England’s forward Jude Bellingham said that the team was motivated by the pressure from fans and critics after their come-from-behind 2-1 win against Slovakia in the round of 16 at Gelsenkirchen on Sunday.
England came up with a timid performance in 94 minutes of play as they failed to even find a shot on target. The Three Lions were slow in moving the ball and failed to trouble Slovakia’s goalkeeper Martin Dúbravka. Furthermore, the frustration was palpable within the group as there were many gestures, which came out on the pitch.
But when England found themselves on the verge of elimination, Jude Bellingham produced a bicycle kick for the ages to keep his team alive in the Euro. Bellingham, who wasn’t at his best throughout the game, found a new leash of life for his team to take them into extra time.
In the opening minute of the extra minute, England captain Harry Kane was able to put his team with an easy header into the goal. England was able to hold on to their lead and qualified for the quarterfinal.
“The adrenaline gets you,” Bellingham said after the game.
“It’s a combination of a lot of things. Playing for England is an enjoyable feeling but it’s also a lot of pressure. You hear people talk a lot of rubbish. It’s nice when you can deliver and give them a little bit back.
“It’s very difficult when you talk in press conferences and interviews to talk as openly as footballers want to because they’re always judged. For me, football, being on the pitch, scoring goals and celebrating is my release.
“Maybe it was a message to a few people. I was very happy at the end, lots of adrenaline.
“You know what I mean by the rubbish. Playing for England should be the most proud moment of your career but often it’s quite difficult. There’s a really high intense pressure. The fans expect a lot from us regardless of what happened in recent tournaments years and years ago.
“People talk a lot. You do have to take it personally a little bit. We work so hard at this game. We come in every day, we work hard to put on a performance for the fans, sometimes it doesn’t go well and sometimes it feels like there’s a a bit of a pile on, it’s not nice to hear. But you can always use it and for moments like that, it’s nice to throw it back to some people.”
England will face Switzerland in the quarterfinal of the competition next Saturday.
