England is a country normally known for its arrogance, but at Euro 2024 the team have looked so shy to the point of being frightened. Frightened of doing anything brave. Frightened of passing the ball forwards, frightened of full-backs overlapping, frightened of pressing high, frightened of being counter-attacked.
But after hiding behind the covers for much of their first two games and for the first 70 minutes of their insipid draw against Slovenia, the Three Lions finally plucked up some courage and started having a go.
One man was responsible for the change in character: Cole Palmer. And if England want to finally take a step forward and beat Slovakia in the last 16 with some conviction to take with them further into the tournament, they need to use him far more often.