Gareth Southgate, end of an era?

Gareth Southgate has led England to their best European finishes in decades, fourth in the 2018 World Cup, runners-up at Euro 2021 and knocked out in the quarter finals of the 2022 World Cup against France. However, many fans have started to pick apart Southgate's England squads and tactics, as they believe Southgate's reign over the national team is running out of time and quick. For a man who has taken them to their best finishes in international tournaments in decades, the England fans are running out of patience and respect. What seemed to work before has stopped, and some of Southgate's managerial choices seem odd and out of place. With the problem of an ageing England squad, as well as some poor recent results in the Euros qualifiers, could Gareth Southgate soon be sacked as the England manager?

England have been on a downwards spiral as of recent, big stars like Jude Bellingham have gotten injuries which have forced them out of the England camp which have had a big effect on morale as well as the overall skill ceiling of this England team. However, Southgate has also received criticism about the squad depth and that young or exciting players aren't being included in the England team. An example being James Ward Prowse not being included, but players such as Jordan Henderson, who many fans don't see as someone getting near the England squad after his controversial move to Saudi Arabian side Al-Ettifaq, being included in the England squad and other midfielders like Cole Palmer not being there instead (Cole Palmer did eventually come into the England squad, but only as a replacement to the injured Jude Bellingham). As well as this, those young players don't get to play much as they are mostly sat on the bench for other, typically older players to start games, with Southgate bringing other players on as subs, even if they perform better than the starters. Southgate's unwillingness to experiment with his teams has made some fans believe that he is unable to make his tactics work with a diverse set of players and choosing to not adapt his tactic for newer sets of players, no matter how skilled they are. This creates problems for when these older players hang up their international boots and retire, a real threat considering the age of some of England's star players such as Harry Kane. Southgate either must get the younger players to understand his tactics and to give them chances to succeed or adapt his tactics so that the younger players can play to their strengths.

As well as this, England's recent results have been unacceptable from the standpoint of many fans. The results include barely beating teams such as Malta and Australia and drawing to Ukraine and North Macedonia, the latter whom England beat 7-0 at home back in June. Whilst England still topped their Euros qualifier group, these results have left fans with a sour taste in their mouths as they believe England should be beating these kinds of teams with ease if they want to win an international trophy. With the Euros coming up in 2024, these kinds of results will need to start improving before then, otherwise England risk being embarrassed in the Euros, just like they were in 2016 when they were knocked out by Iceland. However, England's fixture list gets much harder, as both Brazil and Belgium will arrive at Wembley in March, two fixtures that would worry most England fans right now. If this England team cannot beat a team ranked 66th in the world away from home, how will they be able to beat the South American and European giants, no matter home or away. Many England fans believe that they the squad itself can beat these two teams, or at least getting a draw, however they don't believe in the 4-2-3-1 tactic that Southgate employs and how they play in it.

However, England may find it difficult to sack Gareth Southgate for many reasons, one of which being that the one thing that Gareth Southgate does have is a strong reputation as an international manager. This is something that came with the England job and one for which he has had to work hard. A 4th place World Cup finish in his first tournament is not something that managers can fluke, especially with a team that not many predicted to go far in the tournament. He then added a Euros final and a World Cup quarter final to his list and has rebuilt England into a powerhouse, one we did not see under managers such as Fabio Cappello and Roy Hodgson as well as many more. These finishes have proven that Southgate is a manager who can perform when the pressure is on against big teams such as Germany. If England were to sack Southgate, then they lose a key factor as to why England got to those places in tournaments and lose someone who has the experience of pressure in those situations.

Furthermore, another question lies in who would replace Gareth Southgate, and would they be good enough to get to where the fans expect them to be. A few names have been thrown around for the potential England job, such as Newcastle manager Eddie Howe to take the reins of the national team, but nothing has been reported as to if there is a search for the next potential manager. Other out managers out of a job include Frank Lampard and Graham Potter which could be seen as potential replacements, seeing as they are both English and have managed in the topflight, both with Chelsea. However, fans don't feel like they would be suitable candidates with the fact that they were both sacked by Chelsea due to their poor league position at the time. Lionesses’ manager Sarina Wiegman has also been linked as a replacement should Southgate go after her success at the Woman's Euros 2022, as well as her runners-up place at the Woman's World Cup. Mark Bullingham, the CEO of the FA admitted that Wiegman would be considered as Southgate's successor, however Wiegman has said that she is happy with the Lionesses and does not have a desire to work in the men's game. So, with that, the list of candidates seems to shrink smaller and smaller of those who would be good replacements for Southgate should he leave.

So, Gareth Southgate has done a heck of a lot for England and have fans hope to win a tournament when there was none, after their disgraceful exit at Euro 2016. England fans should be thankful for Southgate as he drove this team to finishes that many fans did not think was possible and gave the fans memories that they would never forget, including Luke Shaw's opener at Wembley for England at Euro 2020. However, all good things must also end. With the squad arguably better than previous tournaments and with some of the best players in the world ready to fight for glory, Southgate cannot be allowed to slip up and not show how dominant this England can be, which has been what has happened as of recent. Games that England should be winning with ease they have drawn or only just scraped past much weaker teams such as Malta. Southgate now must perform in the next England fixtures in March and show both the fans and the FA why he should be the one to lead England into Euro 2024. If he does not, then England risk having to go into the tournament without a manager, and once again opening them up to potential embarrassment in the tournament which they got to the final in only 3 years ago. Southgate's time with England may be ending within the next year depending on how he performs in 2024, but the memories he and his England team have made will live on for much longer.