Jonathan Freedland’s piece on the power of Gareth Southgate’s leadership (Gareth Southgate has proved that quiet competence can lift a nation – it’s a lesson that goes far beyond sport, 12 July) missed one really important thing: belief.
Southgate made us and the team believe again. We saw it in the penalty shootout in the quarter-final. The calm, focused, steadiness of each penalty-taker belied the history and shadow of previous matches. We saw it again in the final on the faces of the younger players. They don’t just believe they can win, they know they can win. Their belief and their performance improvement turned many of us from doubt to belief too. It is simply a matter of time before football comes home.
This individual and collective belief may be Southgate’s greatest legacy. You can’t make someone believe in themselves, but you can create conditions for them to realise it on their own. This is what great leaders and coaches do at the individual, team and organisational levels. Can our nation’s leaders do the same?
To do so, they will need to help us remember who we are as a nation and what we can accomplish when we come together, to rekindle the optimism, care and compassion inherent in the British psyche, to unite us around a vision and mission that matters, and lift our spirits and aspirations in service of something greater than ourselves.
Rashmir Balasubramaniam
Penzance, Cornwall
• I have a very rare bone to pick with the excellent Jonathan Wilson (Gareth Southgate made England relevant again – but it was time to go, 16 July). England did have to negotiate the home internationals as part of the qualification process for the 1968 European Nations cup, but this took them to a two-legged quarter final against the defending champions Spain. Having won the first leg at Wembley 1-0 they won the second at the Bernabéu 2-1.
It’s worth noting they only took one point off a talented Scottish team highly motivated in playing the world champions and they also had to contend with a Northern Ireland team fielding George Best, so qualification was not straightforward.
Richard Priestley
Matlock, Derbyshire
• During the past eight years Gareth Southgate has displayed insight, eloquence and a good deal of tact and diplomacy. I understand that there are vacancies in the House of Lords, which would provide an excellent opportunity to carry on using his skills.
Les Bright
Exeter
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• The first letter was amended on 21 July 2024 to correctly refer to England’s win on penalties in the Euro 2024 quarter-final, not the semi-final.
