Gareth Southgate admits England 'didn’t deserve' more dominant win against Malta in Euro 2024 qualifier

England manager Gareth Southgate admitted his team did not deserve much more than their lacklustre 2-0 win against Malta.

The Three Lions played their penultimate qualifying match for the 2024 European Championship at Wembley, having already booked a place at next year’s tournament in Germany.

Malta finished the first half with more shots than their opponents, despite being a goal down after Enrico Pepe deflected Phil Foden’s cross into the back of the net.

England failed to create many more chances, only truly threatening Malta’s goal in the last 30 minutes of the game.

Captain Harry Kane doubled his side’s lead in the 75th minute, before a brilliant individual effort from Declan Rice was ruled out for offside.

Southgate admitted his team were far from their best, claiming it may have been an act of "self-regulation" from his players.

"If you don’t start games well it’s very difficult to pick it up, and we didn’t," Southgate told BBC Radio 5 Live.

"We know the level we’ve got should be better, can be better. Those games that you know you can win at a canter, the number of games these players are playing, it’s almost a self-regulation.

"We didn’t hit the heights that we have done this calendar year. So not enough quality on the ball, and not enough chances created.

"But I have been a player and I know exactly how those games feel, and clearly it’s possible we could have had three or four with the decisions as well. But we didn’t create enough clear chances to deserve that anyway."

Kane, who said he was "surprised" a yellow card he received for diving in the first half was not overturned, agreed with Southgate's assessment.

"It was not our finest performance, let's say, but sometimes you play a team who have got more quality than people think," he said.

"At the start of the game, we missed the right tempo. We were sloppy and we couldn't quite build. In the second half we had more control and created chances. But overall, it's a 2-0 win."

Kane added: "I think we are playing a lot of games at the moment. We have some injuries as well and the players coming in have to perform.

"All the players today who started weren't at their usual standard but that's football. We maybe felt mental fatigue a little bit.

"We are top of the group and we have one game and hopefully, we finish it with a win."

England will conclude their Euro 2024 qualifying campaign against North Macedonia on Monday. Even a draw against their opponents would see the Three Lions seeded for next year's tournament.

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