Slovakia coach sends 'unbeatable' England warning before Euro 2024 showdown

Slovakia's coach, Francesco Calzona, believes that England will become "unbeatable" once they hit their stride at Euro 2024 .

Calzona has cautioned his team not to buy into the narrative that Gareth Southgate's squad is past its prime as they gear up for a last-16 showdown at the AufSchalke Arena. The 55-year-old Italian, who took over as coach two years ago after serving as an assistant manager in Italy, estimates that the Three Lions' market value is ten times greater than that of his own team.

Calzona stated: "Once England produce a great performance as a team at this tournament they will become unbeatable. They have a top-quality squad, the best squad of these Euros. They have physicality, technique and creativity. They were even able to leave quality players at home because they have so much to pick from.

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"We need to exploit any weak points they have, but we must always be cautious because this is a team that can punish you at every moment. If we talk about the quality of the two squads it is clear that we are inferior.

" They are worth 1.5billion euros. We are worth about £150million euros. So we are 10-times less than them. I'm fortunate because I have a very focused team who want to play offensive football but be defensively sound.

"I trust my players because they have given me a lot of satisfaction in the way they have played and behaved. I trust them 100 percent that they will play a great match."

Peter Pekarik, the 37-year-old Hertha Berlin defender, is set to earn his 130th cap. This could potentially be his last game for his country if they lose.

Pekarik is the only remaining player from Slovakia's team that secured a place in the last 16 of Euro 2016 with a goalless draw against England. He stated: "England are very strong in attack and defence. They have world-class players from top teams.

"Most of them play in the Premier League which is for me the best league in the world. When you play against opponents like this you need everyone of us to have a perfect day and to play over the limits of our abilities.

"We have watched videos of England and we could see their quality is immense. We don't pay attention to any criticism they are getting from the media and fans because before the tournament I said England were one of the top favourites to win it. The mistakes we made in the previous games cannot be repeated because England will punish us."