David Seaman weighs in on Gareth Southgate’s England future with key question – EXCLUSIVE | Football | Sport
England hero David Seaman claims that Gareth Southgate should keep his job as Three Lions boss regardless of what happens at the Qatar World Cup. Southgate is under pressure with results leaving plenty to be desired as the tournament closes in, but Seaman feels as though there aren’t enough alternatives to make a risky switch worth it.
The Three Lions go into Monday night’s clash with Germany having failed to score in their past three matches. Southgate’s men haven’t won any of their last five, with a 3-0 friendly against Ivory Coast in March the last time England tasted victory.
Debate is now in full flow as to whether this World Cup could be Southgate’s last tournament as manager, particularly if England fall short of expectations. Seaman is having none of it, however, and the 75-times capped goalkeeper suggests that parting with the 52-year-old would be a big mistake and crucially questioned who could be appointed to turn things around.
“He keeps his job [whatever happens] because he’s got credit,” Seaman told Express Sport. “He’s got to the semi-final of a World Cup and the final of a Euros. It frustrates me like mad when people talk about us not playing well in the lead-up to a tournament.
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“People say get rid of him, but who are we going to put in? It’ll upset everything England have done over the past five or ten years. Changing your manager doesn’t always work so we’ve got to stick with Gareth. For me, he’s the perfect guy to do it. We’ve seen it, it’s just that one step further.”
Last time Southgate led England to a major tournament, they powered all the way to the final of Euro 2020 before agonisingly losing on penalties to Italy. Before that, a party atmosphere echoed around the nation in 2018 when the Three Lions made the World Cup semi-finals in Russia before an extra-time defeat against Croatia.
Southgate’s England had elevated to become one of the best international sides in the world but, with only the Germany game standing between now and the World Cup group-stage opener against Iran in November, fans’ hopes of seeing form peak in the nick of time appear to be fading.
The manager has backed himself as the right man for the job and insists that stability is key going into a major tournament. The likes of Eddie Howe and Mauricio Pochettino have been touted as potential replacements but Seaman claims that it shouldn’t come to that as Southgate has more than enough brownie points to carry on, should he want to.
Alongside coaching Arsenal’s young goalkeepers, Seaman stars alongside fellow England legend Paul Gascoigne in a newly-released YouTube fishing show, produced by Fishing Republic, which can be seen here. “It was great to get Gazza out,” he said. “He loves his fishing.
“We’ve been fishing together for a long time. We’ve been on England duty, he’s fallen in lakes, we’ve chased photographers away. I just wanted people to see the side to him that I see quite a lot – a Gazza that enjoys getting out there and not acting up all the time, just being normal.”
The former Gunners stopper has also interviewed Gazza, along with the likes of Glenn Hoddle and Gary Lineker, on his podcast, Seaman Says.
