Kieran Trippier has revealed England’s well-versed tournament campaigners are helping their inexperienced team-mates block out the background noise at Euro 2024.
Gareth Southgate and his players came in for stinging criticism following Thursday’s 1-1 draw with Denmark as England were jeered at full-time in Frankfurt.
Despite sitting on four points from their opening two Group C games, and looking all but assured of a spot in the knockout stages, England’s dire display at the Deutsche Bank Arena attracted plenty of in-depth analysis into where things have gone wrong in Germany.
However, Trippier, who picked up his 50th cap in the Denmark draw, insists spirits within the squad remain high.
“We’re all positive in the camp,” he said.
“We could be more happy, but the most important thing is that we stay together. (After the game) the dressing room was calm and relaxed.
“Gareth and H (Harry Kane) had a few words. We’ve been in this situation before and it’s all about just staying calm, staying positive, because we’re going to need everybody.
“There’s a lot of noise but internally we stick together, as H said and as Gareth said.”
There are 12 players among the England ranks who are at their first major tournament, some of whom are still waiting to make an appearance in Germany.
Trippier, 33, has been playing at left-back as Luke Shaw continues to battle back to full fitness and is no longer part of Southgate’s leadership group, but is still offering support for the youngsters in the camp.
Kieran Trippier earned his 5⃣0⃣th #ThreeLions cap last night!
Congratulations. @Trippier2 👏 pic.twitter.com/vreRTW1OiD
— England (@England) June 21, 2024
“I know mentally how hard it is sometimes when you’re the one who has to train the next day when everyone else is recovering and doing extra training and stuff,” he added on the Diary Room on England’s official Facebook page.
“I get it, I’ve been there, and that’s why I try to relate to the other players, who maybe it’s the first camp or first tournament, but a lot of people have come to me and asked me questions. It’s always important that the young players lean on us.
“You don’t have to be my age to be a leader, look at Jude, for example, he’s a 20-year-old and he leads in different ways, so you can be any age.
“But myself, H, Walks (Kyle Walker), have been here for a long time. They know that I’m here if they need to speak to me and, yes, I spoke to a few of the boys.”
One of the players who Trippier has been in close contact with is Newcastle team-mate Anthony Gordon.
The forward is among those tasting a senior tournament for the first time and Trippier has been making time to chat to the former Everton man.
“I took Anthony under my wing a little bit at Newcastle, explaining to him and trying to help guide him when he went away with the Under-21s in the Euros,” he said.
“I said ‘don’t take a holiday, come straight back into pre-season and try and hit the ground running’, and he’s done that.
“I’ll just be having another chat with him after training because obviously he’s not played in the two games.
“But I was just saying to him ‘this is tournament football and I’ve been in your position, you’ve got to keep training well and working hard’, which he is doing.”