Southgate warns England stars to toe the line
English Football Association chief executive Martin Glenn said Thursday the body will take action against any club found guilty of “hushing up” victims of a growing scandal in British soccer. “That regime of how they have prepared for club matches is very similar to the national team”.
But his experience of tournament football both as a player (55 caps) and as a coach leading the Under-21s leaves him well-placed to “take England a bit further” in Russian Federation, according to Smith.
Sammy Lee has lost his job as England assistant manager as Gareth Southgate overhauls the setup, sources close to the former Liverpool midfielder have told ESPN FC.
But as it seems now, the new England manager does not doubt Rooney’s abilities and feels that he is still the right man to lead the team.
Southgate secured the role after impressing the FA in his four-game trial as interim manager following Sam Allardyce’s dismissal and in a three-year stint as England Under-21 boss.
Gareth Southgate’s suitability for the permanent England job was not only tested on the touchlines but in physiological assessments. Each level-headed assessment of where the England team now stands, and how they envisage progressing, was delivered with a sense of realism which, in truth, boded well.
“I think everyone knows how important Steve has been for me in terms of the work we’ve done in the last few years and in the last few weeks, there’s no secret in that”, said Southgate. But laying down the law is not necessary.
“And if they want to be top, top players, which I believe they do, they have got to recognise what are the things that are going to help us achieve that and what are the things that are going to detract from that”.
“If we’re going to be successful we need to develop leadership, develop resilience and that’s one of the key areas”.
“But the days are gone from when I was younger, where we did have beers after a game”.
Southgate tried his best not to address the controversy directly, rather seeming keen to treat it as an opportunity.
“I think at that time (in July) there would have been a perception about someone being promoted internally through the organization”, Southgate said. “Some things I kept in place”. However, Im also conscious that getting the job is one thing, now I want to do the job successfully.
Southgate, meanwhile, has also revealed there is no break clause in his four-year contract worth £1.8m-a-year. I said a few weeks ago that some jobs are more hard than others, some are more complex.
“Gareth came through that process – who have we seen, what did Gareth do – and that’s one of the reasons that he passed, if you like. That needs a longer contract than normal”.
“When I played for England at Euro 96, there were leaders throughout the team”. And ultimately that they’re proud of.
“First of all we need a clear style of play, a clear understanding of how we want to play”.
“Obviously it’s not the case that Wayne expects to play every game”. And now, nearly out of nowhere, we have Southgate, charged with forging a new team, a new attitude.