Sir Geoff Hurst, the hero of the 1966 FIFA World Cup final, has claimed England have the “best” bunch of young players in the world, spearheaded by Real Madrid superstar Jude Bellingham. He also lauded Gareth Southgate for his leadership, saying the Three Lions have the quality to come out on top in Germany this year.
Sir Geoff Hurst Says England Can Win EURO 2024
Hurst, who scored a sensational hat-trick as England beat West Germany 4-2 in the 1966 FIFA World Cup final, cut an optimistic figure in a recent interview with The Sun. He said Southgate had done an excellent job as England manager and his youth-fueled team had every right to dream of a successful campaign.
The English hero said:
“Our chances of winning the European Championship this summer are very good. The leadership under Gareth has been really terrific and to have reached the semi-finals of the World Cup and the final of the Euros is good going.
“Look at what he’s done and how he works. There’s been a gigantic step forward, so we’ve got a great chance. Some of the foreign managers haven’t done very well and some of our performances in tournaments have been shocking. But it will not be a shock to me if we win this summer. I say that because I think we’ve got THE best bunch of young players, although it will be hard.”
England have Bellingham, Declan Rice, Bukayo Saka, Phil Foden, Conor Gallagher, Kobbie Mainoo, Cole Palmer, Jarrod Bowen, and Anthony Gordon at their disposal. As Hurst has noted, no international team can boast of such a star-studded lineup of young players.
Sir Geoff Hurst In Awe Of ‘Unbelievable’ Jude Bellingham
Real Madrid midfielder Bellingham has emerged as one of the most consistent performers of the 2023-24 season, and like most of the world, Hurst is also in awe of him.
Discussing Bellingham’s exploits, he added:
“Jude Bellingham is an unbelievable talent – what he’s done with his career so far is incredible. He’s gone to Real Madrid and it seems he can’t stop scoring. That shows what a fantastic player he is.
“But Jude is also one of a great bunch of young players, which is magnificent. He’s still only 20 which is astonishing and he is brilliant. cannot speak highly enough about him. But he’s just one of a good number of young England players who will only get better, so we have a very good chance.”
The ex-Borussia Dortmund man has played 31 matches for Real Madrid this season, scoring 20 times and providing nine assists. In England’s colors, Bellingham has played 27 times, scoring twice.
Bellingham and Co. will begin their EURO 2024 journey with a clash with Serbia on June 16. They will then face Denmark and Slovenia on June 20 and June 25, respectively.
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