“As a proud Englishman, it has been the honour of my life to play for England and to manage England. It has meant everything to me and I have given it my all.” With these words Gareth Southgate begins his statement, which the English Football Association (FA) published on Tuesday afternoon and which ends with the words: “Thank you England – for everything.” In it, Southgate announces his resignation as coach of the English national team.
His contract would have expired at the end of the year, but he is now clearing the way for his successor. Big names appeared immediately after the defeat against Spain in the European Championship final on Sunday evening. Among them: the German Thomas Tuchel, under contract with FC Bayern Munich until the summer; Graham Potter, the former coach of FC Chelsea; Eddie Howe, currently coach of Newcastle United.
“Unforgettable memories”
In autumn 2016, Southgate took over responsibility for England’s national team and brought it back to some of football’s biggest stages. England has not won a major title since the 1966 World Cup. After two defeats in two European Championship finals in a row, the question was now whether there could really be a happy ending with him on the sidelines.
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Just 37 hours after the final whistle of the final in Berlin, Southgate found an answer: the 102nd game as national coach was his last. His assistant coach Steve Holland is also leaving with him. “Over the last eight years, they have transformed the England national team and created unforgettable memories for everyone who loves the Three Lions,” Mark Bullingham, the FA’s chief executive, is quoted as saying in a statement: “Gareth has made the impossible possible and laid a strong foundation for future success.”
The right impulses
Southgate and his team went through a rollercoaster of emotions at this European Championship. They were heavily criticized by experts and fans, some even threw beer mugs at the coach, others booed him – and yet England still made it to the final. Southgate seemed to have drawn the right conclusions from the past, he found a way out of the penalty trauma of this football nation, he gave the right impetus from the bench in the knockout phase, in which England was on the verge of being eliminated several times.
In the 50 years between the 1966 World Cup and the start of the Southgate years in 2016, England had won just seven knockout matches in 25 tournaments, but with Southgate they won nine of those matches in eight years. “The team we have taken to Germany is full of exciting young talent and can win the trophy we all dream of,” said Southgate in his farewell statement. READ FULL STORY HERE>>>CLICK HERE TO CONTINUE READING>>>
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Critics, however, believe that the timing would have been perfect, but that Southgate did not make the right decisions. He has been criticized for not nominating Jack Grealish for this European Championship, because even though the Manchester City striker has not been at his best recently, he knows the pressure and the feeling of having to perform in big games.
Will Klopp take over?
The fact that Harry Kane, Jude Bellingham, Phil Foden and others were plagued by injuries and loss of energy, but that Southgate hardly gave them any rest and that they were on the pitch from the start in the final, is for some not only a result of the excessive workload in professional football, but also a sign that Southgate lacked a plan B. Anyone who watched Bellingham in the second half of the final against Spain and saw how he demanded that Southgate do something after the 0-1 defeat could see how much pressure was ultimately placed on the relationship between the team and the coach.
Some, such as former international player and current expert Gary Lineker, are already dreaming of the greatest possible solution as England’s national coach: Jürgen Klopp, who is taking a break from football after his premature, self-imposed exit from Liverpool, has recently played a lot of padel, but was also in the stadium for the European Championship final in Berlin.
The Guardian writes: “He may be a bit too big for the job. But he would be absolutely perfect.” And continues: “Klopp, like Southgate, is a culture creator, a process maker. He has the warmth and charisma to recharge the stage. He is like Southgate’s cooler, bigger, much more successful cousin.”
At the beginning of September, England will face Ireland and Finland after being relegated to Group B of the Nations League. Bullingham made it clear on Tuesday that the FA would initially work with an interim coach if the big solution could not yet be implemented.
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