Southgate’s top repair job
TWO years ago today English football was at its lowest ebb.
It was the morning after the humiliating defeat against Iceland at the European Championship and boss Roy Hodgson was attempting to explain what went wrong.
Whatever Gareth Southgate and his vibrant Three Lions side achieve at this World Cup, the coach is justifiably proud of one feat.
He’s mended broken England.
The nation has fallen in love with its football team once again and Southgate is so popular they’re even talking about him taking over Brexit negotiations!
He admits one of his first tasks on succeeding Sam Allardyce was to reestablish the connection between the players and fans.
“It was definitely one of the objectives when I took the job on,” he said.
“Playing for your country is different to club and one of the things that makes it different is the pride of representing and the engagement with the public.
“There’s been a disconnect, there’s no question about that, partly down to results but also, at times, there’s been a misunderstanding of the players.
“Maybe a little openness has allowed the public to understand that they are all supporters, that these are kids with really intriguing stories to tell, all very different, from different communities and different parts of the country.
“I think their stories and the way they have spoken has been really inspiring. They can inspire people within those communities to go and do something with their lives.
“I know that, in the end, I am always judged on winning matches and I make sure I’m always focused on that, but when you’re playing for your country, there’s something bigger that you all represent. I think these players understand that. They’re engaged in that.”
England have come a long way since that bleak night in Nice, not least in the way Harry Kane and his team-mates are perceived.
“Our biggest tests are ahead, of course, but I feel there has been a process of rebuilding confidence,” Southgate added.
“I think it’s a process of rebuilding enthusiasm in the country behind the team.
“Our public aren’t fools, They see when a team are together, they see when a team are proud to play for them.
“And they see the style of play as well and the different attributes these boys have to maybe teams 15 to 20 years ago.
“We’ve got a different type of player coming through our system. They’re working with top coaches. They’re more tactically aware, technically better.
“They can really go and knock some barriers down of how we’re perceived.
“We’ve seen that with our junior teams and there’s no reason that can’t filter into our first team.”
Millions will be watching tonight’s match and a third successive win will heighten the sense of euphoria which has engulfed the country in the past fortnight.
Southgate, however, won’t get carried away.
“If we do beat Belgium, some will say, ‘It’s not their full team’, so there will always be something else.
“I keep reading about the expectations being high. I think the enjoyment is high and the optimism is there, but I do not necessarily think the expectations are.
“I think people are realistic. We are a team that is so young and inexperienced.
“But, also, it is possible for them to go further than anyone thinks.”