You’ll be proud of us in Russia, vows manager

LATE last Friday night Gareth Southgate was telling the media that his extensive knowledge of young English footballers was the reason he was put in charge of the national team.

It was almost as if the FA had planned this all along. That Sam Allardyce’s one-game tenure had never happened and at no point did Southgate confide in anyone that he had no desire to succeed Roy Hodgson after Euro 2016.

In the end fate and a newspaper sting would force Southgate and the FA to forge a new partnership.

But what is perhaps most impressive about the 47-yearold is how boldly he has responded to the challenge.

If Southgate was a reluctant leader, he has quickly become something of a revolutionary, changing not just the system but the playing personnel with such haste that, at the very least, he has succeeded in generating some welcome interest in England.

Walter Winterbottom remains the best example of a moderniser in the role of England manager, even if it did take him until his 16th and final year in charge to persuade the FA that the team should be selected by the head coach rather than a committee.

But Southgate has to be admired for blooding so many young players less than a year before the World Cup, while quietly calling time on the international careers of some of the elder statesmen, most notably Wayne Rooney. Without wishing to compare Southgate to Sir Alex Ferguson, there are echoes of Manchester United in 1995 here.

Ferguson realised he needed to freshen things up and turned immediately to an exciting generation of youngsters emerging from the club’s youth system. Southgate has seen England disappoint at successive tournaments and done something sim- ilarly drastic. The objectives are, of course, slightly different. Ferguson was aiming for the stars. Southgate knows there is some way to go before he can seriously challenge teams such as Germany, Brazil and France.

But what Southgate does hope to see is an improvement not just in how far England can advance in a major tournament but the quality of the football that gets them there.

Asked yesterday what he would consider a success in Russia next summer, he said: ‘My gauge of success would be that we come back from the tournament with the fans proud of how we’ve played.

‘That means we would have played well and won some matches. I think the other night against Germany we left Wembley with people excited by what they saw.

‘They enjoyed the game and that’s my desire as the manager, to produce a team which sends people home feeling that way.’

Given the apathy that has spread among supporters, not least at Wembley, that is a good objective to have — as is the desire to create more competition for places with the promotion of players such as Ruben- Loftus- Cheek, Harry Winks and Jordan Pickford. Not to mention a late bloomer like Kieran Trippier.

‘It’s going to be really interesting to see the players’ form for their clubs and how they develop,’ said Southgate.

He admits that a lack of experience in his squad is ‘ not ideal in terms of what you’d want for a major tournament’.

But, as he said, ‘it’s exciting’. ‘We’ve got a freshness about us, an energy about us, that people have enjoyed,’ he said. ‘We’re a young team. There will be difficult nights, I’m sure, but we’ve got players we believe in.

‘It’s good to invest the time in them and the only way for them to get experience is to play.

‘And if they are going to play, then we might as well play top opposition so they really get a feel for what’s required at international level.’