UEFA World Cup Qualifiers & International Friendlies **spoilers** [1st - 8th Sept 2021]

[fez]

Not a huge Southgate fan but quite clearly people are under estimating the work he's done to get unity. If that was easy it would have been done before. Look at that 2004 England squad. What an array of talent. Manager after manager couldn't get them playing for each other and with any of those before I doubt England would have got to the semi final and them finals of Major tournaments like they have done. I was listening to Michael Gray talk about his England call ups and how awful the atmosphere was. Cliques that didn't talk to each other or mix at all, how United players wouldn't even eat with the rest of the squad. Come down grab lunch and take it back to the room. How Gerrard would rather lose the ball that pass it to give a United player a scoring opportunity and vice versa. How Owen and co would lose tens of thousands on the coach playing 3 card brag and the resentment that caused in a group.

Thats not really relevant though is it? Thats like saying "every dressing room is toxic and horrible unless you have a great man manager". I bet if you went into the Liverpool or United dressing rooms at the time they were fine. Southgate wouldn't have made an iota of difference to that England dressing room. Hes far too meek, those guys wouldn't have respected him and he wouldn't have changed anything. The main reason the dressing room is sunshine and lollypops is because football has changed. Players have changed. United and Liverpool players don't hate each other anymore. Players all play computer games together even when they're not on duty. They basically all get along and have done for years now. Look at the derby games now. They don't have 1/4 of the passion or aggression they had 15 years ago. They all want to win them and are up for them but you don't get tackles flying in from the first minute and players looking for a fight all game. After the games players are all pats on the back and laughs even after a bad loss. Times have changed.

Basically he "fixed" a problem that wasn't there.

 

[FoxEye]

Can see it now. Give Southgate a massive contract extension before the World Cup starts, then we fail to progress from the group stage.

Will get blamed on the heat or player fatigue or the alignment of the stars. Southgate will say he's super proud of the players and how they all play for each other; how they're all disappointed and hurting, but super united and giving it all to each other every minute on and off the pitch; and they're young and super talented and... and... we still won't look even remotely like winning anything. Just the same old defensive setup with performances to send you to sleep. Kane playing in defence Grealish on the bench (the only position Southgate trusts him to play in).

Southgate is loved by the media and loves to talk about harmony and bonding and spirit and all that jazz. But unless we get another super easy run we won't be anywhere near the final with his tactics. Might set a new record tho for least subs used in a tournament. Or most unicorns in a pool.