England are in Milan to face Italy on Friday night in the Euro 2020 final, knowing defeat will see them relegated from the top tier of the Nations League. It would be an embarrassing moment and another tough bump on the road for one of the World Cup favorites in the penultimate match before the tournament. Southgate’s side are determined to get back to winning ways on Friday as they return to action for the first time since some fans called for the manager’s head during the humiliating 4-0 home defeat by Hungary. “Well, the individual part is not important,” the England boss said of the stick he faced. “We analyzed everything, every part. “I think when you win … we were on a 22-game unbeaten run and maybe you don’t analyze the wins as keenly as you analyze the losses. “That’s probably not the right approach actually. “But I felt I compromised internally on certain decisions and you don’t win if you compromise. Image: England were beaten 4-0 at home by Hungary in June “It was good for me to sharpen that focus again because what we do has to be completely ruthless and I have to create an environment for the players that allows them to excel. “And to give them the best platform to be at the level they’ve been for the last five or six years.” Asked what the compromises were, Southgate said: “No, because it’s internal stuff that we work on as a team, so it doesn’t need to be public.”
England team news
John Stones is suspended for the Nations League game against Italy after his red card against Hungary last time out. Jordan Henderson is unlikely to feature in Milan, with the Liverpool captain working his way back to fitness, but could feature against Germany on Monday. The rest of the team trained as normal on Thursday. Defeats to Hungary capped a miserable four-game run in June, with a 1-0 defeat in Budapest followed by draws in Germany and behind closed doors against the Azzurri. But the 4-0 Molineux mauling was the crushing blow that left them at a crossroads with the World Cup just 60 days away. “I’m not really sure it’s about form because when you’re in an international environment, there are so many weeks and months between games that you start from scratch every time, really,” Southgate said. “There were so many conditions in the summer with, firstly, high-quality games, high-quality opponents, but also the need to look after some of our big players. “I think every nation has done that. Speaking to the coaches of Denmark, Belgium and France in the summer, they all found it difficult because everyone is thinking about the World Cup as well. “Also players we wanted to see more of because there are no friendlies after that, which you would normally have for a tournament. “Two games behind closed doors, for many reasons, but we also thought and analyzed everything as a staff group. “When you have passed [challenging] The spells as a manager, which I have, helps you because you have real clarity about what needs to happen and how to get through those periods. “Also, I think if we were coming out of those games wondering why things hadn’t gone so well, then that would worry us more.
England’s next two games…
Friday 23 September: Italy (A) – kick-off 19.45 Monday 26 September: Germany (H) – kick-off 19.45
“But we knew exactly the reasons and it’s a challenge for us as a staff group and then for us to put that challenge on the players to meet. “We know that the level of performance has to be incredibly high to achieve what we want to achieve at the World Cup.” John Stones’ red card against Hungary spells punishment for the trip to the San Siro.
England’s full 28-man squad to face Italy and Germany
Goalkeepers: Dean Henderson, Nick Pope, Aaron Ramsdale. Defenders: Trent Alexander-Arnold, Ben Chilwell, Conor Coady, Eric Dier, Marc Guehi, Reece James, Harry Maguire, Luke Shaw, John Stones, Fikayo Tomori, Kieran Trippier, Kyle Walker. Means: Jude Bellingham, Mason Mount, Jordan Henderson, Declan Rice, James Ward-Prowse. Front: Tammy Abraham, Jarrod Bowen, Phil Foden, Jack Grealish, Harry Kane, Bukayo Saka, Raheem Sterling, Ivan Toney. Liverpool captain Jordan Henderson was included in the squad due to an injury to Calvin Phillips, but Southgate says the plan was always to feature against Germany on Monday rather than Italy. “Big tests for us, big games to deal with first and foremost,” Southgate said of the Group A3 double-header. “We’re playing two of the strongest footballing nations historically in two of the most iconic stadiums you can play in, so big tests for us. “We of course want to improve on our performances from the summer and leave the camp feeling good about our participation in the World Cup. “Coming here and playing Italy in Milan is a great opportunity to do that.”
Kane, Southgate on anti-discrimination campaign: There’s only so much players can do
Image: Kane during a training session in England
Sky Sports News has confirmed FIFA have yet to approve England’s use of the ‘OneLove’ rainbow armband at the World Cup in Qatar. The FA announced on Wednesday that England – along with nine other European nations taking part in the World Cup – will wear a rainbow captain’s armband during the tournament as part of an anti-discrimination initiative and in support of the LGBTQ+ community. Same-sex relationships are illegal in Qatar, although tournament organizers have confirmed that same-sex fans attending the World Cup will be free to book hotel rooms together and will not be criminalised, for example, detained hand in hand on the road. Both Stonewall and Amnesty welcomed the FA’s stance. The original idea for the rainbow armband came from the Netherlands national team, which plans to make the symbolic gesture along with other nations including England, Wales, Germany and France. However, FIFA told Sky Sports News it has yet to give permission for him to wear the rainbow armband. The world governing body has confirmed that it has received requests from a number of member associations and will consider these requests before responding in due course. Use Chrome browser for more accessible video player Kaveh Solhekol explains FA’s decision to partner with nine European countries to wear captain’s anti-discrimination armband in Qatar during World Cup FIFA and UEFA take a strict stance on the use of political imagery in football. Law 4 of the FIFA Laws of the Game states: “The equipment must not have political, religious or personal slogans, statements or images. “A player’s team whose basic mandatory equipment (of which the captain’s armband) has political, religious or personal slogans, statements or images will be penalized.” The FA and other European countries are, however, convinced that wearing the rainbow armband does not breach FIFA rules. England captain Harry Kane and manager Southgate have backed the ‘OneLove’ anti-discrimination campaign but accepted it will have limited impact in Qatar. Kane will wear this armband for the first time in England’s Nations League clash with Italy at the San Siro on Friday night. Asked about the impact the Qatar campaign could realistically have, given the country’s record on human rights, Kane said on Thursday: “There’s only so much the players can really do and wearing the armband in biggest stage in the world will have an impact. “But we can only do what we can. We’ve definitely taken a step forward to help some of the issues in Qatar.” Kane revealed he had spoken to former team-mate and Denmark captain Christian Eriksen and current Tottenham team-mate Hugo Lloris, who is the France captain, about the campaign. It began just months before the start of the World Cup in Qatar, where the treatment of migrant workers has been in the spotlight and where Kick It Out says there is a “danger” to LGBTQ+ fans and players who may wish to travel to the Gulf state for the tournament due to the country’s criminalization of homosexuality. Asked about the campaign, England manager Gareth Southgate added: “There’s not much the players can do specifically other than talk about these issues and put them on the table because ultimately we’re asking for change in a country they respect, he has noted progress, but I have no control.” Use Chrome browser for more accessible video player The FA of Wales’ Jason Webber says their involvement in the OneLove campaign is part of their ongoing commitment to creating positive change Southgate continued: “We’ve done a lot of research, the FA has had countless meetings with NGOs, migrant workers in Qatar, gathered all the information and requests of the people affected. There’s a limit to what can be achieved. “Talking about the issues and raising the issues and putting them on the table is the vehicle that we’ve used in the past as people in sports and that’s what we’re trying to do this time. “There’s always going to be criticism no matter what you do, but we’re trying to influence the areas we’ve been in…
