Southgate shouts begin as six points back sensational England return and ‘redemption story’ | OneFootball

Perhaps Gareth Southgate wasn’t all that bad, and deserves another shot at Thomas Tuchel’s England job in the ‘ultimate redemption story’?

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What now?

​So, it looks like the FA have decided they liked what they saw and want more of the same. Sticking with Tuchel is probably the honourable thing to do after they literally put all their eggs in his basket on the basis of a decent win over Serbia. Nice man, great pressers. All talk.

The fallout from this World Cup feels a lot more devastating that any others I can remember. Kane has undoubtedly been our greatest striker ever but he is reaching the end of his career, he won’t be here for the next World Cup so, like they do in Rugby Union, maybe we need to start thinking of the next cycle rather than just playing until he’s done. My guess is he’ll hang on for the Euros but then anyone stepping in will have limited game time and we’ll only be two years away form the next World Cup. Much as I love Kane, now is the time to phase him out. Trouble is, where are his successors? Looking at the list of strikers under the age of 30 anywhere near a first team and we have Liam Delap. That’s it. He’s literally our only option. He did look promising before he went to Chelsea, he has the ability so bring him in now so he can learn from Kane and build a reputation. This is where Lee Carsley would have been a sensible choice, he’s been instrumental in bringing players through and experiencing success at the yoof levels but no, the FA wanted a ‘proven winner’.

Centre backs? That World Cup squad looks very old all of a sudden. Guehi looked alright, Konsa does not look like a tournament winner, Stones is too old, Burn no where near good enough. We need to be looking outside the WC squad and getting some experience into the likes of Braithwaite and Levis Colwell. Again, we have had success with the youth teams so why don’t we try and pull them through to the seniors as a group?

We missed a chance to give a whole host of young players with potential some real World tournament experience but took players like Henderson and Burn and gap fillers. My fear is that Tuchel’s back is now against the wall so he will double down on his squad and try and take the majority to the Euros.

We all saw the fear that England teams used to play with, Robson, Taylor, Sven, Capello, Hodgson – none of them could shift it. Now the fear is back and Tuchel is going to have to do something radical to shift it. Tom. The catharsis of writing in has saved my sanity – so thanks for being there 365!

Southgate…in?

So I’ve seen some pundits bound about the notion that this was a good experience for Tuchel to “understand international tournament football”. Now I may be crazy here but on the wages that Tuchel is on I don’t think we should be getting a “learn on the job” kind of guy, world cups only come around every 4 years and players careers at their peaks only last around 8 years if they’re lucky so it’s not like there’s exactly time to bed in.

This did get me thinking though and this may be me looking back through rose tinted glasses but if this is a factor…..what if we got Gareth back in? Hear me out.

Granted it ended on a bit of a low and he never got that elusive trophy but he did get us to multiple semi finals and finals with an at those tournaments underperforming Kane and a not fully matured Bellingham. Hell, the first team he took deep into a tournament we were all half expecting a group stage exit!

Look at his CV if he hadn’t already managed England:

– tournament experience – pedigree of taking teams deep into knockouts – track record of developing young talent – knows the players – knows the “club” – available

If he hadn’t already managed England then I’m sure the FA would be sniffing around.

There isn’t much time for a manager to get “up to speed” but for him that’s not a problem. We’ve broken up for a bit, we’ve gone away and had some time to reflect.

This could be England’s equivalent of the last dance.

Kane, Pickford, Maguire in the twilight of their careers. Southgate coming back for one last roll of the dice. Back to where it all started, back to Wembley, back to where they now share Southgate’s pain, back to put all the wrongs right.

It’s the ultimate redemption story. Anthony, Kilburn

TT is no scapegoat

I’m not buying any of the punditocracies scapegoating our manager .

The players were physically and mentally knackered , the coaching team saw the players retreating , akin to their cojones retreating within them . It was a huge occasion , Pickford was poorly positioned for the goal .

Argentina are framing it as an epic comeback akin to United v Bayern .

Rooney doesn’t have a leg to stand on with his world cup no-shows . Peter ( hoping Spain win the final ) Andalucia

Beating the favourites

If I can get a quick right of reply to Hodge regarding England beating decent teams.

Firstly, I was talking about the World Cup. If we include the euros as well, then yes, England did beat the joint 4th favourites at home. Congratulations. They beat a German team who failed to progress from their group at the world cups either side of Euro 2020. I don’t think even the most optimistic German would have them tipped for the title.

The comment about the Netherlands is irrelevant. I never said England don’t beat decent teams. Norway are a decent team. I said England don’t and haven’t beaten the favourites.

The point still stands. When England play the favourites, they lose. The sole exception is 1966 (again a home tournament).

We could extend it further and say that England have never, in the history of international football, beaten one of the favourites in a knockout match on foreign soil. That’s why they will continue to be a b-tier nation.

But hey, guess where there next euros are? So you never know. Mike, LFC, Dubai

As an outsider looking in at the English national team, and listening to the comments since the Argentina match about how they blew it, England were unlucky, Tuchel bottle it etc.. There is a blind spot the fans, journalists etc have, which is that England are not that good.

They’re no better than Denmark or Greece.

Denmark, England and Greece have each won one major senior international men’s cup. England’s last win was 60 years ago now, a lot longer than the other two nations. You could throw Portugal in there too, and if you want, add in Chile (I know Chile won it twice since 66) and Colombia for the Copa America.

Yet, there is a belief, almost divine right, that England should do well in every tournament they are in. That they should get to final’s and win. But what have they actually achieved. They’ve gotten to two WC semi finals, Belgium have gotten to the same amount since 66, should they be expected to do the same each tournament? England got to the final’s of Euro 2021, I’d but a massive asterisk on that because of covid and the very favourable draw. And even then lost to a not great Italian team.

And I’ve seen this belief first hand. I was at Euro 2016, with a good friend of mine Luke (we’re both Irish) and his roommate and his friends (all English). We were all at Ireland v Italy, and had a great night. The draw wasn’t finalised until after that match, as that was the last of the group games.

So once they were confirmed to have gotten Iceland, which we all agreed was a favourable draw, they all went to book their accommodation. Not just for the Iceland match, but for the round after as they were so confident that Iceland wouldn’t pose a problem (I think one was even going to book the semi final too). My friend and I, being Irish and naturally pessimistic, advised them not to do so as you have to play Iceland first, it would be bad luck, who knows what could happen etc. Yet they went ahead, and it turned out as we expected.

And this happens each tournament. You had that eejet Rory Jennings saying “we’ll smash Argentina 3-0”, “we’ll send Messi home crying” and actually believing themselves. Pundits saying that Argentina are not that good of a team, deriding the leagues were some of their players play. Yet when the game is played, it’s usually England that come up short.

You may say that England were unlucky. I would say that they were lucky to win a WC in the first place. They were definitely lucky to get as far as a semi final this time around. And the reality that England are “all trousers and no show” needs to be accepted. There needs to be more humility and pessimism about England’s odds of doing well. As their record of coming up short speaks for itself.

(Maybe I’m too pessimistic) Michael Dixon

It was fairly obvious that the English were really getting ahead of themselves game by game this tournament. Whether it was the fans, pundits or media (F365 include). People were acting like Tuchel was a genius when in reality it was just more of the same of what Southgate had done previously.

Beating Congo, Mexico and Norway was obviously expected and it’s not as if England were brilliant in any of those games. The Harry Kane situation is very odd. He really just doesn’t seem to do well in games that matter the most. He scores a lot from penalties and then looks lethargic against the big sides. The Rice criticism is very odd. It’s insulting to compare him to Scott McTominay. He has far more to his game. He’s the best player for the Premier League champions and a team that nearly won the CL. He isn’t the problem. Every side would love a player like Declan Rice. Dion

The English misery machine

I think the replies to my mail actually prove my point for me.

I said there’s a small, loud slice that turns every setback into misery and moral judgement. In response, I got “I’m afraid that regardless of language, you are completely wrong” followed by “Yeah, well, whatever” with no real argument, plus phrases like “most catastrophic example of cowardly mismanagement in the history of football”, “rolled over and bent over”, and comparisons to Germany’s meltdown against Paraguay.

That’s exactly the emotional gap I was talking about.

Plenty of serious football nations hammer coaches and tactics. What they don’t usually do is treat a late 2–1 semi‑final defeat to the defending champions as if it’s the same thing as a genuine humiliation against a weaker side.

You can argue about back fours, back sixes, substitutions and pressing – that’s football. But when the default vocabulary is “cowardice”, “capitulation” and “bent over”, we’re not analysing a match any more, you’re just feeding that very English misery machine.

I still think losing late to Messi’s genius after a brilliant tournament is something you can be proud and gutted about at the same time, without calling it cowardice or a historic disgrace.

The fact I’ve moved on and this is still being dissected like a national trauma says more about the English relationship with football than it does about one semi‑final. Tom (four and a half languages) Joe

Stop being so English

Rita Mae Brown (not Albert Einstein) defined madness as “doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result.”

By Brown’s reasoning, the England national team—and the fans who insist “It’s coming home”—have been trapped in a 70-year psychosis.

Time and again, England select tall, strong, high-stamina players. Time and again, they are knocked out by nations with technically superior squads.

For years this was inevitable; academies prioritised physical attributes over skill. Outliers like Jack Grealish were exotic and exciting, which explains the perennial clamour for players in his mould.

In 2026, it doesn’t have to be this way. Djed Spence was excellent at both ends of the pitch against Argentina, yet Nico O’Reilly, Lewis Hall and Myles Lewis-Skelly are all more technically proficient, having started their careers as central midfielders. Spence offered industry; the others could have provided artistry.

If that sounds harsh on Spence, ask yourself which of those four a Spain or France would select.

On the opposite flank, injured players and square pegs were forced into round holes while one of England’s most creative talents watched from a five-star resort. Trent Alexander-Arnold has defensive deficiencies, but a different style of football would mask them.

In midfield, the 200m+ pairing of Declan Rice and Elliot Anderson never sparkled. Anderson was meant to unlock Rice, but the Arsenal man looked ill and knackered throughout—largely because he was. Even at full fitness, Rice and Anderson are hardly a creative partnership. Their midfield dominates through pressing, intercepting and tackling. Box-to-box Rice is Steven Gerrard for a new generation,

Adam Wharton offers something different: dangerous passes from deep. Critics say the team would need to be built around him. So, build the team around him. Place Rice or Anderson alongside to do the dirty work, even if it slightly restricts Rice. Hell, play Reece James (hamstrings permitting) beside him so Wharton can drop into right-back when Alexander-Arnold pushes forward.

On the wings, Anthony Gordon is worth keeping: he is direct, quick and makes runs in behind. There is no need to throw the baby out with the bathwater.

Noni Madueke, by contrast, is an uninspiring choice. Cole Palmer, Morgan Rogers and Bukayo Saka all offer more in ball retention and end product.

In a system which favours more patient build-up, you might even see the best of Phil Foden in an England shirt.

Combine the above with Harry Kane and Jude Bellingham, and England would have a squad capable of dominating the ball, beating the press and forcing opponents to work harder than they would like to.

Perhaps such a squad would not look shattered in the latter stages of a tournament after avoiding early life-and-death battles against the likes of DR Congo, Mexico and Norway.

When Spain went 1-0 up against France, they did not drop deep into a back five and bring on a giant from the North East. They limited France’s chances by limiting their possession.

Times have changed. England now produces technically gifted footballers who could do the same on the world stage. It’s time for whoever is in the dugout to recognise it.

You’ve tried winning the tournament by being very English about it since ’66. It hasn’t worked. What’s the harm in trying to be a bit more Spanish?

P.S. If the fans could be a bit more Scottish, that would be great too. John, Glasgow

Supporting Argentina

Pretty sure I’m gonna be in the minority here but I’m gonna fess up – I’ll be supporting Argentina on Sunday. And here’s why…..

The majority of English fans will support Spain because;

A) Argentina beat us in the semis. Yes. Deservedly. They were the better team. B) The Falklands. Well, that’s f**k all to do with football, they probably have a decent claim, it’s 40-odd years ago and I’m not picking a team to support in the World Cup final based on jingoistic bullsh*t – much as my cross will never ever ever go anywhere near Farage and his cronies on a ballot box. C) the hand of god goal – yup, we were cheated. But Shilton should’ve done better and it it were at other end we’d have erected a statue for who ever smashed into the net with his hand. D) Beck’s sending off – well how can anyone argue that? He was a d*ck, no conspiracy.

Yet I’ll support Argentina because looking past all of that Spain for about a decade ruined football. The entire game. Tiki taka b*llocks, we’ll just keep the ball, pass it around and bore everyone to death waiting for the opposition to make a mistake and then score. Ruined the game as a spectacle at international level, ruined the game at club level when everyone tried to copy it, saw the end of blood and thunder 4-4-2 we’ll go at you you go at us and we’ll hope to score more, saw the loss of a left footer on the left wing and a right footer on the right wing knocking in crosses to the giant two centre forwards to be replaced by cutting inside on the wrong foot to then pass sideways or back.

F**k that. C’mon old school footie and c’mon the Argies Joel, manchester

Who won the transfer window?

I look forward to the pointless coming up argument of who won the transfer window to put the world cup behind us but will add my two penneth first…

I think our biggest problem for tournament football is the Premier league. Out of the top leagues the premier league is the one with the most competitive matches. Barca, Real, Bayern or PSG do not face as many tough matches as Arsenal or City or our other top clubs where many of the England players come from. This means poor little Declan and co play every minute of every game. No rest for games against any minnows and very little opportunity to give him a rest when the team is 3-0 up because it doesn’t happen. The only rest our top players get is when they get withdrawn from England squads with a niggle. Another thing that helps make our teams look like a group who’ve just met in the car park before the game. FYI, the countries with the most premier league players in their squads are England (19) and Holland (15). Spain have 7, Argentina 6 and France just 4

I was hoping to back this up with some beefy stats but it’s too much effort to try and check minutes played as you’d also need to factor in injuries. Some of it is also subjectively made up in my head. I’m sure Declan playing a full 90 minutes against Wolves to earn that 1-0 victory is more stressful on the body than Harry Kane staying the full 90 mins against Wolfsburg to try and complete his hattrick.

Declan Rice played 4925 mins of footy before the world cup – that’s 55 full games in basically 9 months at more than 6 games a month.He was not fully fit for the world cup and half our defence were crocked too. When Tuchel or anyone comes to pick the England squad for a tournament he has a bunch of players who are various degrees of knackered to choose from. When the premier league began they were supposed to reduce the number of teams to 18. This would have helped but it never happened.

Players need some rest to be fresh for the world cup and while there are so many games and clubs pay their players huge amounts to appear, nothing is going to change. Jon, Cape Town (not coming home)

A quandary

I am split between several narrartives about Enzo Fernandez’s Malvinas celebrations:

1) either he is a thick-as-a-brixk tw*t 2) or he is trying to force a movr away from the bridge 3) or, most likely: both

In all cases, an absolute lack of class.

BTW, Enzo, for the time being “Malvinas son Falklands” Radu Tomescu (Still @ The Dubliner in  Bucharest)