Real Football Man All of the Football, All of the time
The worst kept secret in Football is out. Nothing scandalous (or perhaps it is if you don’t agree with the decision) but Gareth Southgate has been named the new England manager on a permanent basis. The 46 year old has been awarded a 4 year deal which will earn him a cool £2m a year.
After taking interim charge for four matches since October it was no real surprise that Southgate was given the job full time. Two wins and two draws from those four matches didn’t quite sight the footballing world alight but it seems like the appointment of the former Middlesbrough boss was the smart thing to do.
Smart because bringing in another man would only mean another disruption to an already hectic World Cup Qualifying campaign and also we cannot forget the fact that he would have worked with many of the younger players in the squad during his time as England Under-21 manager.
For many it will represent a safe pair of hands and not a particularly exciting appointment but as a nation what other options were there? Perhaps The F.A. could have waited until the Summer to see what other options are available but even waiting that long doesn’t necessarily mean that a whole wave of candidates would then emerge.
Arsene Wenger looks more likely to sign a new contract with Arsenal after such a solid start to the season while one of the other names in the early frame Alan Pardew has more to worry about currently at Crystal Palace. Yes Pardew may become available soon but that’s not through his own violation and his circumstances are not ones that should be rewarded with England’s biggest job.
With qualification to the World Cup in Russia almost a given the task that awaits Gareth Southgate is to try and remove the large level of fan apathy that currently surrounds the national side. A task that at present is almost insurmountable.
After the despair of Euro 2016 and the farce of Sam Allardyce being in charge for 67 days managing England calls for someone to steady the ship. Southgate will definitely bring that but like all his contempories he can only really be judged once he is at the helm at a major international tournament.
So the next 18 months or so will give him the perfect opportunity to work with the players at his disposal and cultivate a squad that is capable of competing for international honours. The qualifying campaign is all but dealt with but as always we have to be careful not to fall into the same old trap only to once again suffer a false dawn.
Perhaps the fact that England weren’t blisteringly good in those four interim matches might just do both Southgate and the team a favour. It means the side is now approached with a dose of reality and doesn’t mean that fans expect us to be world beaters straight from the off.
It’s slightly depressing that this has become the attitude as it only shows how far England have fallen but Iceland in Euro 2016 must surely have been our nadir. We really can’t get any lower than that can we, to be the laughing stock of World Football there is then only one way you can go from there.
So let’s give Southgate the time to make the squad his own, the four year contract certainly suggests that he will be given the time although that doesn’t necessarily mean he gets a free hit at World Cup failure in 2018. There will still be the expectation to get out of the group and into the knockout stages otherwise his tenure could be that of only one tournament.
As always England seem to be building for tomorrow but we’re not good enough to be challenging for now. We just have to hope that Tomorrow finally comes. If Southgate can prove his worth over a two tournament cycle then who knows what is around the corner.
Now as a nation the best thing we can do is get behind him, the decision has been made whether you agree with or not is by the by but at least we can finally look ahead with a young manager who should be given every chance and all the assistance he needs for success. Best of luck Gareth.
