2 days Ago
There’s a familiar feeling to this Euro 2024 tournament for England now. There are simply things that England do at major tournaments: They are rarely convincing in group stages; they nearly always qualify from group stages. Their fans sing problematic songs about German bombers.
The front pages of the tabloids go even more deranged than usual. And, specifically under Gareth Southgate, they manoeuvre themselves adroitly into the right side of the draw. Four major tournaments, four group stages of varying degrees of competence, four spots secured in the kinder half of the draw.
Whatever other faults Southgate may have as a manager, his record in this regard simply cannot be queried. When Southgate took over, England had – quite hilariously – not won a tournament knockout game since 2006. Southgate’s England have won six in the last three tournaments.
And none of those have come against anything other than a team England ought to have beaten: Colombia, Sweden, an all-time-low Germany, Ukraine, Denmark, Senegal. None of them easy games, but all of them easier than all manner of alternatives that loitered elsewhere at the same stage in those tournament brackets. MORE ON ENGLAND FROM F365: 👉 England starting XI v Slovenia ranked on chances of being dropped by Gareth Southgate 👉 The easiest ever routes to a Euros or World Cup final already features one cruise for Southgate and England 👉 England knackered? Top 10 over-used players topped by Arsenal machine Southgate.
