Gareth Southgate rued the “unusual” environment around England after the Three Lions boss was pelted with cups while his players were booed off following Tuesday’s lacklustre 0-0 draw with Slovenia at Euro 2024.

Southgate’s side finished top of Group C despite a third successive underwhelming performance that was greeted with disdain by their fans in Cologne. While Slovenia’s players and fans celebrated wildly at the other end of the stadium after reaching the knockout stage, Southgate and his players were greeted with jeers when they trudged towards the England supporters.

Southgate was targeted by beer cups that missed the Three Lions boss but clearly left an impression on his psyche. Coming after several days of criticism from former England players following a drab 1-1 draw with Denmark, the latest flop by Southgate’s team threatens to create an even more toxic atmosphere as they head into the last 16.

Pleading with England’s fans to create a positive vibe around the team, Southgate said: “I’ve not seen any other team qualify and receive a similar reaction. I’m very proud of the players for the way they handle it. The players kept composure in a game when they have come into it with a really challenging environment. It’s taken me back to days when I was playing for England.

“I’m not going to back away from it. I understand the narrative towards me, better for me than it being towards them. It’s creating an unusual atmosphere to operate in.” Southgate claimed England’s relative success in his eight-year reign, which includes a runners-up finish at Euro 2020 and a World Cup semi-final appearance in 2018, had created expectations that his team are currently failing to match.