England: Gareth Southgate's moment of truth to show he can take final step

Gareth Southgate reached 150 games with England in March's friendly against Belgium — 57 as a player and 93 as manager — and, as it stands, his legacy with the national team will be defined by two defeats on penalties in the European Championship.

Easily the most frequent line of questioning to Southgate during his nearly eight years in charge has been about his decisive miss against Germany in the semi-final of Euro ‘96, which long threatened to haunt the rest of his career.

Southgate has, to his credit, gone some way to exorcise the ghost of that night at Wembley, ending their grim record at shootouts during the 2018 World Cup before leading England to a knockout win over the Germans at the same venue in Euro 2020.

As he prepares for his fourth major tournament in charge, however, Southgate is now working to banish the memory of his side's loss to Italy three years ago.

Gareth Southgate

"It's different, because in '96 it was a personal pain, but in 2021 I felt like I had a responsibility for the whole country," Southgate explained this week, when asked which defeat was more painful.

"In '96 there was probably more understanding from the public. In '21 I felt more criticism, as if the whole thing, the togetherness for a month, was suddenly gone."

The manner of the defeat by the Azzurri in the final in July 2021 felt in keeping with the deep-rooted concerns about the manager's tactical acumen at the highest level.

England were, after all, 1-0 up inside three minutes of a major final, at home and in front of a deeply partisan crowd, but ultimately squandered their advantage, allowing Italy back into the game, just as Southgate's side had allowed Croatia to come from behind to win a World Cup semi-final three years earlier.

Italy could scarcely believe the England manager took so long to turn to his impressive bench, with Bukayo Saka not introduced until the 70th minute and Jack Grealish — the darling of the tournament — until the 99th.

The lateness of the changes appeared in keeping with Southgate's inherent conservatism, which has long frustrated his critics, and the manager was similarly slow to act in the World Cup quarter-final defeat by France in Qatar 18 months ago.

As Southgate prepares for what is widely expected to be his last major finals with England, with his side kicking off their Euro 2024 against Serbia tonight, the manager remains, for many supporters, the biggest obstacle to the side's hopes of glory.

For all that he has transformed the culture of the squad and rebuilt the connection with fans, there are still searing questions about whether he has the tactical acumen to match the depth and quality of his squad.

England have clearly made remarkable progress, but they have been a functional side rather than one capable of stringing together a succession of top performances against leading opposition.

That will likely have to change in Germany if they are to go one better than three years ago, with the likes of Spain, France and Portugal all looking strong. Starting well against Serbia in Gelsenkirchen would set the tone, and if Southgate opts for Trent Alexander-Arnold as his third midfielder, as mooted, it should give England a much-needed progressive passer in the middle of the park.

Phil Foden, Bukayo Saka and Jude Bellingham are likely to support Harry Kane, so England should have few issues at creating chances. There are concerns, though, over how Iceland exploited the gaps in the side's structure in their shock 1-0 win at Wembley last week.

Centre-halves John Stones and Marc Geuhi, who is expected to get the nod in the absence of Harry Maguire, looked uncomfortable, and Serbia are planning to take the game to England by following Iceland's blueprint.

"If I was asked, I'd attack the English," said defender Strahinja Pavlovic. "I'd go up there and try to press them. Everyone has flaws, even the English. We saw how Iceland were able to threaten."

Countering the threat of former Fulham striker Aleksandr Mitrovic, particularly at set pieces, where Maguire will be missed, is also a challenge for the manager.

For a large percentage of fans, including those who switch off from England between major finals, Southgate is the face of England but he has taken them as far as he can.

With Southgate having suggested he will stand down if England do not win the tournament, the Euros feels like a last chance for him to prove that he can still elevate this side to another level, and consign the memory of the last Euros to the history.