11 November 2023 , 22:30
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It is only when Gareth Southgate travels the world that he understands how he has changed perceptions about the England team.
Seven years after temporarily filling the void when Sam Allardyce's forced resignation left the FA in crisis, Southgate is still at the helm. After World Cup-winning Sir Alf Ramsey, the 53-year-old is England’s most successful manager - after dragging the Three Lions into the 21st Century.
“It is only when I travel (abroad) that I realise how people now see us,” said Southgate. “It is very interesting to see how we are viewed elsewhere because we haven’t seen that so much with our own public at times.
“We want the fans to come to Wembley to see goals and exciting performances - and we’ve had some really good nights. We were top scorers per game at the last World Cup - and we’ve been top scorers in qualifying for the two previous tournaments. One of the reasons I joined the FA 10 years ago to work with the Under-21s was because we needed to change those perceptions.”
England reached the World Cup semi-finals for the first time in 28 years at Russia 2018. Three years later, they lost to Italy in a heartbreaking penalty shoot-out in the final of Euro 2020.
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And last winter, Harry Kane's missed penalty cost them the chance of taking their World Cup quarter-final with France into extra-time in Qatar. But Southgate was jeered by England fans after chastening Nations League defeats at the hands of Italy and Hungary.
He was criticised for being too conservative in his tactical approach when he was blessed with a squad bursting with attacking potential. England face Malta at Wembley on Friday before travelling to North Macedonia for the final game of a Euro 2024 qualifying campaign that has seen them already book their ticket to Germany next summer with five wins and a draw.
Southgate is excited about what the finals may bring. He said: “I’m never sure about dismissing the past because we’ve had some good squads - and I played with some really good forward players and midfield players.
England made it to a World Cup semi-final in 2018“But in terms of what I’ve had, we’ve certainly got some exciting players in the wide and No 10 areas behind the strikers - and different types of players. (James) Maddison is different to Jude (Bellingham), for example, with different attributes.
“It’s good that we’re no longer replacing like-for-like when we make substitutions because it means we can give teams different problems to cope with. At a club, you can recruit players to fit a model of how you want to play. At international level, you’ve got to get the best out of the best players you have available.
“You are looking at the best way of getting a Jude Bellingham or a Harry Kane into the team, and what the balance of the team is behind them because you can’t just have seven or eight attacking players. Clearly, our preference now is to go with a back four because we have got all these attacking players.”
England’s players have responded to Southgate’s holistic approach as a coach. They were protective of the manager when he was coming under scrutiny in the summer of 2022 - and his loyalty to players like Harry Maguire and Calvin Phillips during their struggles at club level has helped build that respect.
Southgate said: “We’re not just moving magnets round a board, we’re talking about people. There are their technical attributes to think about, but it’s also about getting the best out of them: what motivates them, what is going on in their lives?
“It’s the bit I love the most. In the end, management and leadership is trying to get the best out of people and give them the confidence to perform. Generally speaking, we don’t have many players that people would say underperform when they are with England. That is part of the environment we want to create.”