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Kieran Trippier insists England cannot use tiredness as an excuse for losing the Euro 2024 final to Spain.
Gareth Southgate’s side were beaten 2-1 in Berlin on Sunday night, suffering back-to-back defeats in European Championship finals as the 58-year wait for a major men’s trophy goes on.
After the loss, Southgate said he had a “few (players) that were a little bit short of their physical peak” and had been “battling” with that issue throughout the tournament.
Despite reaching the final, England’s performances in Germany were widely criticised as they required moments of magic to rescue all of their knockout ties before ultimately coming up short against Spain.
Those ragged displays certainly were not caused by a lack of effort, with England boasting the seven top players to cover the most ground across the competition.
“Football is all about fine margins. It’s one of those where the lads gave everything,” Trippier, who started every game until losing his place to fit-again Luke Shaw for the final, said.
“The team that we’ve got is fit. If you see the running stats, I think we’re probably the highest in the whole tournament. So that’s not at excuse.
“They get the second goal and it’s always difficult when you’re chasing the game against a team like Spain.”
Trippier would not be drawn into the debate over Southgate’s future as it remains to be seen if the 53-year-old will stay on following another heartbreaking final defeat.
But the Newcastle full-back does feel the future is bright for the England side.
“They will have learned a great deal from his tournament,” he said of the inexperienced players in Southgate’s ranks.
“The young players stepped up in big moments for us, Cole (Palmer) came on and scored, assisted Ollie (Watkins) in the last game.
“Everyone has to be ready. I’ve been through this situation before. The young players can learn a lot from this. It will make them grow. But we’re disappointed that we didn’t win.
“Spain are a top side with top quality players. Every single player gave absolutely everything, even the players need a mention that didn’t get a second on the pitch for what they brought to the team for the whole six, seven weeks that we were away. Everyone deserves huge credit.
“All we can do now is see our families. It’s been a tough season for all the players, a long season. Now the most important thing is to spend time with the families, reflect and go again.
“You’ve seen throughout the tournament how together the group was. But there’s no guarantees in football.”
