England contract talks ‘consciously shelved’ ahead of Euros, says Gareth Southgate

Gareth Southgate has “consciously shelved” discussions with the Football Association about a new contract because of the fear of a negative reaction from the public before Euro 2024.

Southgate’s existing contract expires at the end of this year but he has paused any fresh discussions with the FA about a deal that would take him to the 2026 World Cup in the United States, Canada and Mexico.

The fear from Southgate is that a new deal announced before the Euros could spark a backlash that would distract his players from the forthcoming tournament. He does not want speculation over his future to hang over the campaign, preferring to return to the topic after the Euros, when he hopes England will be celebrating with the trophy in Trafalgar Square.

Southgate initially joked that England could “stink the place out” in Germany, meaning that everyone would want him gone, but then clarified he did not think this was the right time to discuss it.

“I think we would have to sit and think about that at the end of the tournament,” Southgate said. “I’m happy to talk about it briefly now, but I’m not going to talk about for the whole summer. We’ve consciously shelved any discussions internally about what might be next, because I think if we had sat and signed a new contract and done that before the tournament, everybody would have said: ‘Well, you did this with Capello and you should be proving yourself before you sign.’”

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Fabio Capello signed a new England contract just before the 2010 World Cup, where England played poorly and were eliminated by Germany in the last 16. He resigned in February 2012.

Southgate’s decision was prompted by fears that a new deal could lead to a distracting sideshow or even backlash before the tournament. “I think that has the potential to negatively affect the reaction to the team,” he said. “The team need the clearest run they can possibly have at this tournament, so my job is to remove pressure from the team where possible. I don’t want to put anything additional onto the team.”

The England manager does not mind going into the Euros with his long-term future still unresolved. “I’m completely relaxed about that and I have no idea where we’ll be in the middle of July,” he added, “other than I hope it’s Trafalgar Square, and let’s get the party on.”

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(Nick Potts/PA Images via Getty Images)