Despite all the criticism, Gareth Southgate’s England squad qualified for their second-consecutive Euros final where they face Spain.
Southgate’s tactics have come under a lot of scrutiny, often being criticised for his tactics hamstringing what many perceive as England’s golden generation, especially in attack.
However, a functional approach has seen England reach the latter stages of every major tournament under Southgate, with a quarterfinal exit in the 2022 World Cup their worst display so far.
Rio Ferdinand, who was a part of many England teams that are now synonymous with underachieving, identified the key issue that Gareth Southgate has fixed, giving an example of a former United teammate to hammer home the point.
Ferdinand’s teammate ‘couldn’t wait to leave United’
Ferdinand spoke on the Rest is Football podcast with Gary Lineker and Alan Shearer and decoded the change in England’s mentality which has led them to success under Southgate.
He said the cliques that formed out of club rivalries translated to the national team when he was a part of the squad. It led to the players never feeling connected to each other, the byproduct of which could be seen in laboured displays in games.
The former United man gave the example of England’s opponents in the final, for the stark contrast in the atmosphere at both places to stress his point, naming his former United teammate who “couldn’t wait to leave United” to join up with his international teammates.
He said: “Spain are a great example. David de Gea, he couldn’t wait to leave United and go and join up with the national team. We used to sit there scratching our heads and think, ‘How are they bouncing away to their squad while a lot of us [England players] are dragging their heels?'”
Ferdinand said that it is a “miracle” that Southgate has managed to achieve the same with England, fixing a long-running problem with the Three Lions.
He said: “What he’s done, it’s nothing short of a miracle. No one could get the England squad to feel like they were a family, give that club feel. That is with all the other teams that win.
“What Gareth has done, in managing the media, the players, creating the environment that they want to go to, he’s been brilliant.”
The England narrative
Many ex-players of the past have made no secret of the fact that the club rivalries, which used to be more intense and confrontational in the past, played a huge role in the players suffering for the national team.
From Gary Neville to Frank Lampard, and Steven Gerrard to Rio Ferdinand, the players could never get over their desire to get one over the other for 38 matchdays in the Premier League.
Under Southgate, it has become a regular theme where players, regardless of the club affiliations, stick up for each other, even publicly, risking some wrath from fans of the club.
The likes of Jadon Sancho showing support for Bukayo Saka despite not being with the squad is a great example of the togetherness cultivated that permeates through every English players, part of the squad or not.
Youngsters like Kobbie Mainoo have been welcomed with open arms and took to playing for England like usual instead of carrying the weight of club rivalries with them. His partnership with Arsenal man Declan Rice is the platform on which England’s solidity is build from.
It is why pundits like Ferdinand have such great respect for this intangible part of the job Southgate has succeeded at.
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