Gareth Southgate has warned his England players they may never get a better chance of winning a trophy. And Southgate has even dropped a major hint that he could stay on as England manager if they end up winning the Euros in 2024.
Southgate leads England into the start of the qualifying campaign believing his squad can win the tournament but says the youngsters in the squad should not take it for granted while Harry Kane turns 30 next summer.
Three Lions boss Southgate nearly quit after the World Cup last December but decided to stay on and see out the remaining 18 months of his contract. But has now suggested that he could do another U-turn and remain in charge beyond 2024.
Southgate said: “I think you have to be careful as a player not to assume when you’re younger that this might not be your last chance as well.
“Of course you’re always going to think you’re going to have other opportunities but injury, form, new players coming through in your position, you can never take that for granted. Yes, clearly the older ones know the timescale is quite clear. But everybody else has to be mindful of that as well.”
Southgate was then asked whether winning the Euros next year would be his last chance of a trophy after England’s recent near misses. But Southgate smiled as he teased he might not be leaving after all if they become European champions. “Well, that depends if we win!” laughed Southgate. “Let’s hope we’ve got that opportunity to make that decision!”
Southgate also insisted that leading England to glory was still his biggest target as a manager as he looks to start with a win and to end a dismal run of not winning in Italy since 1961.
Southgate added: “This is one of the greatest challenges anybody could have, trying to get England a trophy. That’s pretty straight forward. The hard part is that you have to wait 18 months to get to the point where you will actually be judged. As I said, we have to make sure we get the qualification right. We can’t take anything for granted.”
Jude Bellingham was the big breakthrough star at the last World Cup and Southgate claimed Reece James can follow his example. That will keep England fresh and mean that a new crop of stars are ready to come through.
He said: “The team is always evolving. You’re always looking at young players that when is the right moment to put them in, not just to start a couple of games, but when is the right moment for them to become a fixture in the team.
“That happened again with Jude most recently and we have got one or two others who are just on the fringes we are hoping to give that opportunity to in the coming 12 months.
“Hard to predict exactly when that will happen and when is the right moment for them to go ahead of some of the experienced players and of course on nights like in Italy you need a balance of both.
“We went pretty early with Bukayo Saka and Jude, Reece is obviously pushing around that as well. We’ve got some exciting players and it’s about looking at their progression, looking at when is the right time to really let them go.”
Southgate has often used Grealish as an impact substitute but says his form for Manchester City underlines his value on the biggest stage.
“He's definitely in a good moment, playing, as you say, starting the big games for his club, so that's good to see. I think his all-round game has improved," the Three Lions boss added.
“He looks more comfortable there, he looks as though he really believes he's part of it and we of course are missing a couple there but we know in a game like this, he can take the ball and he can receive under pressure and that's a key attribute that can help us in the game when we're trying to get a hold of possession.
“We’ve got a lot of quality in those areas, and there's always going to be debate at various times as to who might be the right ones to start, that argument also moves with form. But the good thing from our point of view is he's here, he's in the building, we've got him with us and he's in really good form.”
