Gareth Southgate ranks making Euro 2024 final as his 'best' achievement as England manager
Gareth Southgate has praised his England side after reaching the final of Euro 2024, claiming it is his best achievement during his spell in charge.
Substitute Ollie Watkins' 90th minute strike booked the Three Lions' spot in Berlin - where they face Spain on Sunday - after Harry Kane's first-half penalty cancelled out Xavi Simons' opener in a 2-1 victory.
Southgate was asked where reaching England’s first final of a major tournament on foreign soil ranked among his achievements, and told ITV: “I think it has to be the best, it’s another landmark.
"We played so well throughout the game. It was a complicated game. They kept changing, we had to keep changing how we were defensively especially but I thought we caused problems all night and the end is so special for the squad.
"It’s an example of what this squad are giving to the cause."
Watkins' introduction in the 81st minute proved to be vital, as did Cole Palmer coming on at the same time after he delivered the final pass.
Using the bench has been a point of much debate surrounding the England team, with pundits arguing that Southgate is often too slow in making his changes.
“Sometimes (substitutions) can work that way," Southgate claimed.
"The most important thing is all the squad are ready to come into the game, we’ve kept tight, it’s hard with 26 you disappoint 15 every time but you spend a lot of time with those guys, their attitude has been exemplary.
"I’m so chuffed for Ollie to get his moment. We just felt energy-wise we were starting to lose a bit and Harry (Kane) got a knock in the first half of course.
"Ollie presses well, he makes runs behind and we thought it was a good moment to try it."
England’s 18th-minute penalty was dubious – awarded following the intervention of the VAR after Kane was caught by Denzel Dumfries, who had been trying to block a shot from the England captain.
However, Southgate said his side deserved victory on the balance of play.
“We also had Phil (Foden)’s shot cleared off the line, the disallowed goal was inches again, so I think we deserved the win tonight,” he continued.
“The opponent gave us a little bit more space. In the early games we didn’t have any space to play. We were very fluid, Bukayo (Saka) did a brilliant job to cover inside. We had to adapt but all the players made so many good decisions on the pitch.”
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