With the loss to Spain in the final of the 2024 European Championship, the future of England manager Gareth Southgate has become a talking point yet again though that may not be the case with his employers.
He isn’t the most popular among English fans but the English Football Association have been impressed with his performances and are ready to keep him in his position regardless of the result against Spain.
His football hasn’t been convincing but statistics suggest that he is one of the best managers England have had.
By qualifying for the Euro 2024 final, the 53-year-old became the first manager to lead the Three Lions to back-to-back finals in the European championship and the first to do so on away soil.
With a 60.6% win ratio, he has the fourth highest win ratio among all previous England managers but is second among those to have managed at least 100 games, with Sir Alf Ramsey being the first.
Southgate’s 2.08 points per game in major tournaments is also the joint best in English managerial history, a record he shares with Ramsey despite being in charge of the most number of games .
He missed the opportunity to become the exclusive holder of this record by losing to Spain at Olympiastadion Berlin on Sunday.
If you would recall, under the former Boro manager, the Three Lions broke the 55-year drought of never reaching the final of a major tournament by advancing to the final of Euro 2020 and also reached the semi-final of the FIFA World Cup for the first time since 1990 under him.
There is no denying that England haven’t been exciting to watch under Southgate and should be playing better but it is difficult to argue with statistics and results.
In fact, there is an argument to be made that only Sir Alf Ramsey should rank higher than him in the English managerial list, based on the stated statistics.
Regardless of what happens between now and when he leaves his position, Southgate has already written his name in the sands of English football history.
