Gareth Southgate's contract as England manager expires in December and replacement candidates have already been identified
Gareth Southgate(Image credit: Getty Images)
Gareth Southgate has been told his tenure as England manager should have naturally come to an end after the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.
The Three Lions boss has once again faced wholesale criticism for his tactics and selections at Euro 2024, with England so far largely unimpressive in their two showings against Serbia and Denmark. With a chance to qualify as group winners against Slovenia on Tuesday, the 53-year-old is expected to make changes.
Given talk of his future has naturally quietened ever since the month-long tournament began, it is also worth remembering Southgate is only under contract until December and England's performance in Germany could either extend or call time on his time on his role as national team boss.
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According to one former England international, Southgate's time at the helm should have been called a long time ago, given the Three Lions have failed to win a major tournament ever since he was appointed back in 2016.
“As l wrote earlier today in reply to someone calling for the England coach’s head: He should have went after he himself let Italy off the hook at Wembley with the first piece of silverware since 1966 in touching distance," Alan Hudson recently told Football365.
“I sat with my pal Donald Shanks (former QPR, Luton, Fulham and Brighton) watching the team get an incredible start inside the first five minutes at Wembley and we agreed right then with the Italians rocking that he should unleash all of his best players sitting next to him on the bench.
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“Against Denmark with a 1-0 lead l looked at Ivan Toney, Ollie Watkins and Cole Palmer and the same thoughts went through my head, after all we were now through unless going down that same negative Southgate Safety Route.
“My good friend Frank Lampard was on the panel and it hit me that although he messed up at Chelsea – messing with old team-mates – he would be the perfect man for the England job as he has made it clear at Derby County that he trusts young talent and wouldn’t think twice about going down the route of Spain who have the excellence of a 16-year-old (Lamine Yamal) teasing his seniors in Italian shirts."
Matthew is a Freelance Journalist and has racked up bylines for Manchester United, Manchester Evening News, GOAL and SPORTbible to name a few. A long-term sufferer of Scunthorpe United, he currently resides in the north-west after escaping the smog of North Lincolnshire.
