatia, but one in which he hopes will blossom as time goes on and the Germans overcommit numbers to their attack. The Three Lions have superb options from the bench to make an impact in the dying embers of the match, especially in Jadon Sancho, who of course knows the type of opposition he will be facing from his time at Borussia Dortmund, and Marcus Rashford, who has shown his dazzling speed in behind defences. Both teams will have seen the results from their side of the draw, with Netherlands surprisingly losing to Czech Republic, which enables either Germany or England to take advantage and potentially go all the way. Time will tell whether Southgate can lead England to glory, but they must show, at the very least, a good account of themselves tomorrow against an inconsistent German side.