Gareth South Gate left open the possibility of another campaign in the past euro 2024for refusing to confirm that this is his last tournament England manager.
The mood after Southgate’s elimination to France in the World Cup quarterfinals brought him to the brink of quitting, and his sudden decision to stay naturally created the perception that this would be his last chance at a trophy. Such questions naturally framed England’s first qualifying for Italy in Naples, but Southgate actively avoided giving such answers.
Finally, after being asked directly whether this would be the last tournament, he joked, “I hope we have the opportunity to make that decision.”
“Well, it depends on whether we win or not! But… I think you should be careful not to think that this might not be your last chance as a player when you’re young. Of course you’ll always think you’ll have other opportunities but injury, form, new players coming into your position, you can never take that lightly. Yes “Obviously seniors know the time scale is pretty clear, but everyone else needs to be mindful of that too.”
Southgate was later told that the general perception was that this was his last tournament and whether he could afford to think the same way.
“No, I’m just thinking match by match, preparing the team as best I can, I’ve felt for a while that I should enjoy the experience, I think when you do that it reflects on the players. I enjoy the challenge. This is a great football city, a great place to come and challenge and We look forward to the match.”
Southgate admitted that losing to Italy on penalties in the Euro 2020 final added an extra advantage to this match.
“Every disappointment is a motivation and an opportunity to learn and grow. Of course it’s an additional motivation for us. I won’t deny that. Actually tomorrow will be a bit of a different team and a different situation and we have to be ready.” for the start of this appropriate campaign.”