After Slovenia's draw, Gareth Southgate said, "It creates an unusual environment."
England finishes first in Group C, but they don't look well as they are held to a goalless draw in Cologne against Slovenia; some England supporters jeered at the end of the match.
The hatred directed at England, according to manager Gareth Southgate, is fostering a "unusual atmosphere" following their 0-0 draw with Slovenia to win Group C.
Even though they were not able to make a lasting impression, Southgate's team managed to win Group C with five points from three games thanks to another draw between Denmark and Serbia in Munich.
The Netherlands or the third-placed team in Group E await England this weekend; they will know for sure who they will play in the round of sixteen only on Wednesday.
"I understand the narrative towards me," Southgate responded when questioned about the hostile response from certain supporters during full time, which included jeers and allegations of cups being hurled towards the England manager. Rather than being directed at them, that is better for the team. However, it's making for an odd environment in which to work. I've never seen an other team qualify and win something like."
"I understand some of the reactions but it's a strange environment we're playing in," he said.
"We've made some excellent openings with the ball, and we seem to have progressed significantly with it, but we still need to work hard because we're struggling to get the opportunity in front of goal.
"A lot of things are beginning to fit together. We had a lot of problems before the tournament, but today we looked more threatening, our replacements had a good impact, and we now only have a short window of opportunity to take advantage of it."
After Kobbie Mainoo and Cole Palmer came off the bench late in the game and gave the England front line new life, Southgate singled them out for special recognition.
"They [Mainoo and Palmer] are really young players so we're balancing blooding them in a different environment, but they had a really good impact when they came on and used the ball really well," Southgate said.
