GOLDEN SHOT

Southgate urges England stars to make history and seal Euros glory

GARETH SouTHGATE has urged his England team to finish their dream Euros run by winning the gold medal in the final against Italy at Wembley tomorrow.

After a pulsating 2-1 victory over Denmark in extra-time on Wednesday, England now face the in-form Italians in their first major final for 55 years.

Southgate, who faces a tricky decision over whether to send out an unchanged team for the first time in 36 matches, said: ‘Whatever happens now, they’re all going to take a medal, which has not happened for decades.

‘They have a choice of what colour medal. I know it won’t be enough for me and the rest of the staff and the players if we don’t win it. They’ve been an absolute pleasure to work with and I can’t speak highly enough of them. ‘We know the size of the challenge but what a brilliant challenge for us to have and what a brilliant opportunity for the players to write one more piece of history.’ No matter how the game ends, Southgate’s men will be remembered as one of the most successful England teams in history, with many of the squad also involved in their run to a fourthplaced finish at the 2018 World Cup.

The England boss will spend today finalising his team for the final against Roberto Mancini’s side. Southgate (left) has not selected an unchanged line-up for consecutive games since the World Cup semifinal loss to Croatia three years ago — a run of 36 matches.

His biggest dilemma appears to be whether to play Bukayo Saka or Phil Foden down the right side of attack, with early indications suggesting Arsenal forward Saka could keep his place. Jadon Sancho and Marcus Rashford are also options for Southgate.

But a final decision will be made after today’s training session.