Gareth Southgate bows out of England job

After 102 games, 61 wins and four tournaments, Gareth Southgate has stepped down as England manager.

His decision comes after two consecutive defeats in the European Championship final, to Italy in 2021 and Spain on Sunday. At 11 o’clock this morning, on England’s official X account, the news of Southgate’s departure from his managerial role was confirmed.

The message read: “After 102 games and almost eight years in charge, Gareth Southgate has announced he is to leave his role as manager of the #ThreeLions.”

Only Sir Walter Winterbottom (139), from 1946 to 1962, and Sir Alf Ramsey (113), Winterbottom’s successor from 1963 to 1974, have managed more games, putting Southgate in great company.

image from express.co.uk

Southgate stated: “As a proud Englishman, it has been the honour of my life to play for England and to manage England. It has meant everything to me, and I have given it my all.

But it’s time for change, and for a new chapter. Sunday’s final in Berlin against Spain was my final game as England manager.”

Joining the FA in 2011 Southgate has risen through the ranks. Managing the England Academy and representing England as the under-21s head coach, Gareth inherited the top job as England manager in 2016, following an unsuccessful Sam Allardyce tenure.

image from skysports.com

The subsequent years saw Southgate take England to four major tournaments, including two World Cups and two European Championships. This follows a bitterly disappointing exit from the Euro 2016 in France, where England were eliminated 2-1 by Iceland in the Round of 16, with Roy Hodgson in charge.

Southgate’s reconfiguration of the England national team led them to an appearance in the 2018 World Cup semi-final in Russia, which resulted in another 2-1 defeat to Croatia. However, their journey to a European final against Italy in 2021 cemented Gareth’s compatibility for the role, which again ended in heartbreak.

image from talksport.com

The question now is who will take over the England managerial role. Two names who have been circulated in the British press are Newcastle manager, Eddie Howe, and ex-Brighton and Chelsea manager, Graham Potter.

Howe expressed his managerial capabilities at AFC Bournemouth, over two spells at the club, from 2008 to 2011 and 2012 to 2020, where he brought the team up to the Premier League from League Two. In 2021, Newcastle brought the English manager up north where he has, again, impressed, reinstating Newcastle’s European presence during the 2023/24 season. Unfortunately for Newcastle, they were drawn into the ‘group of death’, consisting of Dortmund, Paris Saint Germain and AC Milan, and didn’t progress further than the group stage.

Potter, on the other hand, has been out of a job for over twelve months, after his sacking from Chelsea at the end of the 2022/23 Premier League season. His resume also includes that of his time at Brighton and Hove Albion, where he managed the squad from 2019 to 2022.