England’s players want Gareth Southgate to remain as manager after their gutting World Cup quarter-final exit.
An impressive Three Lions campaign was brought to a heartbreaking halt at Qatar’s Al Bayt Stadium on Saturday night after Harry Kane surprisingly blazed over a late penalty chance to restore parity against holders France.
The England skipper had earlier rifled home from the spot to equal Wayne Rooney’s all-time scoring record for his country and cancel out Aurelien Tchouameni’s arrowed long-range strike, but could not repeat that feat after Olivier Giroud’s header in an agonising loss in Al Khor.
Attentions will now quickly turn towards Southgate’s future, with the boss leaving it uncertain in his immediate post-match interview.
“I think after every tournament we’ve sat and reviewed and reflected,” Southgate told ITV Sport. “That needs a little bit of time to make sure that everybody makes the right decision.”
Southgate is under contract with the Football Association (FA) until December 2024 after an extension signed last November and led another impressive run at a major tournament that included eye-catching wins over Senegal, Wales and Iran.
He also led England to the final of Euro 2020 on home soil last summer and to the World Cup semi-finals in Russia four years ago in an unprecedented run at big competitions, but Southgate’s stock among fans fell notably between tournaments with a disastrous run of form and embarrassing Nations League campaign.
The likes of Luke Shaw had spoken of their desire to see Southgate stay on in the role regardless of the outcome against France, thoughts that were quickly echoed by the likes of Kane, Harry Maguire and Kyle Walker after the full-time whistle.
“It’s down to him,” Kane said of the manager’s future. “We love having him as a manager, I think he’s been incredible. When you see where he’s taken us from to where we are now, it’s an amazing leap. I think we all hope he stays, but it’s his decision.
“He’ll obviously go away and review that, before we know it we’ll be getting ready for the Euros.”
“The players love Gareth,” said Maguire, who came so close to scoring himself in the second half against France with a header that grazed the post. “From one to 11, the players absolutely love Gareth.
“He’s been amazing with each and every one of us, his man-management skills, the way he sets us up. I know a lot of people have different views because he’s the England manager and when he picks the squad there are always players who shouldn’t be there and players who need to be there.
“And then when he picks his starting XI, again he gets a lot of stick. That’s the privileges of being the England manager. But you can see how far this team has come over this period of management. He knows what it takes to win these big matches.”
Walker - who said he would now have to review his own international future - added: “It’s not for me to discuss. For me personally he’s fantastic, a great man and a great coach. He’s got a great bunch of players.
“Whatever he feels is the right decision, that’s down to him. But the lads are fully behind him.”
