Gareth Southgate has promised to make a quick decision about his England future after the Euro 2024 final, with his squad united in the hope that he signs a contract extension to lead them into the World Cup qualifiers.
There is considerable appetite within the Football Association for Southgate, whose deal expires at the end of the year, to continue and potentially extend his tenure to a decade. But he has been clear that a topsy-turvy tournament, which will end in glory if England defeat Spain in Berlin, is no arena in which to reach conclusions. Those will have to wait but he does not expect it to take long.
“The way my emotions have gone over the last five weeks, it would be ridiculous for me to think about anything beyond this game,” he said. “We’ve got time to make decisions and I won’t need weeks, but also I think I’ve earned the right to give myself a few days just to think things through. I know where it would have been if we went out in the group stage, that’s for sure. I have a pretty good idea in my head.”
It is easy enough to draw the inference that he would have stood down if an unconvincing group stage showing had ended in disaster. “I don’t think that would necessarily have been my choice,” he said, but the picture has altered dramatically since and Southgate has the backing of his players, who are desperate to see him carry on.
There was no misunderstanding Declan Rice when he summed up the group’s stance. “I know for a fact the lads would love him to stay on until 2026 – there is no doubt about that,” the Arsenal midfielder said. “The way he looks after us, how calm he is, how he is as a man-manager, how he is on the training pitch with us, he’s top.
“None of us have spoken to him about it, that’s none of our business. Whatever he wants to do, whatever makes him happy, I’m sure he’ll make the right decision. But I’m sure he’s got the backing of everyone to stay.”
Southgate refreshed his squad this summer; it has been the third-youngest at the tournament and that will heighten the sense of achievement if they lift the trophy at the Olympiastadion in Berlin. He is aware of their potential but balanced that with the exhortation that they need to seize their chance to become heroes.
“When you look at the age profile of the team, there are lots of parts that are going to be there for a long time,” he said. “The World Cup in two years, the Euros at home. But that doesn’t necessarily mean that it is just going to happen. Other countries progress, not all of ours might progress. This is why you have to take these moments when they come.
“After the last final [against Italy in 2021], of course we were saying we want to learn from this and come back from this, but [at the World Cup] we are out in the quarters. You couldn’t be certain we would be in the position that we are in now.”
All of England’s players were fit to train for the final time at their base in Blankenhain. Kieran Trippier had been a concern with a groin problem and it remains to be seen whether Luke Shaw, who replaced him at half-time against the Netherlands on Wednesday, comes in from the start. “I said before the semis that I was ready to go and we’ll just have to wait and see what happens,” said Shaw, who recently returned from four months on the sidelines.
During his pre-match press conference at Sunday’s venue, Southgate said he believed England “have to get this trophy to really feel the respect of the football world”. He was reminded Germany won a European Championship in England 28 years ago. He famously missed a critical penalty against the eventual winners and was asked whether, with the prospect of turning the tables, he believed in fate.
“I was probably one of the more popular Englishmen in Berlin [in 1996],” he joked. “I’m not a believer in fairytales but I am a believer in dreams. We’ve had big dreams but then you have to make those things happen. The run we’ve had, late goals, penalties, that doesn’t equate to this being our moment: we have to make it happen. It would be a lovely story, but it’s in our hands.”
Sitting to Southgate’s left, Harry Kane was invited to savour the prospect of winning his first major trophy in an otherwise glittering career. “It’s no secret I haven’t won a team trophy and as every year goes by you’re more determined to change that,” he said. “Tomorrow I have a chance to win one of the biggest so no question, I’d swap everything I’ve done in my career to have a special night.”
Southgate explained there were no plans for bombastic speeches before England look to take their place in history. “They don’t need motivating for a game like this,” he said. “It’s about getting the small details right. Fine margins decide these games and it’s about making sure we are on the right side of them.”
The public rallying cry fell to Rice, who will again partner Kobbie Mainoo. “The lads know this is go-time,” he said. “This is do-or-die. We’re not going to leave anything in the changing room. We’re ready to change our lives, to change everyone’s lives in the country for ever.”