England has reached the semifinal in the European Championship.
Despite this, national team captain Gareth Southgate has received criticism for how the team has looked.
I don't understand the criticism, says left-back Luke Shaw ahead of the semifinal against the Netherlands.
England has reached the semifinal in three of the last four championships and the final in the previous European Championship.
But the people want to see more.
"Hurts"
"England has looked dull", it says. The team lineups in the European Championship matches in Germany have been criticized. "Southgate doesn't get the maximum out of the players", the critics caw.
The criticism against national team captain Gareth Southgate has been great and come from several directions – supporters, TV experts, other football profiles.
I can't deny that it hurts when it becomes as personal as it has become, said Southgate to BBC earlier during the championship.
English left-back Luke Shaw, who normally plays for Manchester United, doesn't understand the criticism directed at Southgate.
What he has done for the country, and for us players, I really think he took us to the next level. Now it's another semifinal, and for me and us as players, we love him, says Shaw, who is expected to start against the Netherlands after having had injury problems earlier during the European Championship, at a press conference and continues:
I think he's really good, he's exactly what we need. He always puts the players first and because of that, we can go out on the pitch and do our best.
Has world-class players
Shaw made his debut in the national team in 2014 and compares now with then.
We have much more faith now than we ever had, and also a sense of unity, and that helps with the players we have access to now. We have world-class players all over the pitch and now it's time for those players to step up.
The semifinal between England and the Netherlands kicks off at 21.00 on Wednesday evening.
