Southgate proves that he’s a real tough nut
GARETH SOUTHGATE showed his leadership qualities by pushing his own body to the limit at the Royal Marines boot camp in Devon.
Defender John Stones and his mud-splattered England team-mates were mightily impressed as the boss joined them in wading through freezing water and being marched on a four-mile trek carrying huge backpacks.
Three Lions manager Southgate, himself a former international player, sprang the ‘surprise’ as the squad met last week and told the pampered Premier League superstars of their 48-hour culture shock living in tents and being ducked in the infamous “sheep dip.”
Stones, who spent the two nights in the company of club-mate Raheem Sterling and Tottenham midfielder Deli Alli, said: “The boss said he wouldn’t ask us to do anything on the trip that he or any of the staff wouldn’t do themselves.
“That’s credit to him and he was willing to put himself on the line and do everything.
“Everything was done together and we had to come through it together.
“You could say it was a bit of a risk taking us there.
“Not everybody is going to be happy going there.
“People can be nervous and a little bit apprehensive if they hadn’t done something like that before.”
Manchester City defender Stones is adamant the unusual team-bonding exercise was a masterstroke from Southgate.
He claims the current squad are now a more tight-knit unit following their nights together in the great outdoors.
“There was success at the end of it,” Stones said.
“We are tighter and it was a good life experience. We have probably proved something to ourselves as much as anything else.
“Some of the boys are not too good with water but all the other boys and staff encouraged them.
“They did it on their own and came out the other end which was great.
“If you ask any of the players, they were so glad they did it. You can’t buy those sorts of experiences really as a team.
“Me, Raheem and Dele shared and, to be fair, we slept well.”