The Three Lions boss has stressed he doesn’t need to hedge his bets as he eyes a long-term future in charge of his nation
Gareth Southgate has declared he intends to see out his current contract leading the England national team in light of recent speculation linking him to Tottenham.
Reports over the past week have suggested Southgate has become a target to take over at Spurs if Mauricio Pochettino moves on.
In the wake of Tottenham’s recent poor form, that speculation was likely set to increase, but Southgate has quickly looked to set the record straight as he committed to the Three Lions.
“You go to bed Saturday night and you wake up Sunday morning and the agenda’s set,” Southgate said.
“Look, I’ve said in the summer, I’m not somebody that needs to hedge my bets and needs to play cleverly and say, ‘I’ll keep this door open, that door open’.
“I’m the England manager and it’s a massive privilege to do the job. There’s a lot of work to do here with the team.
“We think the team can continue to improve, and until I’m told otherwise, 2022 is my contract, and that’s it.”
England will continue their bid to qualify for Euro 2020 with upcoming games against Czech Republic and Bulgaria with Southgate’s side currently top of Group A and with a game in hand.
Meanwhile, Tottenham’s horror week continued on Saturday as they lost 3-0 to Brighton after being hammered 7-2 by Bayern Munich in the Champions League.
Despite those results, Pochettino stressed he’s not concerned about his job and won’t be changing his football philosophy anytime soon.
“No, I am not worried, what worries me is life, not football,” Pochettino said.
“I don’t want you to take it the wrong way, what scares me is life, not football. Football is to be strong and be brave and take decisions and to show your face when things are not good.
“That is what we are going to do, face the negative things and try to work hard to change this dynamic. In my position I need to accept all the criticism. The same when you praise me or the team.
“I’m going to accept it in the same way and it’s not going to change my vision, from you or the pundit because you’re criticising me or describing a situation differently to what you expect.”
Be the first to comment