England coach Gareth Southgate commented on the results of today's draw for the 2024 European Championship qualifying tournament in Germany.
— Well, it is clearly a difficult draw, considering the quality of the opponents. Well, we've had somewhat more comfortable draws, and now here it is. Although, I must say, Poland and Hungary in the selection group of the World Cup were also difficult.
We know the strength of the Italian team, we know the depth of their squad, and England's statistics against Italy are generally not very good, so we have to improve it.
We remember that Ukraine reached the quarter-finals of Euro-2020, where they lost to England ironically at the Olympic Stadium in Rome. Meanwhile, North Macedonia beat Italy in the World Cup qualifying play-offs earlier this year. All this adds even more intrigue, said Gareth Southgate.