Gareth Southgate has some big decisions to make for the last-16 tie; here is who our writers in Germany would select

After three sluggish group-stage performances, England urgently need to find their groove against Slovakia in Gelsenkirchen. Should Gareth Southgate reshuffle his attack, and is it time to risk Luke Shaw at left-back? Our writers pick their starting XIs below …

I would persist with Jude Bellingham in the No 10 role, which flies in the face of his performances against Denmark and Slovenia. But I just feel that as the team look/ pray for a click, Bellingham has the potential to drive it. After all of the criticism, he will be fiercely motivated; the key will be for him to master his emotions. Phil Foden has had quite the week off the field; far from ideal in terms of his preparations. He can affect the game off the bench. Kobbie Mainoo provides security on the ball, the ability to get the team up the pitch and it is time for Anthony Gordon on the left – for his threat in behind and for balance because Trippier will not overlap from left-back. Everybody is waiting for Luke Shaw but it would be too risky to start him after so long out and also because there are hopefully more games to come. Cole Palmer’s X-factor on the right stands to make a difference. David Hytner

Is anyone’s record worse than England’s? Can any team better Germany’s habit of success? We look at the numbers

The last European Championship that did not feature penalty shootout heartbreak/ecstasy was 1988, which had eight teams and only three knockout games. So it’s almost certain that at least one country will exit Euro 2024 on pens in the coming weeks. But of the sides in the last 16, which have the most reason for fear – or confidence – based on their past shootout record? And is there really a nation with a worse record than England? Answer: yes. Sort of.

Winger is strong believer in mental preparation and will not let bike accident affect him if picked against Slovakia

There is, frankly, only one place to start with Anthony Gordon and it is not only because he is handed a pair of stabilisers as a present when he walks in to address the media – a reference to his much talked-about and laughed-about bike crash on Wednesday during England’s recovery day.

It is hard to ignore the cuts and grazes, especially the deep red one in the middle of his chin. There are some on the Newcastle winger’s nose and arms, while they are also all over his hands. When somebody goes to shake with him, he pulls away defensively, which does not suggest he is battle-ready for Sunday’s last-16 tie against Slovakia. It turns out to be wrong. He says he is completely fine. So what happened?

After a fine debut season with Chelsea the winger is unfazed by his late miss on his tournament debut against Slovenia

By the time our 20 minutes with Cole Palmer are up, the England winger has managed to rave about Riyad Mahrez’s first touch, reveal that Austria have been one of his favourite teams at Euro 2024, claim Londoners are way moodier than northerners, talk about getting on for 20 minutes against Slovenia, praise Mauricio Pochettino’s time at Chelsea, elaborate on his relationship with Enzo Maresca and, most importantly of all, correct erroneous reports that he has an obsession with baked beans.

The answers are short, sweet and often pretty illuminating. Palmer does not skip a beat before revealing that his first position was left-back. It was a throwaway comment, but he suddenly looks horrified. He glances at the press officer sitting to his left and wonders if he has put his foot in it. Is Gareth Southgate about to stumble upon the answer to England’s problem position? “I am talking under-10s!” Palmer says. “Under-10s! I have never played left-back since. I was tiny and I just got put left-back. When I was 12 I moved further and further up.”

Francesco Calzona’s close-knit team have built a formidable rhythm with input from their former star Marek Hamsik

While England scramble around for cohesion, their next opponents have established a throbbing rhythm. Milan Skriniar prepared to offer his perspective on Sunday’s meeting but had to wait while the Slovakia kitman, Marek Kosan, took the floor. The camp had made a deal: if they progressed from the group stage he would have to publicly demonstrate his beatboxing skills. Kosan had no hiding place so played the captain in, accepting both enthusiastic applause and the unexpected consequences of success.

Slovakia hope a similarly pulsating display will break new ground on Sunday. They have never reached a quarter-final but feel rested and well prepared in historic Mainz, away from the crowds but only half an hour from the Frankfurt stadium where two of their previous games took place. The Gutenberg press and gegenpress were both born here: the latter comes to mind when Slovakia arrive to train at Bruchwegstadion, the atmospheric old ground where Jürgen Klopp made his name at Mainz.

Everyone is annoyed after three games of football. No one is having a good time. And it is objectively hilarious

When was the moment you thought it was going to be one of those England games? 13min 29sec for me, Clive. John Stones overhits a relatively straightforward crossfield pass to Kieran Trippier. The makeshift left‑back (he’s right-footed in case you hadn’t been made aware) performs the classic “right idea” applause over his head as the ball sails out for a throw-in to Slovenia.

Thirteen and a half minutes is a little impatient. But this quickly became one of those games where you start wondering if you floss enough, or if your pension is invested ethically. This was 13 and a half minutes on top of the 90 against Denmark and at least 45 against Serbia. Game after game of footballing atrophy. Elite players degenerating in front of your eyes.

Public servant who spearheaded the regeneration of post-industrial Manchester as the city council’s chief executive

In the staid world of local government, where town halls were traditionally seen by ministers as supplicants of Whitehall, Sir Howard Bernstein stood out as a rare public servant determined to break the mould of civic passivity.

As chief executive of Manchester city council for 19 years, Bernstein, who has died aged 71 after a short illness, was instrumental in transforming his native city from what he once called the doldrums of the post-industrial 1980s into Britain’s second biggest commercial and business centre, pulling in billions of pounds in investment.

• Foden back training after returning home for child’s birth
• Gallagher set to drop out for last-16 tie against Slovakia

Gareth Southgate is giving strong consideration to sticking with his first-choice attack after Phil Foden returned to training on Friday and took part in England’s preparations for their last-16 tie against Slovakia.

Southgate, who has come under heavy criticism for his tactics at Euro 2024, is not expected to do anything drastic against Slovakia on Sunday and is veering towards making only one change, with ­Kobbie Mainoo set to replace Conor ­Gallagher in midfield.

Lacklustre Euro 2024 performances may prompt faddish quick fixes but the real key to success may lie in replacing fear with the fun players felt as 10-year-olds

Sporting success isn’t down to pickle juice, according to a leading sports psychologist. The secret isn’t to be found in the inflatable unicorns England’s players famously mounted to recuperate in the pool. Or the £3,400 electric bikes they pedalled to boost their post-match recovery. It’s not even about the manager.

“Instead, what I’m going to say will horrify you,” said Michael Caulfield, who has worked in professional sport for more than 25 years. “Football is – or should be – only about joy.”

Take your mind away from the consequences of your action and focus on the action. Anxiety, fear, stress are projections of the future: concentrate on the present.

Learn how to change your perceived reality. Premier League footballers learn to shut out fans if they feel oppressed by them. This could help people who don’t like public speaking, for example, who can see their audience as more intimidating than they may actually be.

Find a ritual to recover from disappointment that creates positivity.

Learn from those you admire. Stay close to them and be forgiving of their mistakes and failures.

Don’t have top tips, said Caulfield, because by tomorrow someone else will have come up with five other tips and “you’ll be completely confused”. “A good grandparent is better than any tip,” he said. “Turn to grey hair because the chances are they’ve been through a bit. They’re not right or wrong but they’ll ask the right questions and help you sort things out.”

Damon Tingay punched the body of one man twice and performed sex acts on two male bodies, court heard

A Grimsby man who went on a rampage in a hospital mortuary, violently and sexually attacking bodies, was told by a judge there was a “very, very dark side” to him as he was sentenced to six years in prison.

Damon Tingay, 30, broke into the Diana, Princess of Wales hospital in Grimsby in the early hours of 17 March and was caught on CCTV opening a number of fridges and interfering with the bodies.

Liam Booth-Smith spoke to regulator after revelations about betting by those close to PM on date of election

• UK election live – latest updates

Rishi Sunak’s most senior adviser has been interviewed as a witness by officials at the Gambling Commission as part of its investigation into widespread betting by Westminster figures on the date and outcome of the general election.

Liam Booth-Smith, the prime minister’s chief of staff, spoke to the regulator last week after a series of revelations about betting by people close to the prime minister on the date of the election.

In a new constituency where the river ‘is our lifeblood’, people speak of being taken for granted by the Tories

• UK election live – latest updates

By conventional political logic, it is a long jump from the Conservatives to the Green party. But in Waveney Valley, voters are making that leap. Political history, party stereotypes and predictable voter behaviour are sailing away down the river that meanders through this new constituency, carved from five ultra-safe Tory seats on the Norfolk/Suffolk border.

Waveney Valley should be a win so comfortable for the Conservatives that they barely need to turn up. One of its former constituencies has been Tory since 1885; all five had Conservative majorities of more than 18,000 in 2019. “It’s been Tory since the Norman conquest,” says Robert Lindsay, a Green councillor who is part of an eager team of party activists descending on this rural heartland to boost co-leader Adrian Ramsay’s hopes of victory.

Have people forgotten the pre-Southgate tournament record across a long period – including defeat by Iceland?

Time for an excursion. Time for Gareth Southgate and Steve Holland to live a little. The group stage’s done, the draw has opened up, the path to the final in Berlin is kind. Clearly, it’s time for them to step outside England’s secluded Blankenhain base, check in with the local tourist board and find out what the state of Thuringia has to offer.

A trip to the nearby city of Weimar is one option. But the bigger city of Erfurt, home to England’s press pack during Euro 2024, also has its charms. Here we find a medieval tour, quite a bit about the outspoken 16th-century monk Martin Luther and, continuing with the religious vibe, the amazing spectacle of Erfurt’s Old Synagogue, an 11th-century site that somehow avoided destruction by the Nazis.

The first knockout stage has several intriguing matches, including Spain against Georgia and France v Belgium

Italy are unbeaten against Switzerland in 11 games stretching back to qualifying for the 1994 World Cup but they look vulnerable here. They were worryingly open against both Albania and Spain and the switch to a back three against Croatia only seemed to make them flatter going forward. In goal Gianluigi Donnarumma has had a fine tournament, but a lack of creativity and the absence of a top-class centre-forward are major issues.

England’s next opponents are dangerous, as Belgium found out in the group stage, but they have a weakness up front

England’s opponents in the last 16 are Slovakia, the team ranked 45^th in the world and making their second appearance in the knockout stage of a European Championship. They generally impressed in qualifying from Group E, with some standout performers, but are not without their vulnerabilities. Here, we look at how they break down and what England should watch out for.

More than half of international medical graduates questioned say NHS induction inadequate

Many doctors from overseas are left feeling lost, anxious and not ready to care for patients after joining the NHS because they are not properly looked after, research has found.

Many international medical graduates (IMGs) feel the NHS does not help them prepare for life as a doctor in the UK and the practicalities of moving to a new country, according to a survey.

38% said they had too little time to shadow other doctors to gain valuable insights.

45% were not trained on cultural differences between the NHS and their country of origin and what is acceptable in the UK compared with in their home nation.

48% said their induction did not involve being given enough knowledge or training before starting to work clinically.

51% did not receive help or advice with practical issues after moving to the UK such as finding a place to live, opening a bank account, registering with a GP or paying council tax.

41% said they were left feeling alone and isolated.

38% questioned their decision to work in the NHS.

More than 21,000 old sites may be releasing ‘forever chemicals’ into land often left as open space

• ‘It’s a poison and it’s killing us’: the hidden dangers of old UK landfills

Thousands of polluted landfills across England could be leaking toxic chemicals into the environment and harming people who live nearby, experts have warned.

A few decades ago, the method for getting rid of industrial and domestic waste was to stick it in a hole in the ground, cover it up and hope for the best. It was known as “dilute and disperse” and it assumed toxic substances would seep into the surrounding soils, air and water and become harmless.

Water quality testing by campaigners shows levels up to 27 times acceptable limit for bathing as rowers told to take precautions

Harmful E coli bacteria have been found at very high levels at Henley, days before elite rowers compete in the international regatta there.

Water quality testing in the Henley Mile, part of the regatta course outside the Oxfordshire town, has revealed mean levels of 1,213 E coli colony forming units (CFU) per 100ml of water, across 27 tests. Where E coli levels are above 900 CFU/100ml, the water quality is deemed poor, according to bathing water designations, and is a threat to public health.

• Players’ relatives caught up in Southgate protest
• ‘It wasn’t nice. My brother was hit, a few others’

Ezri Konsa has revealed England’s players had to check on family members who were drenched with beer thrown by supporters at the end of the team’s goalless draw with Slovenia.

On a night that ended with plastic beer cups being thrown in the direction of Gareth Southgate, relatives and loved ones of the players also found themselves in the line of fire. Konsa, who said that the atmosphere in that part of the stadium was “not nice” after a draw that secured top spot for England in Group C, said his brother was among those showered with drinks. The defender added that the abuse of Southgate had not been a conversation topic in the dressing room.

An incoherent national team always seem a surprise but why? There is no English coaching school, no coaching culture, nothing to pass down

Here’s a phrase you might not have heard since 1934. Hey, Austria look good. This is a new thing in many ways. What do we think of, traditionally, when it comes to Austria and international football? Indeterminate makeweights. The pre-war Wunderteam. A prosperous strudel repository. The Surrey of greater Germania. The 1990s pomp-rock target-man stylings of Toni Polster.

And now? Modernity. Energy. Grooved patterns. Austria finished top of a group that includes the teams ranked second and seventh in the world. They have been coherent, joined-up, even vibrant in a mannered kind of way, the only team in the final round of group games to score three goals, en route to a first victory against the Netherlands in 34 years.

Andrew Parker, who is canvassing in Clacton, also described Islam as ‘a cult’ and suggested asylum seekers should be shot

A Reform UK activist in the constituency where Nigel Farage is standing has been secretly filmed making extremely racist comments about Rishi Sunak, as well as using Islamophobic and other offensive language.

Farage said he was “dismayed” by the views expressed by Andrew Parker, a Reform canvasser, who was filmed as part of an undercover investigation by Channel 4 News.

Almost 12,000 rough sleepers were seen by outreach workers in 2023-24, a 19% increase on the previous year

Rough sleeping in the capital has hit the highest level in a decade, with more than 1,100 people living on London’s streets for the first time because of evictions.

The number of new rough sleepers seen for the first time by outreach workers between April 2023 and March 2024, surged 25% to 7,974 people – the highest in at least four years. Almost one in 10 people living on the streets was aged 25 or under – including 13 children.

Desmond Swayne is predicted to be re-elected yet again in a seat where most of the population are over 50 and some are ‘terrified of Labour’

Betty Granger refuses to give up hope for another Conservative government. Sipping tea in the New Milton Conservative Club in Hampshire, Granger, 97, says she has her “fingers crossed” for a Tory win.

She posted her 21st vote for them earlier this week. “I can’t think what anybody else would’ve done better,” she says of their record.

• Konsa: ‘I think that’ll be the last time we go on the bike’
• Newcastle forward left with large graze on chin

England will consider abandoning the bike rides that players do as part of their post-match recovery after an accident left Anthony Gordon with cuts to his chin and hands.

Gordon, who could come into the starting lineup in Sunday’s last-16 tie against Slovakia, was the subject of much mirth from the rest of the squad after suffering a heavy fall the day after England’s draw with Slovenia. The winger mostly emerged with damaged pride, along with a very noticeable graze on his chin, but there is expected to be a review into whether the team continue to use electric bikes that are capable of picking up high speeds.

Current and former Slovakia players believe they can exploit nervousness of favourites in Gelsenkirchen

England have not impressed at the Euros. They won their group and ended up on the “easier” side of the draw but in knockout football there are no guarantees and in Slovakia players, fans and experts are hopeful of causing an upset in the last 16 game in Gelsenkirchen on Sunday.

England could only draw against Denmark and Slovenia while Slovakia beat Belgium in their first game. “[England] are a great team with amazing individuals,” said Adrian Gula, a former Wisla Krakow and Slovakia Under-21 coach. “[But] I wanted to play them in the last 16 given their performances in the tournament. I believe we can cause a big upset and I hope the boys and the coaching staff can pull it off. We will be the underdogs and we prospered in that role against Belgium. Our playing style is quite unforgiving, very proactive.”

Hundreds are knocking on doors for longtime MP, often having to remind voters that he is no longer Labour

• UK election live – latest updates

Jeremy Corbyn is making a final push to try to hold on to his parliamentary seat in one of the more unpredictable battles of the election, made more uncertain because many voters still seem to believe he is the Labour candidate.

With a week to go until polling day, the former Labour leader’s campaign team is trying to marshal crowds of volunteers to knock on doors in the Islington North seat he has represented since 1983, reminding them that this race is different.

Central bank raises concerns over newly elected governments as more than 80 countries go to polls this year

• Business live – latest updates

Uncertainty caused by a global wave of elections, starting this weekend in France, risks destabilising the UK’s financial system, the Bank of England has warned.

Officials are concerned about the kind of policies that newly elected governments may enforce in large economies, including the US, where Donald Trump is vying for another term as president in the run-up to the election in November.

Five-day strike by junior doctors is the 11th action in their long-running pay dispute

“I’m itching to get back to work, to get back to the grindstone,” says Matthew Alexander, a junior radiology doctor. “Nobody wants to be here, nobody wants to be on strike.” Alexander, 30, is one of about 50 junior doctors on a Thursday morning picket line at the Friarage hospital in Northallerton, a bustling market town in Rishi Sunak’s sprawling North Yorkshire constituency.

It’s a sunny day; there’s cheerful, enthusiastic chanting and lots of support from drivers who honk their horns, but it is abundantly clear that only Betty, a laid-back 11-year-old jackapoo, is anywhere approaching happy to be here.

• Terry Byrne settles after dispute over England deal
• Southgate has since dropped agent over unpaid debts

The Football Association has agreed to pay Gareth Southgate’s former agent, Terry Byrne, several hundred thousand pounds in compensation to settle a long-running legal dispute. Byrne sued the FA for about £3m in December at a time when he was still representing Southgate, but the Guardian has learned the matter was resolved before the end of this season after several private arbitration hearings.

Byrne was suing for damages with a claim that the FA breached its contract with one of his companies, 1966 Entertainment, by terminating a deal to manage England players’ commercial appearances while on international duty that was due to run until 2030. The dispute has rumbled on since 2018, when the FA sought an early termination from the 12-year deal given to Byrne, who previously represented A-list stars including Pelé and David Beckham before becoming Southgate’s agent when he was England Under-21 manager.

The 20-year-old is England’s future but he is not playing like someone who can help them in the present at Euro 2024

Your best players are still your best players. Your best team is not necessarily the one with all the best players on the pitch. Unfortunately England are in that place again. Much like Sven-Göran Eriksson failing to utilise Michael Carrick at the 2006 World Cup, or Roy Hodgson putting Wayne Rooney in his midfield at Euro 2016, Gareth Southgate has fallen into a familiar trap. His tactics are leaden, his starting XI is unbalanced and one of his biggest mistakes – being seduced into fitting too many similar types into a one-paced attack – has made England by far the hardest team to watch at Euro 2024.

The good news, though, is that there is time to fix England before their last-16 tie in Gelsenkirchen. Nothing drastic needs to be done. A few tweaks could easily help England to build on their slight improvement in the second half of their draw with Slovenia. The question is whether Southgate is bold enough to make them.

Rolling coverage of the latest economic and financial news, as UK central bank publishes its new financial stability report

• Global wave of elections could hit UK financial system, warns Bank of England

Just in: Sweden’s central bank, the Riksbank, has left interest rates on hold at 3.75%.

But it also hints that rates could be cut as many as three times in the second half of 2024 if inflation prospects remain the same.

Inflation is close to the target and economic activity is weak. The Executive Board considers that monetary policy should be adjusted gradually, and has decided to hold the policy rate unchanged at 3.75%.

About 25,000 BMA members begin five-day action at 7am that some union leaders say will achieve little

Junior doctors in England will strike today for the 11th time over pay, amid concern in their union that a stoppage so close to the general election is an “own goal”.

Senior figures in the British Medical Association (BMA) believe the strike is pointless and “naive” and risks irritating Labour, which looks likely to be in power by next Friday and asked the union to call it off.

• Manager pleads with country to get behind the team
• ‘I understand the feeling toward me but back the players’

Gareth Southgate has pleaded with the nation to support his England players at Euro 2024 – even the fans who want him out. The manager endured a long night of the soul after Tuesday’s 0-0 draw against Slovenia, a performance disfigured by the lack of thrust and ingenuity in front of goal. The result did, however, carry the team through to the last 16 as Group C winners where they will face Slovakia in Gelsenkirchen on Sunday.

Southgate lamented the atmosphere that is pressing down on the squad after three largely uninspired displays in Germany and is aware that he could be the problem. “Our world is different [to other teams] at the moment and I feel that is probably because of me,” he said.

• Southgate’s England topped group C with five points
• Winner of last-16 game will play Italy or Switzerland

England will play Slovakia in the last 16 of Euro 2024. The two teams will meet in Gelsenkirchen on Sunday for a place in the quarter-finals, where Switzerland or Italy awaits.

Gareth Southgate’s side has been heavily criticised after one win and two draws and largely uninspiring performances in Germany. However, they topped Group C and are now on what looks like the easier side of the draw.

Manager has become used to the trappings of office and players are in a comfort zone. Where has the sense of fun gone?

Nice to see your own fans throwing beer cups at you. And to be fair, not all England fans were hurling sud-soaked projectiles at Gareth Southgate as he strode towards them at full time in Cologne. Let’s not paint the whole fanbase with the same brush. Some of them were making “wanker” signs. Some were booing. Some were giving him the thumbs down. Most had already left to catch the tram. So, you know, got to appreciate the nuances there.

As for Southgate, there was a kind of sarcasm in his calm applause, like a cyclist applauding the motorist who has just sent him flying into the kerb. In a way it was a gesture loaded with sacrificial defiance, a trial of character and duty: the father of the nation nobly bearing your hate, your insults and your refundable plasticware.

• Foden started all three of team’s Euro 2024 group games
• Unclear if 24-year-old will be back for Sunday’s last-16 tie

England have been left with a selection dilemma before their last-16 tie at Euro 2024 after Phil Foden left the team’s base to attend the birth of his third child. Foden has started England’s three matches in Germany and it is unclear if the 24-year-old Manchester City player will be back with the squad in time for the last-16 tie in Gelsenkirchen on Sunday. England are hopeful he will be.

Gareth Southgate was already under pressure to change his attack after his forwards once again failed to click in the disappointing goalless draw with Slovenia on Tuesday. England, who progressed as winners from Group C, have scored two goals in three games.

They came to power promising ‘a golden age for the arts’. Now, 12 disastrous culture secretaries later, they leave it in tatters. What a stunning missed opportunity to capitalise on an asset that was the envy of the world

The fishing industry contributes barely £1bn to the British economy. That is 0.03% of GDP. Put it another way: it is roughly equivalent in size to visual effects, a sub-category of a category of the creative industries.

Conservative ministers made repeated visits to the nation’s ports to extol the virtues of an almost moribund trade. By contrast, a sector that has been the fastest growing for two decades, that contributes more than £120bn, that in other countries would be seen as an essential component of the good society, was largely seen as an afterthought.

In the run-up to July's general election, the Guardian video team is touring the UK looking at the issues that matter to voters. After swimmers and rowers fell sick from sewage discharges into the River Thames we went to the seat of Henley and Thame to see how environmental concerns rank for voters in a seat that has been Conservative for more than 100 years