But the three big problems in the team will be hard for anyone to solve without the kind of ball-playing English Rodri the country still isn’t producing What went wrong? What vital lessons can be learned? How can we make sure England don’t fail again? The postmortems after tournaments are always wearying. So many people have a panacea, an idea of the one detail that will guarantee success. If only we had a deep-lying metronome like Rodri! We’ll never win anything until we control midfield! Unleash this unprecedented generation! Cast caution to the winds! Let the players play! Release the handbrake! Be more like Italy! Be more like France! Be more like Spain! Gareth Southgate’s greatest strength was his capacity to shut out the noise. A lot of it seems to derive from a basic misunderstanding of football. Being more attacking is a fine sentiment, and perhaps it is true that England could have taken a few more risks with their passing, but the reason England lost against Spain was that after Kyle Walker’s 75th-minute throw-in back to John Stones, which led to Jordan Pickford belting it out for a goal-kick, they didn’t touch the ball in the Spain half for 13 minutes, during which time they conceded. The issue was not what they did with the ball; it was getting the ball back. Continue reading...

Former England manager appreciates the struggles young players face in getting meaningful game time As the dust settled this week on another major tournament and all its repercussions, it’s quite something to reflect that it’s now four major finals in four years for England’s men and women’s teams. But it’s no surprise or coincidence. English football has built a system which is producing world-leading players and teams we can all be very proud of. The vision to transform English football out of the doldrums came from Howard Wilkinson who has never received the credit he deserves for his Charter for Quality, a blueprint that set out an ambitious plan for a National Football Centre, academies, mini soccer and the raising of standards in children’s football. It was groundbreaking for an organisation that had previously failed to put the football in the Football Association. Continue reading...

Howe among frontrunners to replace Gareth SouthgateHe wants assurances of autonomy from club’s hierarchy Eddie Howe has opened the door to a potential approach from the Football Association regarding the England manager’s vacancy by warning Newcastle’s revamped hierarchy that he could reconsider his future there if they fail to offer him sufficient autonomy. Speaking at Newcastle’s pre-season training camp in southern Germany, Howe insisted he had a “burning desire” to lead the north-east club to a trophy, but he also flexed his muscles sufficiently to suggest that, if the right “boundaries” are not established in regards to a role he has held at St James’ Park since November 2021, he could be receptive to overtures from the FA should it deem him the right man to replace Gareth Southgate. Continue reading...

Newcastle United boss Eddie Howe says he is "committed" to the club as long as he is "happy and feels supported", after being linked with replacing Gareth Southgate as England manager.

Fancy yourself as the next England manager? The FA has revealed what it expects from the new leader of the Three Lions.

Players at non-league side said it was obvious club had no intention of supporting and developing the women’s side Former players and a coach at Wakefield AFC women’s side have spoken out after the club cut training facilities for the team and then disbanded it without prior notice. Despite the growing popularity of women’s football, especially after England’s Lionesses won the Euros in 2022, many women’s teams still struggle to survive due to a lack of investment and institutional support compared with the men. Continue reading...

Denmark captain Kasper Schmeichel joins Celtic on a one-year deal as a free agent after leaving Anderlecht.

All the news and analysis after 53-year-old’s resignationGareth Southgate: ‘It has been the honour of my life’Email Michael or tweet him @michaelbutler18 As a proud Englishman, it has been the honour of my life to play for England and to manage England. It has meant everything to me, and I have given it my all. But it’s time for change, and for a new chapter. Sunday’s final in Berlin against Spain was my final game as England manager. I joined the FA in 2011, determined to improve English football. In that time, including eight years as England men’s manager, I have been supported by some brilliant people who have my heartfelt thanks. I could not have had anyone better alongside me than Steve Holland. He is one of the most talented coaches of his generation, and has been immense. I have had the privilege of leading a large group of players in 102 games. Every one of them has been proud to wear the three lions on their shirts, and they have been a credit to their country in so many ways. The squad we took to Germany is full of exciting young talent and they can win the trophy we all dream of. I am so proud of them, and I hope we get behind the players and the team at St. George’s Park and the FA who strive every day to improve English football, and understand the power football has to drive positive change. My special thanks go to the backroom staff who have provided the players and me with unstinting support over the last eight years. Their hard work and commitment inspired me every day, and I am so grateful to them – the brilliant ‘team behind the team’. We have the best fans in the world, and their support has meant the world to me. I’m an England fan and I always will be. I look forward to watching and celebrating as the players go on to create more special memories and to connect and inspire the nation as we know they can. Thank you, England – for everything. I personally support Barney Ronay’s idea here. Continue reading...

Gareth Southgate's spell as England manager is over, so it is time to test your knowledge of the departing Three Lions boss.

With Gareth Southgate leaving his role, BBC Sport looks how other England managers have done. How would you rank them?

Reached World Cup semi-final and two Euros finalsHowe, Potter and Tuchel near the top of shortlist Gareth Southgate has announced he has stepped down as England’s manager after eight years. The Football Association had hoped he would extend his contract after he led the team to the final of Euro 2024 but Southgate has decided to seek a new challenge. “As a proud Englishman, it has been the honour of my life to play for England and to manage England,” Southgate said. “It has meant everything to me, and I have given it my all. But it’s time for change, and for a new chapter. Sunday’s final in Berlin against Spain was my final game as England manager.” Continue reading...

England midfielder is parking talk of celebratory haircuts or tattoos as he prepares to confront Spain in Berlin The question was put to Declan Rice: what memento would he choose for winning Euro 2024? Perhaps, like some of his teammates, he could get on board with the idea of a celebratory tattoo. Maybe a radical deployment of hair dye could bring something snazzier and less permanent. Instead Rice reached straight for the deadpan. “I don’t want to jinx anything because I feel like we’ve done that in the World Cup and the last Euros,” he said. “When things don’t go your way you end up thinking: ‘Why did we speak about things before they even happen?’ One more game, then we can talk about silly haircuts and tattoos.” Rice did not want to appear a killjoy or, as he put it, “be robotic”. England have been burned before. They are so close now and it owes plenty to the drive and relentless focus of a player who sets the tempo in Gareth Southgate’s engine room. “With me, what you see is what you get,” he said. There is certainly no danger of him hiding. He carries himself like a captain and speaks with the authority of someone who has watched, listened, studied and thought. Continue reading...

Manager’s arrival as FA’s head of elite development in 2011 ultimately led to the brighter outcomes of recent years There were a few eyebrows raised when Gareth Southgate was confirmed as the Football Association’s new head of elite development at the end of January 2011. He had only just turned 40 and was working as a pundit for ITV, having been sacked as Middlesbrough manager 15 months earlier. Yet even though Southgate insisted at the time that becoming England manager was not on his agenda, the significance of that moment in the history of English football is now undeniable. Initially appointed to work alongside Sir Trevor Brooking and tasked with “the key objective of bringing through better players and coaches to aid the national team” in response to the 4-1 thrashing by Germany at the 2010 World Cup in South Africa, the former Crystal Palace and Aston Villa defender has been the chief architect of England’s renaissance since then. Continue reading...

People in Manchester and Stockport fondly remember players when they were talented young boys The entire country will be on tenterhooks on Sunday to see if the Three Lions can fight their way to victory in the men’s Euros final. But one small area south of Manchester will be rooting for its very own trio, some of England’s brightest young stars: Phil Foden, Cole Palmer and Kobbie Mainoo, who all grew up here within a few miles of each other. Their home towns form a triangle: Palmer, 22, is from Wythenshawe in Manchester and the other two come from Stockport; Mainoo, 19, from the quiet suburb of Cheadle Hulme, and Foden, 24, from Edgeley. Continue reading...