ENGLAND boss Gareth Southgate has admitted it will probably be the end of his reign if the Three Lions don’t win Euro 2024.
England are the favourites for the tournament, which starts this Friday (June 14) when Scotland face hosts Germany in Munich in Group A.
Southgate took over following the disastrous Euro 2016 campaign under Roy Hodgson, when England were knocked out by Iceland in the last sixteen, and after Sam Allardyce’s infamous one-game spell.
Southgate’s side reached the final of Euro 2020 at Wembley where they lost to Italy on penalties.
England also reached the semi-finals of the World Cup in 2018 and quarter-finals in 2022.
England start their tournament on Sunday against Serbia in Gelsenkirchin in Group B.
“If we don’t win, I probably won’t be here anymore. Then it might be the last chance,” Southgate said.
“I think about half the national team coaches leave after a tournament – that’s the nature of international football.
“I’ve been here for almost eight years now and we’ve been close. So I know that you can’t keep standing in front of the public and saying, ‘A little bit more please’, because at some point, people lose faith in your message. If we want to be a great team and I want to be a top coach, then you have to deliver in the big moments.”
Southgate was reportedly considered by Manchester United for their manager job this summer, but they are now expected to keep Erik Ten Hag.
Southgate was asked why he didn’t sign a new contract before the tournament.
He said: “The reason is that there would have been more criticism, which would have put more pressure on the team.
“England did that once before with Fabio Capello and there was a big drama before the tournament. It’s better to check yourself after the tournament.”
Meanwhile, former England international Paul Merson is backing Crystal Palace’s Eberechi Eze to be a breakout star at the tournament.
Eze is one of four Crystal Palace players in the squad, alongside Dean Henderson, Marc Guehi and Adam Wharton.
“Going forward England have so many options. The problem for Southgate will be getting those options right. If he doesn’t get them right, England will be up against it,” Merson said in his latest Sky Sports column.
“It’s hard to pick the forward line.
“[Bukayao] Saka never lets his country down when he plays. Eze just glides past players and looks like the X-factor.
“At tournaments, you always get a player who comes out of the blue and becomes a superstar. We’ve seen it at World Cups and Euros over the years.
“For me, Eze could be that player.
“But Southgate has to find a solution to get his key attackers on the ball. There’s no point in playing these games and [John] Stones and Guehi are touching the ball more times than players like [Phil] Foden, Saka, Eze, [Cole] Palmer or [Jude] Bellingham.
“England have to find solutions to get these players on the ball. Hopefully they can find a way to do that because I believe they can win the Euros.”
