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Gareth Southgate said he has no regrets about speaking out in defence of the “fundamental human values” in a way that has brought him abuse and unpopularity in some quarters.
The England manager reflected that “we live in an angry country” as he expressed his hope that winning Euro 2024 could bring more unity and happiness.
And the 53-year-old, who has shown a greater willingness to discuss societal issues than his predecessors, said he believes his job means he has a duty to address important subjects.
Southgate has been an advocate of taking the knee, criticised racism abroad while admitting there is a problem with it in England and talked about the benefits of diversity, leading to accusations he is “woke” and bringing people telling him he should stick to football.
But he said: “I don’t regret it because I think this is a position of responsibility. You have a chance to make a difference in things that are important. I have my values. I never wanted to impose my values on people. But I think there are some fundamental human values that, if you get the chance to model them, then you should.”
Southgate has been booed by some England supporters in Euro 2024 and had beer cans thrown at him, but he hopes their progress to the final can offer some inspiration.
“If I’ve helped some kids, some adults, who feel they are living through criticism or whatever in the last few weeks, [by showing] there’s a way of trying to come through that and to show the perseverance, and things can change so quickly. For them it won’t be two football matches that make the difference. But hopefully they can find a way through whatever difficulties they might be having.
“I think those values are important. We live in what’s been an angry country. I would love that to be different as we move forward. Hopefully we can bring some temporary happiness. But we’re not going to change our country either. Maybe we can deliver some good examples.”
