Hug that cemented lifelong friendship
GARETH Southgate was left inconsolable when he missed in the semi-final penalty shootout against Germany and sent England crashing out of Euro ’96.
But Teddy Sheringham’s famous arm around the shoulder at least let the crushed defender know his fellow players understood his pain.
The moment helped forge a bond between the pair which remains to this day – and their parents used to travel to major tournaments together.
Sheringham, 55, said: “Everyone tried to console Gareth but he probably wouldn’t be able to tell you what anyone said. He missed and I just thought, ‘F*** it. That’s the end of the tournament. Sh**, we’ve got to go home now’. It was a shuddering halt to an unbelievable four weeks.
“We did a lap of honour to thank the fans and then walked off – we were off within 15 minutes.”
The former Manchester United and Spurs star said players were told they could go straight home but all the team went to their hotel for one more night instead.
“There was a lot of banter, it went from commiserations and sadness to taking the p*ss and laughing about it,” he said.
“Gareth was up and down. We were trying to liven him up and we said to him, ‘How bad can it be, you only missed a penalty’.”
The pair’s friendship is strong and they have been texting each other during the current campaign.
The Euro ’96 squad had several big characters who Sheringham felt would become top managers, such as Paul Ince, Alan Shearer and Paul Gascoigne.
But he said: “Gareth has worked hard to get to where he is. He’s pursued what he wanted.
“I got to know him really well over the years. He’s very astute, very unlike your normal professional footballer.”