This is how I Scot the job
VICTORY OVER AULD ENEMY SEALED DEAL
GARETH SOUTHGATE says he would not be England manager today if he had lost to Scotland five years ago.
But it was Christian Eriksen’s brush with death last week that reminded him you have to grab every opportunity you get in life.
In November 2016 Southgate was the nation’s interim manager having stepped in after Sam Allardyce was sacked.
He ended up staking a strong claim to take the job full-time as England beat Scotland 3-0 at Wembley in a crucial World Cup qualifier.
He admits he would not be leading England back into battle against the Scots tonight if things had gone wrong that day.
Southgate said: “If we had not beaten Scotland you would not be speaking to me here. Scotland were in the middle of a bad run of form but we were in the really early stages of getting the team to resemble what we wanted.
“Perhaps that win persuaded everybody else to think: ‘Blimey, we’ve tried everything else, perhaps we might give this bloke a go – he took the Under-21s, let’s go from there!’
“On a personal level, by the time we got there, it was a job I wanted. I knew it was something I wanted to go for in my life.
“I had kind of regretted not having had a go at it before and if I hadn’t gone for it I would never have known what might have been possible. That is not a good position to be in, in your life.”
Southgate wants his players to seize the moment too, by clinching a place in the knockout phase tonight.
After watching Denmark star Eriksen suffer a cardiac arrest against Finland, he knows life can sometimes be too short to have regrets.
Southgate said: “When we saw what happened with Christian Eriksen, it was just another reminder that you have got to go for things in life and give them the best possible shot.
“At least when you’re finished, you don’t have regrets about things you did not have a go at or performances that were inhibited. We have got to go for it.”
Southgate says he about a 2-2 draw
Hampden in 2017.
But he insists that Harry Kane’s stoppage-time equaliser in that game after Leigh Griffiths had scored two late freekicks helped make this England team.
Southgate said: “I still see those goals going in in my sleep sometimes, that’s for sure. Two incredible free-kicks.
“We learned a lot that day. They didn’t panic when they went behind and that was very important. We felt like that had happened in the past.
“They showed themselves that they could come back from difficult situations in games and we’ve been able to so do that in the past few years. That’s a strength.”
After opening with a narrow win over Croatia, Southgate wants his England boys to make a statement against the Scots.
He said: “What we’ve talked about all week is how do we get better? That’s always got to be the aim.
“To go any distance in this tournament we are going to have to do that.” still has nightmares with the Scots at