Following Gareth Southgate’s official resignation from the role of the England men’s team head coach, the English FA is now scrambling to name a new coach as soon as possible, with many well known names flying around the rumor mill.

This important discussion may have taken the focus off of Southgate himself, but after eight years of exemplary service to his country, it seems only right that we give him the credit he so obviously deserves.

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

— England (@England) July 16, 2024

When he was appointed in 2016, the squad he inherited was vastly different from the one we are used to seeing today. Of the starting eleven he played in his first game in charge against Malta, only Kyle Walker and John Stones continue to be selected in the present day. It begs the question: how did he turn England's fortunes at major tournaments around so dramatically with the squad at his disposal?

The answer may partly be down to tactics, playing the opponent and not the game. However, it was primarily down to smart squad selection, picking in form players instead of the established internationals who perhaps weren’t deserving of their spot at the time.

This reaped rewards for him and England in the long run, as he uncovered names and personnel who served him brilliantly, putting in mega performances and contributing to important moments along the way.

He may be gone now, but the players he introduced remain, with all of them having done themselves proud with what they achieved during his reign. Here, we take a look at a few of the best players of the Gareth Southgate era.

Jordan Pickford - International debut: 10/11/2017 vs Germany

When he made his debut in a 0-0 friendly with Germany, Jordan Pickford had made just 35 appearances for parent club Sunderland, and had that previous summer secured a £28.5 million move to Everton, where he had started every league game up to that point.

To grant a player their debut after so little high level senior experience was certainly a risk. Pickford had proven himself a quality shot stopper at Sunderland, but questions about his mentality and durability were yet to be answered. But Southgate clearly saw some valuable traits that everyone else had overlooked at the time. What a decision it ended up being.

Pickford shone in the game against Germany, making multiple 1v1 saves, and fast-forward eight years, the enigmatic shot-stopper has been England’s number one keeper for the best part of a decade, although he is always happy to step aside if Southgate deems it worthwhile trialing younger talent between the sticks.

Still at Everton, it is miraculous that a bigger side hasn’t snapped him up, as he would bring extra security and great experience to any team's backline.

With 68 international caps to his name (26 of these coming in major tournaments), Pickford has established himself as a world class goalkeeper, and has given us so many memorable moments. Here are just a few:

• Penalty save against Colombia at the 2018 World Cup round of 16 to ensure England won their first major tournament penalty shootout since 1996.
• Three wonder-saves against Sweden to help England to a 2-0 win in the 2018 World Cup quarter finals.
• Scoring and saving a penalty in the Nations league Shootout vs Switzerland to ensure England won the 3rd place playoff.
• Penalty save in the 2021 Euros final penalty shootout against Italy’s Jorginho to give England a chance of staying in it (Saka missed the next penalty).
• Penalty save in Euro 2024 quarter final shootout vs Switzerland to help England into the semis.

Player of the Southgate era by a country mile… https://t.co/6SdRHuZBmM pic.twitter.com/sbvl4MgbsB

— Tom Jenkins (@TomJenkns) July 16, 2024

A man of very few errors, and of typically excellent decision making, Pickford is the go-to man to trust on the big stage, and he will surely maintain his place even after Southgate’s departure, such is his quality and commitment to the national side.

Harry Kane - International debut: 27/03/2015 vs Lithuania

When Southgate was named as the new England coach, Kane was already the starting center forward for England, having played in 17 international games in the year and a half between his debut and Southgate's appointment. However, Kane was injured for the first six games of his reign, stretching over a period of seven months.

However, when he returned, he immediately showcased his value to the new boss, and since his first appearance of the Southgate era (a 2-2 draw against Scotland in which he scored), Kane has contributed 61 goals and 16 assists in 81 caps.

That is a truly outstanding return for any striker, and Southgate’s stubbornness to stick with him when he was sometimes criticized for underperforming paid off more often than not.

Over the last eight years, England fans have watched Kane develop into an elite, world-class striker, and this was made no more clear then when he took to the field in international tournaments.

Here are some of the milestones he reached under Southgate:

• 2018 World Cup golden boot winner with six goals, including a hat trick vs Panama, as England reached the semi finals.
• England's topscorer at Euro 2020 with four goals as they reached the final, losing in a nail-biting shootout with Italy.
• Became England’s all time top scorer vs Italy in March 2023, beating Wayne Rooney’s previous record of 53 goals. He now has 68 goals to his name.
• England’s top scorer at Euro 2024 with three goals, including an extra time winner vs Slovakia, as England made a second consecutive final, this time losing to Spain

🚨🚨| NEW: Harry Kane is NOT expected to give any consideration to international retirement and will instead use Lionel Messi as inspiration as he looks to bounce back from another final defeat with England.

[@TeleFootball] pic.twitter.com/1y27bCgpml

— CentreGoals. (@centregoals) July 16, 2024

Though he seems to have been around forever, Kane is still just 30, and has plenty of years playing at the top level in him yet. With no other English striker even close to his level, the next England coach would be insane not to stick with him for the next couple of major tournaments.

Raheem Sterling - International debut: 11/09/2012 vs Ukraine

Though he didn’t make the cut for the Euros squad this summer after a disappointing season with Chelsea, Sterling has been one of the first names on the team sheet for England over the last decade or so.

Making his debut four years before Southgate took his place at the head of the table, he currently has an international record of 20 goals in 82 appearances. Considering he was one of the best wingers on the planet a few seasons ago, this doesn’t on the surface at least, sound all that impressive, but context must be given.

Sterling was impressive in qualification matches at the start of Southgate's reign, and it earned him a spot in the 2018 World Cup squad. However, he was disappointing, contributing no goals and two assists, both of which came against Panama.

However, he is on this list because of the manner in which he redeemed himself at Euro 2020. England’s main threat for their first four games as his fellow attackers underperformed, Sterling scored the only goal in 1-0 wins over Czechia and Croatia (the latter exacting revenge after England’s heartbreaking World Cup semi final defeat at the hands of Croatia), single handedly carrying England into the knockout rounds.

He then scored a second half opener in England’s crunch round of 16 fixture with Germany (read more about that here) before one of his countrymen finally decided to chip in, with Kane scoring the second and final blow. Sterling would then go on to assist a goal against Ukraine in the quarter finals, before playing a key part in England’s equalizer against Denmark in the semis.

Raheem Sterling.

Our #BoyFromBrent 🦁 pic.twitter.com/tu1PITDp1G

— England (@England) July 23, 2021

It was a truly brilliant campaign in which he finished as England's second top scorer behind Kane, but recently he has struggled to find that same form. His last England appearance was in that fateful 2022 World Cup quarter final defeat to France, and struggling form at club level has meant he hasn’t been given a sniff since.

However, still only 29, he has plenty of time to turn things around, and with reference to his performances under Southgate, his crucial part in carrying England to their first major final in 55 earns him a place on this list.

Harry Maguire - International debut: 08/10/2017 vs Lithuania

Say what you will about Harry Maguire and his somewhat frequent lapses when playing for Manchester United; whenever he slips the England shirt on, he never puts a foot wrong.

Southgate first started to play Maguire in the lead up to the 2018 World Cup, and when the tournament itself rolled around, Maguire was still relatively inexperienced going into it, having been capped just 8 times.

However, Southgate saw past the lack of big tournament experience, instead opting to play him for his no nonsense defending and calm presence. Maguire did not disappoint, and he immediately made his presence known when England got an attacking set piece.

He assisted Kane in England’s opener against Tunisia with a clever flick, and also got his name on the scoresheet in their quarter final with Sweden with a bullet header. Shortly after the tournament, the England fans would fondly nickname him Slabhead, due to his effectiveness in aerial battles both offensive and defensive.

At Euro 2020, after missing the first two games through injury, Maguire slotted straight back into the side and played every minute from their final group game with Czechia to the final with Italy, demonstrating his importance to England’s defensive effectiveness in the process.

Even when things took a turn for the worse at club level, when Maguire made a number of high-profile errors for Manchester United, and his fame grew as a meme more than anything else, Southgate showed belief in him, continuing to pick him due to his high level of performance in an England shirt, and Maguire would go on to play every game at the 2022 World Cup.

One day Harry Maguire will speak about what happened to him around 2020 to 2022. I don’t even know how one would handle that https://t.co/1gJLSApxST

— JB🦇 (@jr_fundss) July 17, 2024

However, with a number of talented England defenders coming through the ranks, such as Marc Guehi, Ezri Konsa and Fikayo Tomori, Southgate finally saw fit to drop Maguire in March of this year, and he has not been called up since.

Maguire made 63 caps under Southgate, and scored seven goals in that period, a decent return for a defender, and if he can just cut out silly mistakes at club level, the next coach will struggle to overlook him given his past with the England squad.

Honorable Mentions

This list could have been twice the length, and it was a tough choice to leave out the likes of Keiran Trippier, Kyle Walker, Marcus Rashford and John Stones. All have had brilliant moments in an England shirt, and no doubt they will continue to do so in the future.

However, the list is based on performance at major tournaments, and no one else in the squad has had more of an impact on England’s progress than the players featured above.

As a new manager comes in, new cult heroes and icons will introduce themselves as time goes on, but for now, we celebrate Gareth Southgate’s reign, and those who made it possible for him to achieve such dizzy heights when compared to 50 years worth of predecessors.