Southgate welcomes benefit of penalty prize
Gareth Southgate has hailed the penalty shootout victory over Colombia as a "huge moment" in the history of English soccer which will have significant consequences for future generations of players.
The England manager revealed that he had sat his squad down before the last-16 tie in Moscow and reminded them that many had come through the lower leagues to earn the chance to play on this, the highest stage.
"We play with character and I love that about them," Southgate said, promising it was just the start of something for a young squad "who are only going to get better".
Although England are only in the World Cup quarter-finals, where they will face Sweden in the heat of Samara on Saturday afternoon (midnight Saturday AEST), the importance of finally winning a shootout at a major tournament for the first time since Euro 96 cannot be underestimated, not least because of the psychological burden that has hopefully, finally, been lifted and the impact it has had on a nation desperate for success. Or at least a different story.
England had lost six of their past seven shootouts – at the World Cup in 1990, 1998 and 2006 and the European Championship in 1996, 2004 and 2012 – and not even won a knock-out tie since 2006. The weight of that underperformance had to be dealt with at some point, while England also, against Colombia, had to recover from the blow of conceding an injury-time equalising goal which took the tie to 1-1, extra time and penalties.
There may well be a price to pay in terms of injuries, with concerns over Jamie Vardy (groin), Dele Alli (thigh) and Ashley Young (ankle) in particular, but Southgate was not underestimating how much beating Colombia meant.
"It's an important moment for everybody in our country, really. You know you are standing there and if we don't get through from a game we played so well in, you know you will continue the history and mindset for teams to come," Southgate said. "So, it's a huge moment for these players, but also the generations to come as well."
"They are still a young group of players ... so it was really significant, because we can't just be a team that goes out and plays," Southgate said, referring to the rough-house nature of the tie which Mark Geiger, the American referee, struggled to control. "You have to be savvy enough and tactically aware and ready to manage games. That's what makes the difference in big matches.
"But, also, they have a humility about them. We are based on working hard for each other ..."
Telegraph, London