Southgate stood out when I was with him at Aston Villa and his thoughtfulness and trust in players can break cycle of failureI made my debut for Aston Villa on 13 January 2001 and, to be frank, it could have been in better circumstances. We were 3-0 down to Liverpool at home when John Gregory decided to beckon me from the bench. I came on with six minutes to go, into a lost cause, and in front of an understandably disgruntled crowd.Nevertheless, it remains a good memory given it was my first taste of English football, and Premier League football in particular. I also came into a Villa side full of strong personalties such as Paul Merson, David Ginola and...
Tireless midfielder is becoming the grinning symbol of a team that has come to Russia with a strange sense of exuberanceWell, that was fun, in between the painful bits. First, it is necessary to issue the disclaimers. Yes, Panama unravelled like a cheap cigar in Nizhny Novgorod. Faced with England’s excellent first-half movement, they fell apart like a wicker-rimmed hat left to bake in the sun. At times Panama played a genuinely ugly brand of football, hacking and whingeing and spoiling like the bloke you never invite back to the midweek seven-a-side.In between this England performed with incisive, cold-blooded composure to win 6-1 and rack up their highest World Cup score, an unarguable, entirely deserved entry in the tournament history...
England’s glorious day in the sun lifted the BBC pundits but there was still caution amid the commotionComplain about the licence fee if you must but the bottom line is the BBC’s comprehensive World Cup coverage offers something for everyone. Toddlers across the land, for example, have been cavorting joyously to the simple pleasure of the Kicky Kicky Kick Kick song from the Hey Duggee cartoon. Meanwhile on Radio 5 Live there is the Robbie Savage breakfast show, for those who have not yet graduated to CBeebies.It is a broad church. But the actual match coverage must please everyone at once, no mean feat. England’s support can be roughly split into two categories – the blindly optimistic and the morbidly fatalistic – and...
Sir James Corden, aged 92, presents the Late Late Show and asks Jamie Vardy and Kieran Trippier the vital questions about England’s World Cup triumph in RussiaThe World Cup is well under way. Podcasting daily is taking its toll. Being knocked off the top of the podcast charts by Love Island: The Morning After is a blow, but must be viewed as a challenge the squad can overcome. Perhaps we’ll bring in a romantic interest for my much-cherished colleague Barry Glendenning.I have watched every minute of the tournament and I’m not sure it’s healthy. It hit home on Saturday night. By the time the final game had started it all became a blur – who had played who? Which games...
Midfielder was in England’s team that beat Tunisia at the World Cup 20 years ago and says patience and fearlessness are keyThere was a lot of trouble before we played Tunisia in Marseille. The two or three days leading up to the game were unpleasant. A lot of the squad had family over there, so it wasn’t easy.We were aware of what was going on. We had families flying over in the morning or on the night before and you just never know, do you? My mum and step-dad were out there. They were having a holiday in France and were travelling down for the game. I spoke to them and it was fine but it’s something you think about....