I Inherited a Mess: So Southgate Made It Worse

Gareth Southgate has much to be thankful for. He played in many big games and was fortunate to be considered a 'ball-playing' centre -half before the proper ones took over. He was never a real leader. In fact he was nestled usually into a 'back-three' to limit his exposure to genuine threat. He was decent. But he wasn't in the same class as a young Gareth Barry when he peaked at Aston Villa. His leadership qualities where largely unknown. 

Apart from 'within the game'. That murky phrase that ex-pros or managers harp on about to pretend there is some kind of mystique to it all. Like, he was always picking the brains of 'Ray Wilkins'. Great. Tim Sherwood did that quite recently. Southgate has now got what used to be deemed the 'biggest job in the country'. The job that if it came along, it beat all others. Brian Clough would have turned his back on his legend at Nottingham Forest, Howard Kendall likely would have walked away from titles at Everton. It was just like that. Now Southgate has taken the Stuart Pearce route. Hanging around pretending to be all too modest to think he can do the 'big' job. Hoping for that 'free-hit' to give it a go but return to his comfy role with the youth. He has that now, and like Pearce, he seems intent on making it a vanity project. 

Pearce famously (well, made famous by Steven Gerrard's outrage at the situation) made Scott Parker his captain. He played U-21s because he'd seen them at close quarters. He was consumed by the idea that this was his team, he was the boss and was doing everybody a favour, or worse still ... it was his duty to his country. Thankfully, the man who once considered David James a legitimate option in attack for Manchester City, was relieved of his duties. And so what of Southgate? He took Middlesboro down. They have only just recovered. He has a decent record at youth level. But so what? England couldn't beat Slovenia. They had barely a shot one goal and should have been beaten. Handsomely. Let that sink in. Judge him like you would Fabio Capello in that role. Who cares if he wanted it or not; he's in the job. It's time already to say goodbye. 

A midfield of Eric Dier and Jordan Henderson, out wide Jesse Lingard and Theo Walcott (replaced by Andros Townsend). Read back the names and think about that. The quality or lack thereof. Watching England pass the ball sideways all night with no ability to open up Malta too often was put down to the argument that the smaller nations have not intent to attack. Slovenia did. More than England. They couldn't break them down either. A midfield intent on playing it safe and waiting for John Stones to by-pass them. Sideways, sideways. The Ray Wilkins effect? 

So we wake up today with the same old rhetoric. England have been betrayed by the Premier League; they don't have players with vision and excitement. We lament the stale football as if we are somewhat slaves to the 'money league' we have on our shores. The same arguments were made under Graham Taylor. You know the guy who slumped to Norway, who couldn't manage Gary Lineker or get the best out of Paul Gascoigne. Southgate and Sam Allardyce before him are a step backwards. They don't appreciate footballers. Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, Wayne Rooney, Ross Barkley and Jack Wilshire all could have appeared last night. They each possess vision, skill, ingenuity - all the things the Premier League has robbed us of? Apparently not so. England have a bland manager and play bland football. They continue to have no identity. 

Gareth Southgate once found a level of love with media when he delivered a semi- famous quote he made in relation to the then England manager Sven Goran- Eriksson. Southgate claimed they needed 'Winston Churchill and instead got Iain Duncan Smith'. It was pretty funny, until he appeared to be John Major.