Matt Maher: England have been lucky to have Gareth Southgate
Let us suppose, for the sake of the argument, Gareth Southgate really is the world’s luckiest football manager.
Watch more of our videos on Shots!
and live on Freeview channel 276
Why on earth would any England supporter want to see the back of him?
The question is posed because Sunday’s Euro 2024 final against Spain may very well be the end for Southgate, after nearly eight years at the helm, regardless of whether he becomes just the second Three Lions manager to win a major tournament.
Even should that happen, you will still hear a narrative of how fortunate Southgate has been, that this was glory achieved in spite of him, rather than because of him.
It is nonsense.
There is no point pretending England haven’t ridden their luck in Germany. But for that remarkable Jude Bellingham overhead kick, their tournament would have ended in embarrassing defeat to Slovakia. Switzerland, never regarded football heavyweights, were only beaten on penalties.
Then, in Wednesday’s semi-final win over the Netherlands, England were beneficiaries of a controversial officiating call.
“A disgrace,” was how Gary Neville described referee Felix Zwayer’s decision to award a penalty, following a VAR intervention, after Denzel Dumfries had made contact with Harry Kane’s boot in an attempt to block the England captain’s shot.
England’s supposed luck has seen them roundly ridiculed. Philipp Koster, editor-in-chief of German football magazine 11 Freunde, described England as “like an undead zombie stumbling through the tournament” after the shoot-out win over the Swiss. “Somehow they are still there,” he added. He was far from the only one wondering exactly how.
