TEST OF METTLE FOR SOUTHGATE
Manager turns to Marines and psychologist in a bid to halt England’s mental weakness at tournaments
ENGLAND have only won their first game in tournament football five times since 1950. Since reaching the Euro ’96 semi-final, which is a sore point for the current manager, they have won just two games in the knockout stages of major finals.
So when Gareth Southgate, who missed the crucial penalty against Germany at Wembley, sends his team out against Tunisia tomorrow, their first tournament fixture since the shock 2-1 defeat to Iceland at Euro 2016, there should be no great expectations. England’s record is abysmal — and Southgate, more than most, knows it.
The man who said he felt he had let the country down after that miss against the Germans has pondered the conundrum longer than most and, as an international player, FA staff member, Under-21 boss and now England coach, has a deeper insight than almost anyone.
But whatever his side manage to do against Tunisia, no one will be able to say that Southgate hasn’t tried his utmost to shift the dismal dynamic of the England team.
When he has been in front of his players, he has reminded them that he has stood in the eye of the storm of hysteria which surrounds a losing England team and been personally blamed for the failure.
‘What’s the worst that can happen?’ he tells them. ‘I’m still here, standing in front of you now.’ That is not to diminish how that can feel. But he wants this team to overcome the psychological barriers which have hindered his predecessors.
Which is why a group of England players found themselves on Woodbury Common in Devon last year. The sweeping hills, the wind and rain from the Channel and the rutted ground do not suggest a connection with football or Russia 2018. But if England can finally perform in a major competition, it may yet claim a stake in their football heritage.
As might Major Scotty Mills of the Royal Marines and the plain-speaking psychologist Pippa Grange, who has previously confronted the macho culture of Australian sport. All have played their part in attempting to avoid the kind of psychological meltdown witnessed against Iceland.
Around this time last year, England players turned up for training at St George’s Park to prepare for a crucial qualifier against Scotland and a friendly in France. Gathering in the dressing room, they sensed something was afoot. Before they had fully comprehended what, a Royal Marines sergeant major strode in and ordered them on to a coach. Mobiles were taken. The location of the destination was not to be revealed, even to family. And certainly not to their clubs.
They were heading to Commando Training Centre Royal Marines in Lympstone, where generations of soldiers have been trained. Meeting them there was Major Mills.
The players, including Harry Kane, John Stones, Dele Alli and Raheem Sterling, were ordered to change, get dressed in military gear, surrender any luxuries and sent on a five-mile hike. That night, they camped rough.
Some, like Stones, had done this with the Scouts as a boy. For others, it was far removed from their comfort zone.
‘You could say it was a bit of risk,’ said Stones. ‘People can be nervous or apprehensive if they haven’t done something like that before.’
Stones claims he slept well under the stars. Others have jokingly suggested that he was chattering so much that he kept everyone awake. The management were beginning to see some of the bonding they had hoped for. The most gruelling tests were to come. All had to finish the assault course. But the most traumatic part was going through an underwater tunnel. The idea is that you have to surrender your trust to the Marines, who will push you under the water and throw you through the tunnel.
It spooked many, but everyone completed the task. Southgate addressed the players. He knows how headlines work and what would happen if they lost to Scotland. Pretending to be soldiers would have been ludicrous. ‘It isn’t about these next two matches,’ he said. ‘It’s about Russia.’
His point was that he needed them to trust each other on the pitch when the time came.
As it was, that Saturday, England were winning with 87 minutes played at Hampden. By 90 minutes, they were 2-1 down and the expedition looked preposterous. Kane then equalised deep into stoppage time. But Southgate was sincere in saying the benefits would not be won in the short term.
He is at pains to make clear that it is the ability of the Marines to think on their feet and adapt to adversity that he wants to tap into. That and the need to depend on each other.
The final part of the programme has been designed by Grange, the Loughborough University graduate with a doctorate in applied psychology who took on the macho culture of Aussie Rules football in her previous job.
She only started work in January, but has made an immediate impact. Her experience with AFL players has helped her engage easily with Premier League stars, traditionally reluctant to share any weaknesses for fear of being picked on.
Southgate has found her a key ally in getting players to open up and admit to vulnerabilities, the theory being that trusting each other off the pitch will enable them to do so on it.
‘Pippa has a way of getting everyone to open up,’ said one participant. Danny Rose said this week that the open culture was a factor in being able to talk about his depression publicly — and he felt rejuvenated playing when he had done so.
In the final week before they left, the players were visited by some former armed forces personnel who are amputees. Rose was particularly taken with the testimony of Lee Spencer, a former Marine who has lost his leg but who is rowing the Atlantic solo.
‘That was a real eye-opener,’ said Rose. ‘He’s been through adversity and he’s not going to let that stop him. And that’s the same that the gaffer wants from the lads. If the guy to the left of you is in trouble, in the Marines you would literally have to give your life to help him.’
Fabian Delph added: ‘A lot of the game is about mental strength, how you deal with adversity and how to keep a calm mind. We’ve looked at different ways of coping with that stuff and it’s been eye-opening.
‘It’s just how to reset your mind if you make a mistake. Little things you can do to refocus.’
Naturally, the real test will come tomorrow if they toil against Tunisia.
Play badly and the reality is nothing can protect you from a bad press. But it is clear the FA and Southgate aim to address the problem head on. Southgate might once have felt he had let his country down, but he’s doing all he can to ensure his players won’t feel the same way.