Nottingham comedian Matt Forde has urged England fans to keep backing Gareth Southgate as the national team manager following a recent run of poor results. Last night, the Three Lions were thumped 4-0 in Wolverhampton by Hungary, who also beat them 1-0 in Budapest last week in the UEFA Nations League.
Those results along with with an unexciting 0-0 draw at home to Euro 2020 champions Italy - who beat England on penalties at Wembley to take the title back to Rome - and a lacklustre 1-1 scoreline away in Germany have left fans questioning the direction the team are heading in just five months before the 2022 World Cup in Qatar. Tactics have been criticised and concerns have been raised over a lack of goals, with captain Harry Kane scoring the only one in the past four games with a late penalty in Munich.
Many have pointed to factors including the fact these matches have come at the end of a long season and experimental teams being put out on the pitch as to why the results have not been good. However, it has not stopped some England fans and pundits saying that the FA should consider their options and think about sacking Southgate before the World Cup.
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One fan who certainly is not calling for Southgate to go though is Forde. Taking to Twitter, the Nottingham Forest supporter called on fans to keep the faith with the former Crystal Palace, Aston Villa and Middlesbrough defender who also played 57 times for England, famously missing a crucial penalty during a shoot-out against Germany at Euro 96.
Forde said: "We’ve been completely spoilt with Southgate. He’s achieved more than any England manager for decades and he’s still willing to tweak and experiment in order to win the ultimate prize, the World Cup. We wouldn’t have had any of this with (Sam) Allardyce or any other manager."
The tweet received several responses echoing Forde's thoughts. A football fan called Lucas said: "Yeah people have a short memory... He deserves some loyalty for one more tournament."
Meanwhile, Scott Brothers replied: "He has handled himself with dignity throughout his time as England boss and I’ve felt very proud to have him lead the team. He’s given me the best memories as an England fan since Italia 90.
"In a world where leadership is lacking he’s beeen [sic] brilliant. Last summer was magic!"
Colin Maltby said he "100%" agreed with Forde. He added: "Really cracks me up that people are calling for his head.
"We’ve had exceptional talent in squads for years and not had a sniff of a trophy. Everyone’s an expert sat in their armchair."
However, plenty of others responded saying changes were needed. McFisto said: "Imagine what a world class attack minded coach like Pep (Guardiola) or (Jurgen) Klopp would do with this squad. Southgate is a championship level manager at best."
Mark L wrote: "We have got the best collection of attacking talent in generations yet he insists on setting them up so negatively even in games that mean very little. Also having Kane as a lone striker when he seems to want to play in midfield leaves the team frequently without a focal point."
And Phil Blundell's response said: "Haha you make it sound like he’s reinvented the sport when he’s basically had fortunate draws and beaten some inferior teams. There’s no reason to think that Allardyce wouldn’t have done what he has given it amounts to beating Sweden, Ukraine and Denmark."
Others considered who should take over from Southgate if he was sacked, with some suggesting Forest's Steve Cooper - who coached England's Under-17s to a world title in 2017 - could be the answer. Mark Rogers said: "Southgate has done a fantastic job, I think it's time for Steve Cooper to replace him."
Forest season ticket holder Joe Bakers Cat had similar thoughts, saying: "Is he as good at analysing the opposition both before/during games or knowing his best team as say Steve Cooper? I’m biased but I’m not sure he is."
England's World Cup campaign in Qatar gets under way in Group B on November 21 - the first day of the tournament - against Iran at the Khalifa International Stadium before facing the USA and Wales at the Ahmad bin Ali Stadium on November 25 and 29 respectively. The knock-out rounds of the competition kick-off on December 3 with the final on December 18.
Before the tournament begins, England will play Italy in Milan on September 23 and Germany at Wembley three days later to wrap up the current Nations League A campaign. Southgate's men are currently bottom of Group Three and will be relegated to League B if they fail to climb up the table.
