Despite making it to the 2024 European Championships final, England once again lost and just a few days after arriving back on home soil, Gareth Southgate decided he would be stepping down as the Three Lions manager, he said it’s “time for change.”
But did he do a good job during his eight-year tenure?
A recent survey conducted by Ipsos on the final weekend of the men’s Euros this summer, saw them interview a sample of 1,092 adults aged 18-75 across Great Britain, including 624 people based in England who support the men’s national team, 80% of them think Gareth Southgate did a good job as manager of the Three Lions, compared to just one in ten (12%) who think he did a poor job.
Even though Southgate said “it was time for change”, the fans interviewed seemed less sure, 54% of them said it wasn’t time for a change.
Below is a full breakdown of the results from the Ipsos survey:
- The England manager Gareth Southgate has done a good job and there is no need for change: 50%.
- The England manager Gareth Southgate has done a good job, but it is time for a change: 30%.
- The England manager Gareth Southgate has done a poor job, but now is not the time for change: 4%.
- The England manager Gareth Southgate has done a poor job, and now is the time for change: 8%.
Kunal Sapat from the England Block 109 fan group said: “We all believe that Southgate did a great job for England if you look back at when he took over, he changed the whole culture around the England team. Before he took over just look at the poor tournaments we had, despite having hugely talented players there never seemed to be that unity in any of the squads.
“What he did so well was bring a culture of togetherness within the England team, he grew the interest in the national team once again and got the whole country together, we would have never dreamt of seeing England in semi-finals and finals back-to-back in such a short time.
“Even though we didn’t bring a trophy home in his eight years, he has taken this England team further than any of his predecessors. We have been on the verge of success but even though we’ve narrowly missed out, he has given us some memories that will last a lifetime.
“It’s sad to see him go after all he’s done for us however, even before the euros final, regardless of the outcome there was a general feeling that this was his last tournament, it’s just a shame he couldn’t lift the trophy with the squad. But whatever he does next, he deserves tremendous credit for what he’s done for England and the memories he’s given us as fans.”
Southgates England record: 102 games in charge, 61 wins, 24 draws, 17 losses
Even though a lot of England fans wanted Southgate to walk away from the managerial position, his record as manager is one to be admired…
The 53-year-old is the third longest-serving England manager, only being beaten by the great Sir Alf Ramsey and Walter Winterbottom, but he is undoubtedly one of, if not the most successful managers England has ever had.
Throughout his tenure, England scored 213 goals and conceded just 72, and the Three Lions are the only team in Europe to have reached the quarter-finals of the last four major tournaments (FIFA World Cup 2018, UEFA EURO 2020, FIFA World Cup 2022 and UEFA EURO 2024).
- The five players to have featured most under Gareth are Harry Kane (81), Kyle Walker (70), John Stones (68), Jordan Pickford (68) and Harry Maguire (63).
- The five top goalscorers under Gareth are Kane (61), Raheem Sterling (18), Marcus Rashford (16), Bukayo Saka (12) and Harry Maguire (seven).
The only thing that could’ve topped his time in charge of England would have been to lift a major trophy for the first time since 1966.
Sapat added: “Southgate did have his fair share of critics, however, the majority of England’s regular travelling support have always backed him and the percentage of those who’ve backed him throughout his eight years is rightfully more than those criticising.
“However, it can be said that yes sometimes mistakes have been made and perhaps on some occasions he didn’t get some things right but overall he did brilliantly as manager of England. We only have to look back at the debacle of the Euro 2016 Iceland fiasco and the 2014 World Cup to realise just how bad things were and how well he’s done.”
Gareth’s successor – stick with an Englishman or look for someone new?
Well on the 7th of August 2024, English-Irish man Lee Carsley was announced as the new England manager on an interim basis.
He will oversee the squad for the upcoming Nations League games against the Republic of Ireland and Finland in September, but maybe more if he does well…
The 50-year-old has been in charge of the U21’s side for a few years, he most notably won the U21 Euros last year in Georgia and is highly thought of in the FA setup.
Some high profiled managers such as Eddie Howe, Jurgen Klopp, Mauricio Pochettino, and even Pep Guardiola have been rumoured to become Southgate’s potential successor, however, until they are set on a final replacement it’s ‘carseball’ for a while.
Sapat concluded: “Carsley has done a great job with the U21’s so hopefully he continue that with the senior team, however, let us just wait and see if he will be in charge for just those two games or a lot more.
“At this stage, it’s difficult to know who will be the ideal replacement for Southgate and lead the national team to glory, we all just hope that the next manager continues the togetherness we have seen in recent years and takes it one step further to bring us glory in 2026 and 2028.”
Sporty AF 