How England have performed at every major tournament under Gareth Southgate, with low rating for Euro 2020 - Opinion

Gareth Southgate has been England’s manager since 2016, meaning Euro 2024 will be his fourth major tournament in charge of the national team.

The former Middlesbrough boss replaced Roy Hodgson eight years ago after the Three Lions flamed out of the Euros at the hands of football minnows Iceland.

And, the 53-year-old is still in the job, suggesting that he has done really well, but how have England really performed in each of the three previous tournaments under Southgate?

How did Gareth Southgate and England do at the 2018 World Cup?

England went into the 2018 World Cup in Russia with low expectations, having performed so badly at the Euros two years prior.

The Three Lions were placed into Group G, a rather favourable draw, alongside Belgium, Tunisia and Panama.

England beat Tunisia 2-1 in their opening game of the tournament, thanks to Harry Kane’s injury time-winner.

Kane then scored a hattrick in the second group game, a 6-1 victory over Panama, in which John Stones also scored twice.

Having already achieved qualification to the knockout rounds, Southgate picked a heavily rotated team for the final group match against Belgium – a 1-0 defeat.

World Cup 2018 Knockout Phase for England

The Three Lions face Colombia in the round of 16, and a Kane penalty looked to be enough for a place in the quarter-final until former Everton defender Yerry Mina scored in the 92nd minute.

Neither team could score in extra time and so it went to penalties, where England held their nerve to many people’s surprise.

And, Harry Maguire and Dele Alli were on the scoresheet as England cruised to a comfortable 2-0 victory over Sweden.

Southgate’s side were stopped in their tracks by Croatia in the semi-final, however, after Ivan Perisic and Mario Mandzukic replied to Kieran Trippier’s fifth-minute goal. England lost again to Belgium, this time 2-0, in the third-place play-off.

Little was expected of Southgate’s side at the 2018 World Cup so making it to the semi-final was an achievement. The Three Lions did have an easy run, though, and had a better squad than Croatia on paper.

How did Gareth Southgate and England do at Euro 2020?

England’s group for Euro 2020, which was postponed until 2021, consisted of Croatia, Scotland and the Czech Republic.

The Three Lions got a small sense of revenge on Croatia with their 1-0 victory in the first match of the tournament.

They followed that up with a 0-0 draw with close rivals Scotland before Chelsea winger Raheem Sterling scored his second of the competition in the 1-0 win over the Czech Republic.

Euro 2020 Knockout Phase for England

Southgate’s side defeated Germany at Wembley Stadium in the round of 16, with Kane and Sterling scoring in the closing stages.

England were excellent in their 4-0 thrashing of Ukraine in their quarter-final clash at the Stadio Olimpico in Rome.

And, a 2-1 semi-final success against tournament underdogs Denmark meant that England had reached just the second major tournament final in their history – the first, of course, being the 1966 World Cup.

Luke Shaw’s strike put the home side in front after just two minutes but they failed to double their lead, instead coming under pressure for much of the remainder.

And, Leonardo Bonucci’s second-half goal ensured that the two sides would go to extra time, where neither team could score before Italy came out victorious in a heartbreaking penalty shootout for Southgate’s men.

England’s second-best tournament in their history deserves a high rating but losing a home Euros final against Italy has to go down as a missed opportunity.

How did Gareth Southgate and England do at the 2022 World Cup?

England’s most recent opportunity to achieve their first major tournament success since 1966 came at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.

One of the favourites to win the World Cup on the back of an impressive Euro 2020 campaign, England were once again dealt a favourable group.

The Three Lions got off to an almost perfect start with the 6-2 thrashing of Iran but followed that up with a disappointing 0-0 draw with USA.

A Marcus Rashford helped England to a 3-0 win over Wales in their final group game, ensuring that they finished in first place in Group B.

World Cup 2022 Knockout Phase for England

England beat Senegal 3-0 in the round of 16, as Jordan Henderson scored just the third goal of his remarkable international career.

Unfortunately for Southgate’s side, however, they came up against 2018 winners France in the next round.

It was a close game but England ultimately paid the price for Kane’s missed penalty Les Bleus progressed to the semi-finals.

England were unlucky to face France in the quarter-final but as the saying goes, ‘if you want to be the best, you’ve got to beat the best.’