England players have come out in support of manager Gareth Southgate after their defeat in the Euro 2024 final to Spain.
For the fourth game in a row at the Euros, the Three Lions fell behind only to claw their way back into Sunday’s game in Berlin - but on this occasion Mikel Oyarzabal scored late to win the trophy for La Roja.
Questions have already begun over Southgate’s future after criticism of England’s performances throughout their time in Germany.
The 53-year-old has led the country to back-to-back European finals as well as a World Cup semi-final but faces calls to quit over the lacklustre nature of much of England’s displays. However, it is widely reported that the FA want Southgate to stay and post-match comments from the players indicate he also has their backing.
Captain Harry Kane struggled to produce his best form at the Euros and was even substituted an hour into the final, but insisted Southgate deserves to stay on.
“We've made it clear we love the manager, but that's his decision,” Kane told BBC One.
“This is not the time to talk about that now.
“That's down to him. He'll go away and think about it. Right now we're all just hurting.”
Goalkeeper Jordan Pickford also threw his support behind the manager.
“We’ve had a fantastic journey,” he stated to ITV.
“Hopefully he stays on because he’s the best England manager that there’s been, looking at the history of what we’ve achieved - I would say achieved but we’ve not got over the line.
“To get two finals, one semi-final and one quarter-final in four majors in a row is a great achievement. But to not lift that trophy at the end is a massive suckerpunch for us. That’s all we’ve ever wanted as a team and to not do it, we’re devastated.”
England next face the start of their Nations League campaign in September, having been relegated to the second tier, before qualification for the 2026 World Cup gets underway.
Southgate is only under contract until December and refused to discuss his plans after Sunday’s game.
“I totally understand the question and you need to ask it but I need to have those conversations with important people behind the scenes,” he told his post-match press conference.
“I'm not going to discuss that publicly first.”
