This is what Southgate played for

[ivaldo]

From the 15th minute, he instructed his team to play on the back foot. From the moment Italy scored Southgate set up his team to take them to pens... against an absolute mammoth in goal.

Italy looked terrified at the beginning of the game. England has the best attacking options in the world, and he decided to nullify that at every opportunity. This is all entirely on Southgate. He's got away from it from the off. The quality of the team has mitigated Southgate's negativeness.

He has to go.

 

[VidaRed]

First decent side they came up against and bottled it.

Not southgates fault.

 

[VorZakone]

First decent side they came up against and bottled it.

Not southgates fault.

Germany wasn't decent?

 

[ivaldo]

First decent side they came up against and bottled it.

Not southgates fault.

Of course it's his fault. Sancho has over 150 goals and assists at the age of 21, and he brought on Saka with 6 goals in his entire career. He has a team dripping with attacking talent, and he played passively the entire tournament. When Italy scored he made two defensive subs, and he literally held off as long as he could to bring on Rashford and Sancho on. It's beyond contestation that he played for pens. If he plays for pens against the best penalty saver in the tournament, and expects 3 kids, 2 of which played scarcely a minute all game to win us the shootout, then that is all on Southgate. I'm sorry but you've got to be clinically blind think this is on the players.

 

[Wolf1992]

Southgate fecked up.

However i don't think England midfield is that good.

I rate France, Germany, and Spain midfield higher.
With someone like Pedri,Kroos or Pogba England could have won this in 90 minutes.

 

[DixieDean]

First decent side they came up against and bottled it.

Not southgates fault.

Whos fault was it, then?!

 

[VidaRed]

Germany wasn't decent?

That was the weakest german side in decades.

 

[DixieDean]

Southgate fecked up.

However i don't think England midfield is that good.

I rate France, Germany, and Spain midfield higher.

Oh for sure. our midfield is average. I hope that Bellingham breaks through.

 

[DixieDean]

Sad thing is, Southgate has a job for life now.

 

[Damien]

Oh for sure. our midfield is average. I hope that Bellingham breaks through.

Hopefully another strong season with Dortmund will see him play in the World Cup. Though three strong seasons for Sancho in Germany saw him on the bench so...

 

[Vidyoyo]

Agreed. He was so negative, even going into extra time. He got away with it against Denmark but here? Nope.

 

[Sandikan]

Everyone was concerned with the defensive lineups but went with it when winning.

But that lineup today was about as defensive as it can get, and was amazing we actually scored so early.

Didn't get after them at all for most of the rest of the game.

 

[ivaldo]

Oh for sure. our midfield is average. I hope that Bellingham breaks through.

But the attackers are world class. The best in the world. He CHOSE not to utilize them.

 

[MU655]

I think some of the players look furious with him.

Kane and Trippier looked angry with him.

 

[Regulus Arcturus Black]

Of course it's his fault. Sancho has over 150 goals and assists at the age of 21, and he brought on Saka with 6 goals in his entire career. He has a team dripping with attacking talent, and he played passively the entire tournament. When Italy scored he made two defensive subs, and he literally held off as long as he could to bring on Rashford and Sancho on. It's beyond contestation that he played for pens. If he plays for pens against the best penalty saver in the tournament, and expects 3 kids, 2 of which played scarcely a minute all game to win us the shootout, then that is all on Southgate. I'm sorry but you've got to be clinically blind think this is on the players.

Yup

 

[Drainy]

First decent side they came up against and bottled it.

Not southgates fault.

They played well in the first half. The Italians sharpened up and a better manager would have been proactive to change things before conceding. From then on every call he made damaged the team and he had 2 penalty takers who hadn't touched the ball.

Appalling management.

 

[V.O.]

As a Welshman, now that you're winning nowt I couldn't be more made up that you got so far - that massive chancer will probably be given another two more tournaments minimum, and you'll never have as much luck with tournament structure and draws ever again.

 

[McGrathsipan]

First decent side they came up against and bottled it.

Not southgates fault.

It absolutely is

 

[Irwin99]

He's instilled some good qualities it seems but fundamentally he's not changed the football identity of the nation; he's also lucked out on having, technically, the best English players and squad for ages. England just played dour defensive football from the goal onward.

You know damn well the United players will get stick for this and it's the average manager that cost England this game.

 

[Eternitiy]

I never thought I'd witness in game management as bad as that night against Villarreal. I thought wrong. And just a month later no less.

Sometimes I wonder if football is worth it. It is a lot of stress.

 

[TheGame]

First decent side they came up against and bottled it.

Not southgates fault.

Eh? Failed to respond to Mancini’s changes, left Mount on the pitch, brought Saka on but left Sancho and Grealish on the bench. Grealish didn’t even come on until mid way in 1st ET. Then makes subs for penalties and let Saka take the 5th pen. Negative tactics catch up with you in the end.

 

[Regulus Arcturus Black]

No doubt he didn’t want to win the game, because trying to win would mean risk and he doesn’t do risk.
That’s why Mount will play, Rice, Philips, 5 defenders, Saka, it’s minimum risk football.
It’s why he gave Rashford and Sancho 90 seconds, because they are “risk” players in his mind.

 

[Hugh Jass]

They kind of threw it away i feel. They did the hard part scoring the goal. Then that was cancelled out Italy equalizing. Another bite of the cherry with penalties. Bad decisions by southgate though picking the penalty takers.

Have to feel sorry for Rashford, Sancho and Saka. Unless they win some major tournament soon, in 30 years time they will still be talking about their penalties.

 

[DixieDean]

As a Welshman, now that you're winning nowt I couldn't be more made up that you got so far - that massive chancer will probably be given another two more tournaments minimum, and you'll never have as much luck with tournament structure and draws ever again.

He'll get as long as he wants now. I wish he would piss off.

 

[The Man Himself]

This idiot will be getting a new contract. England will then promptly get knocked out at R16 or group stage in world cup 2022.

 

[The Mitcher]

First decent side they came up against and bottled it.

Not southgates fault.

Germany was not a decent side?

 

[GMoore23]

There was a reason Sterling was so poor for the most part tonight. Southgate had him buried in his own half.
Practically the home nation but set up like an away team who were massive underdogs.

 

[The Hilton]

Exactly the same as the world cup, Southgate may as well have a squad of 13.

He simply isn't a very good manager, England have reached the final in spite of him, and he'll continue to hold us back by being passive.

 

[Sandikan]

We jogged through extra time as if we're a force at pens.
Instead of having a history of losing all the critical ones.

 

[12OunceEpilogue]

From the 15th minute, he instructed his team to play on the back foot. From the moment Italy scored Southgate set up his team to take them to pens... against an absolute mammoth in goal.

Italy looked terrified at the beginning of the game. England has the best attacking options in the world, and he decided to nullify that at every opportunity. This is all entirely on Southgate. He's got away from it from the off. The quality of the team has mitigated Southgate's negativeness.

He has to go.

It won't happen because his face fits. His tenure hasn't been terrible; he's got the team more galvanised than any manager since Alf Ramsey and got us as close to a major tournament as can be without lifting the trophy. However critical we can be about his coaching, his in-game management and his squandering of our vast array of attacking talent the FA like how he does politics and his brand of conservative football can be effective at tournaments, so with the talent he has in the squad he'll probably always qualify for tournaments, have a good chance of going far and an outside chance of lifting them. He ticks too many boxes for them to scrap him and go out looking for the English Pep/Klopp (good luck unearthing them by the way).

I agree with your various scathing posts about Southgate's in-game management this evening but he's too safe an option for the FA.

 

[ArjenIsM3]

No doubt he didn’t want to win the game, because trying to win would mean risk and he doesn’t do risk.
That’s why Mount will play, Rice, Philips, 5 defenders, Saka, it’s minimum risk football.
It’s why he gave Rashford and Sancho 90 seconds, because they are “risk” players in his mind.

Correct. It's why he's a shit manager.

 

[Hugh Jass]

Poor by England really. Home advantage, 60,000 fans in the stadium, score the first goal. It should have been a win really. I wanted them to win for the United lads, but Italy were much better.

 

[mu4c_20le]

That pen will forever be in his head

 

[Rojofiam]

No doubt he didn’t want to win the game, because trying to win would mean risk and he doesn’t do risk.
That’s why Mount will play, Rice, Philips, 5 defenders, Saka, it’s minimum risk football.
It’s why he gave Rashford and Sancho 90 seconds, because they are “risk” players in his mind.

Exactly. Any competent club manager would've strolled to the title with a squad like this at their disposal. I'm so fecking gutted for our 4 players, it's fecking criminal what happened, all down to this idiot

 

[el3mel]

It was honestly a ridiculous management. There's no way a manager should stay in his job after playing such a game in the final. He basically wanted to do feck all the whole game after the first half.

Since second half it was all Italy.

 

[Ronaldo's ego]

First decent side they came up against and bottled it.

Not southgates fault.

Who bottled it? Italy never beat us over 120 minutes of football, the manger wanted to hold on from the 10th minute of the game. This is all on Southgate.

 

[dal]

Wow the first manager to get England to a major final in 50 plus years and you’re calling for his head you spoilt bastards.

His formation was fine and he changed it, Italy are just a good team.

It went to penalties, two of the best teams on penalties in the final.

At the start of the tournament if someone said to me I’ll give you penalties in the final every single one of us snaps their hand off it’s just a shame the Man Utd boys let us down.

More to come.

 

[royboy16]

Think he got it wrong tonight and should have trusted his defense and attack more.

 

[Glaswegian]

He'll be coaching the lads who missed the penalties for their Pizza Hut advert, right?

 

[giorno]

Southgate's initial plan worked like a charm. But then england couldn't score the second in those first 25-30 minutes or so, we adjusted, and he was late to react

The second half and first extra time were a hammering, we should have won long before the penalties