Roy Keane has asked questions of Gareth Southgate's decision-making as England enter EURO 2024 as favourites to go all the way.
Gareth Southgate's side will be harbouring memories of their painful loss in the EURO 2020 final on home soil, with Italy winning out on a controversial night at Wembley.
As if any fans needed reminding, it has now been almost 60 years since England won their only ever senior men's international tournament at the 1966 World Cup.
Many believe that England are now ready to take the final step and end that decades-long wait, having come up short in World Cup semi-finals and quarter-finals either side of that EURO final defeat three years ago.
However, appearing on ITV ahead of tournament kick-off on Friday night, Irish legend Roy Keane expressed doubts about their ability to make crucial calls in the biggest moments.
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Roy Keane says England mentality must improve
Though Gareth Southgate has undoubtedly seen the most successful period of English football in the 21st century, there will be some who will feel that the team has underachieved if they do not finally get their hands on silverware this summer.
The past two tournaments have seen questions asked of Southgate's overly defensive approach, which could be attributed as a cause of their EURO 2020 final defeat to Italy.
His in-game management has also faced criticism in the past, with the 2022 World Cup quarter-final against France a prime example of his hesitancy to make crucial changes.
Ahead of the opening game on Friday night, Roy Keane spoke on ITV on England's chances of going all the way in Germany. He said that Southgate would need to "learn his lesson" from his past errors, which have arguably cost England a shot at greater success.
Courage comes from the players on the pitch - but it also comes from the manager and the staff.
In these tight games where...you know, going that last bit - maybe Gareth has learned his lesson. The guys mentioned there, [he's been at] eight tournaments, this could be his last one.
The bravery will come from the manager and staff making those brave decisions whether it be after an hour...don't be waiting and waiting.
It's hard to argue with Keane. Though Southgate has hinted that he will deploy a more attacking game plan at this EUROs, doubts persist about his ability to manage tense moments in tournament situations.
Despite his doubts about the England manager's ruthlessness, Keane did admit that the favourites are fair value for their price tag.
Nonetheless, the former Manchester United captain expressed doubts about the defensive options at Southgate's disposal.
Having built their EURO 2020 success around the outstanding defensive performances of Luke Shaw, Harry Maguire, and John Stones, Southgate may go into Sunday's opener against Serbia without any of that trio available due to injury. Keane said that their defensive limitations were another possible cause for doubt of England's chances.
When you look at the group of players they have now, the attacking players he's got in this group are as good as any team in the tournament.
The biggest worry for me looking at the squad is defensively. That is a big problem, I think they will have to score a lot of goals because they will be giving up goals.
But, certainly, he's got four or five world class players that would walk into other teams. That's the big plus, but there's always a worry about their defence.
England get their EURO 2024 campaign underway on Sunday night against Serbia, with kick-off at 8pm Irish time.
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