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England's Top 5 Moments in the Gareth Southgate Era
Blogs

England's Top 5 Moments in the Gareth Southgate Era

11/07/24 14:02

The legend of Gareth Southgate last night grew past the point of critical mass. I am convinced that when people hear a list of moments that came under his reign a century from now, they’ll just pass it off as another fairytale story to read to their kids before bedtime. How lucky we are to be living at a time where England doesn't simply roll over and accept defeat, but fight until the dying seconds, providing moments that last years, and some likely generations.

Ollie Watkins' brilliant winning goal last night against the Netherlands, clocked at 89 minutes 59 seconds, sent England through to their second consecutive European Championship final, and personified Southgate’s approach. England clearly struggled to break down the Dutch in the second half, and were under sustained set piece pressure towards the end of normal time.

But as is customary with Southgate’s England, they always somehow find a way to create that one last opportunity, that one last do or die moment.

Southgate’s tenure with England has been punctuated frequently with dramatic games, unbelievable goals, and wonderful moments. Honestly, I would struggle to make a top 10, so making a top five was nigh on impossible.

However, without further ado, here are the five best England moments under Gareth Southgate. Watkins’ late goal is up there with the very best, but as it inspired this entire enterprise, I can’t justify including it in this list. It will be objective, but that’s what is so fun about it …

5. England 2-1 Tunisia

The Russia World Cup 2018. Southgate’s first match at a major tournament since he was appointed coach in September 2016. England are still remembered for a sorry Euro 2016 defeat to Iceland in the round of 16. The time for redemption had come, but given it was Soutgate’s first managerial experience of tournament football, expectations weren’t high, certainly not as high as they are in the present day.

England led after 11 minutes after Kane had squeezed home a rebound after John Stones’ header was brilliantly saved, and they were looking comfortable. That is, until Kyle Walker carelessly laid an elbow across the face of Fakhreddine Ben Youssef competing for a cross, conceding a penalty which Tunisia duly converted.

The second half played out very similarly to most England group games in the previous 2 decades or so; total domination, but no end product. Half chance after half chance came and went, and still England had nothing to show for it.

However, they seemed to have perfected something that Tunisia had not: Set pieces, most specifically corners. Creating the now famed “love train” in which four or five players lined up together at the edge of the box, a 91st minute corner delivery found the head of Harry Maguire, and his perfect flick fell to that man again Harry Kane, who steered a header past the helpless Tunisia goalkeeper.

England had shown character and grit, and while it wasn’t the fanciest or most comfortable of wins, it was certainly a landmark moment for Southgate’s England, showing they had the hunger, passion and desire to compete until the very end. This late goal spurred them on, as they beat Panama 6-1 in the next group game, before losing 1-0 to Belgium to finish second in the group, providing them with the much easier half of the knockout draw, the first of many for Southgate’s men.

Their next game at the world cup was historic in so many ways, but we’ll come back to that later on …

4. Bellingham 90+5

Fast forward 6 years, and England find themselves in the Euro 2024 round of 16, and after once again finding the far easier side of the draw, there was optimism amongst fans despite failing to impress with their group stage performances.

Slovakia stood opposite to them, a rugged, stubborn defensive unit with significant threat on the counter attack. England started slowly, over-carefully even, and were punished for their hesitation, as Slovakia, who had started by far the brighter side, brought down a long ball, and a threaded pass through the defense found Ivan Schranz, who prodded home past Jordan Pickford in goal to give the Slovaks a shock lead.

Bear in mind that this is a very different looking England team to the one that stepped out against Tunisia six years previously. In those days, Ashley Young, Jesse Lingard and Ruben Loftus-Cheek were the ones threatening out wide or attempting line splitting passes. In the present day, the squad is overloaded with superstars all over the pitch, with the likes of Bukayo Saka, Phil Foden and Jude Bellingham now finding themselves with those key aforementioned responsibilities.

And yet inexplicably, for most of the second period, they looked toothless, and less menacing than that side of 2018, struggling to find chemistry anywhere on the pitch, let alone find a dangerous pass. The one attack that did anything to worry the Slovakian defense was a tap in finish for Phil Foden, a goal that was then disallowed as he had overlooked the fact that he needed to stay behind the ball to remain onside.

80 minutes rolled around, and finally England were starting to play with purpose. Kane had nodded just wide from a free kick just seconds prior to Declan Rice smacking the post with a longshot, but eventually purpose turned to desperation as the three lions tried everything, anything to find that equalizing goal.

Six minutes of added time were held up by the assistant on the sideline, and yet England couldn’t seem to create anything worth of note, resorting to pumping long balls into the box in the hope someone would direct something goalwards.

Then a throw in on the far sideline. Kyle Walker has the ball in his hands, and gestures for men to get into the box. A long throw it is, a harrowing hark back to the olden days of English football.

Yet sometimes, the old ways prove ocassionally prove that they were popular for a reason. Walker flung the ball into the box, and center back Marc Guehi flicked it onto the penalty spot.

There waited Real Madrid star and England’s poster boy Jude Bellingham (who had been pretty awful all game), who without a second's hesitation, rose up high, back to goal, horizontal in mid air, to plant the most un-English of goals, a gorgeous of overhead kick into the bottom corner of Martin Dubravka’s goal. Just 87 seconds of added time remained when the ball finally nestled in the back of the net, and England had just about dug themselves out of the most colossal hole, one completely of their own making.

Harry Kane would then dispatch a header in the first minute of extra time to ensure that England scraped through to the quarter finals. However, it will be Jude Bellingham’s remarkable feat of acrobatics that this game is remembered for. Southgate had brought them back from the brink of disappointment once again, and with the help of Bellingham’s individual brilliance, England had somehow dragged themselves into yet another major tournament final.

3. England 2-0 Germany

Ahh the Germans, the oldest of enemiess. England had once again been underwhelming in the group stages at Euro 2020, scoring just two goals, both courtesy of Raheem Sterling. But once again, Southgate had done enough, and even with their poor scoring record, they had finished top of their group with 7 points, including a satisfying win over 2018 World Cup semi final vanquishers Croatia.

However, there was apprehension across the nation prior to this game. It was the first time England had faced a footballing superpower at the elimination phase of a major tournament in the Southgate era, having been drawn against Colombia, Sweden and Croatia in the 2018 World Cup knockouts.

Granted, Germany were ranked a lowly 15th in the Fifa rankings, having been considered the best team in the world just two years earlier. However, they had a star studded team, and if they suddenly clicked into place, then England would be in for a tough time.

England had the advantage of playing at Wembley, making it a home game, and giving them the edge by having that notorious 12th man in the stands., The match was evenly contested throughout, though some might say Germany edged it through possession and the number of attempts on goal. Both nations started quickly, with Sterling forcing a diving save fromManuel Neuer in the German net after a long range curler, before Timo Werner went up the other end forced Pickford into a good save with his legs.

Harry Maguire squandered a big opportunity when he diverted a free header into the stratosphere instead of on target, and Kane had a great opening just before half time, but his heavy touch around Neuer was well cleared by center back Mats Hummels.

The second half was a more low key affair, but England still had to be wary, as Kai Havertz made a great connection with a half volley which had to be balletically tipped over by Pickford. With 20 minutes to go, Southgate brought on Man City winger Jack Grealish, someone who had proved to be something of a game changer in his cameo appearances so far at the tournament, grabbing the crucial assist in England’s 1-0 win over Czechia.

Unsurprisingly, England led just six minutes after his introduction, as Grealish found Luke Shaw in space on the left, and his low, drilled cross arrived at the feet of Raheem Sterling, who coolly slotted away to give England that longed for lead.

But seven minutes later, England hearts almost stopped, as Havertz played through experienced campaigner Thomas Muller on the half way line, and as the attacker went bearing down on goal, you could almost hear the intake of breath from the entire nation.

Pickford raced out to meet him, and Muller got his shot off. The ball seemed to roll goal-wards forever, but when it eventually traveled past the far post, the cheers were arguably louder than the celebrations for Sterling’s goal. It just felt like it was going to be England's day, and just four minutes later, that was made certain.

Luke Shaw roamed away from his typical left back role, and made a driving run through midfield, eventually feeding Grealish on the left. Taking one touch, he whips a picture perfect cross onto Harry Kane’s forehead, who without breaking stride, glances it into the far corner. It was his first goal of the tournament, and there couldn’t have been a more perfect time to get it.

The Germans were out, and England marched on. They beat Sweden 4-0 in the quarter finals, and an extra time winner from Kane saw them beat a proud Denmark side 2-1 in the semi’s, to make it to their first major final since the seemingly mythical World Cup win of 1966.

2. Luke Shaw vs Italy.

This one is extremely bittersweet. England, in their first tournament final in 55 years, faced off against Italy, who had beaten contenders Belgium and Spain in their run-in to the final.

Italy, known as a tricky team to break down thanks to their experienced center back pairing of Giorgio Chiellini and Leonardo Bonucci, posed as intimidating opposition, and with much being made of England’s struggles in front of goal in the group stages of the tournament, the nerves head begun to really set in.

But as soon as the tournament’s show piece game kicked off, England had their tails up and looked ready to take the game to the Italians. Clearing an Italy corner after 90 seconds, Luke Shaw flew down the left side to beat the Italian midfield ranks. Kane received the ball in space, and sprayed a lovely pass out to the overlapping Keiran Trippier.

Trippier then slowly, methodically picked his spot, and whipped in an inch perfect cross, over the entire crowd waiting in the center, to find Shaw at the back post after he had continued his run out from the back. Meeting it at the bounce of the ball, he hit the most sweetly struck half volley many of us are ever likely to see, as it rifled into the near corner of the Italian net, via a flick of the post.

Queue absolute bedlam. England, after less than two minutes, were leading in the European Championship final, and Shaw had scored his first ever goal in England colors. Once again playing at home, Wembley erupted with noise, and in that one magical moment, English fans seemed to shed all of the 55 years of disappointment that had come and gone since that first historic tournament win.

For much of the game, it seemed that England would finally get the job done. There were close shaves, including half an hour after the goal when Federico Chiesa flashed a low drive just past the post, and Pickford had to be at his brilliant best to keep out another Chiesa attempt in the second half which seemed destined for the bottom corner.

However, it was simply not to be, as in the 67th minute, Bonucci poked home after a Pickford save from an Italian corner, and when the game couldn’t be decided in normal or extra time, the Italians eventually prevailed in an engrossing penalty shootout.

It was heartache for the nation when Saka's penalty was saved by Gianluigi Donnarumma, and this mood would mood for days after, but that one incredible moment provided by Luke Shaw remains to this day extremely vivid. I can so clearly remember the elation, the joy and overwhelming hope of that moment. It was pure ecstasy, and despite losing that final, I wouldn’t trade that feeling of watching us scoring the earliest goal ever in a European final for anything.

It was the perfect accumulation of decades of built up frustration, despair, heartbreak, and renewed hope of Southgate’s squad, and they all combined together to burst the floodgates of emotion with one beautiful kick of the football.

1. England break the penalty curse against Colombia.

It may be controversial that I have placed this so highly, as it was only a round of 16 game, and the match itself played out as lukewarm as opposed to red hot. But the significance of the result, and the manner in which it came about cannot be overstated. This result redirected the path of English international football.

Kane gave his side the lead from the penalty spot in the 57th minute, after he was fouled from a corner, and England saw a couple of chances from corners come and go, but otherwise, it was a game lacking in excitement.

However, in the last 15 minutes of play, Colombia seemed to come to their senses, and started threatening the England goal. Juan Cuadrado flashed a close range effort wide, before a superb effort from range by Mateus Uribe had to be brilliantly turned behind by Pickford, who at the time was playing his first major tournament for his country.

Colombia eventually broke through from the resulting corner, as Yerry Mina rose above the rest and headed into the ground. Trippier, waiting on the line for just such a scenario, tried his best to head the ball over the bar, but there was just too much pace on it, and it found the net via the crossbar as Tripper’s redirect didn’t have enough conviction.

The game went to extra time, and once again both sides failed to create meaningful openings. Radamel Falcao saw the best Colombian chance fall to him, but he horribly misjudged a free header that ended up bouncing a few yards wide, while English substitute Danny Rose saw an effort from a tight angle roll agonizingly across the face of goal. However, with no extra time goals to separate the two sides, England were headed for another meeting with their nemesis: penalty shootouts.

Prior to the spot-kick face off with Colombia, England had lost their last five shootouts, stretching all the way back to the semi finals of Euro 1996, where now manager Gareth Southgate infamously missed the decisive penalty. They had since lost to Argentina (1998 World Cup), Portugal twice (Euro 2004 and World Cup 2006), and Italy (Euro 2012) all on penalties, something which the media had labeled as a curse, a streak of poor composure and bad luck that seemed unlikely to ever end.

So, to the shootout. Falcao went first for Colombia, and coolly placed it down the middle. Designated taker Kane stepped up first for England, and he duly buried it in the bottom corner to give England the lead. The nerves now started to hit: There was our only guaranteed scorer used up already. Juan Cuadrado put his side back ahead as he launched his spot kick into the top corner, just fast the fingertips of a flying Pickford, before Marcus Rashford stepped forward and converted an almost identical penalty to Kane’s.

Luis Muriel put Colombia back ahead by a scoreline of 3-2, and then it was the turn of Liverpool midfielder Jordan Henderson. The air was heavy with pressure, with history, and with disappointed expectancy that England would once again fall at the final hurdle. It would have felt like a physical force pushing Henderson into the ground as he ran up to take his penalty. With no disguise on the run up whatsoever, he telegraphed to Arsenal goalkeeper David Ospina his intentions to aim bottom right, and Ospina received the message loud and clear, saving emphatically.

England had set themselves up for heartbreak yet again. Surely it wouldn’t be six in a row? Uribe stepped forward next for Colombia to give them match point. But in going for power, he surrendered accuracy, and his powerful effort could only hit the underside of the cross bar and bounce out. England were back in it, and a Keiran Trippier penalty into the top corner brought them back onto level terms. Next came Carlos Bacca, brought on as a substitute, and the last of the five elected penalty takers. After him, it was anyone's guess who stepped up.

Jordan Pickford stared him down, likely with the knowledge that an English goalkeeper hadn’t saved a penalty in a shootout since David Seaman defied Argentina’s Hernan Crespo in the World Cup second round 20 years previously. Carlos Bacca powered his penalty towards the top left corner, but Pickford went into warrior mode, and pulled off a stunning stop with his wrong hand to instead grant match point to England.

It was all on Tottenham man Eric Dier, not known for taking penalties, but as he had obviously volunteered himself he must have been feeling confident to a certain extent. A steely look at his North London and now international rival Ospina in between the posts, and he stepped forward.

Ospina guessed right, and got his hand to the ball. However, it had just enough to stay inside the post and bulge the bottom corner of the net. Dier wheeled away, Pickford was mobbed by half the England squad, and with that penalty win, a massive weight had been taken off of the English national team.

No more historical pressure in shootouts, no more criticism over whether they have the bottle or not, and most importantly, they now had the knowledge they were into the last 8 of a World Cup for the first time since 2006.

Including this shootout, England have now won three of their last four shootouts, in what has been a remarkable turnaround in form from the spot. Southgate has made it known that focuses on it whenever a major tournament comes around, and this helps players create a positive psychology around the high pressure scenario of standing over the penalty spot alone.

England have already won a shootout at the Euros with a 5 out of 5 performance of Switzerland in the quarterfinals, looking more confident than ever over a dead ball.

Southgate has done so much over the last six years to improve this squad, but creating a side that knows how to win from the spot when the margins are too tight to call, that might just be his greatest contribution.

So there you have it. There were so many others I could have included, such as Trippier's early free kick against Croatia or the shootout against Switzerland, and there is also the obvious but necessary omission of Ollie Watkins’ last gasp goal against the Netherlands. All were fantastic moments in their own right, but with uncertainty over Southgate’s future after the Euro’s, he will want to save the biggest and best moment until last, if he is indeed to leave after the conclusion of the Euros.

A victory in the final (touch wood) would eclipse all of the top five, and if there is anyone who can pull it off, it’s a side led by Gareth Southgate.

Benji Kosartiyer
Journalist
Harry Pascoe

Lead Writer

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