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.
