GARETH SOUTHGATE came home to a nasty surprise after suffering Euro 2024 heartbreak with England.
A 2-1 loss to Spain in the final proved to be the last act of Southgate‘s eight-year reign.
And while La Roja boss Luis de la Fuente was parading the trophy around his homeland, Southgate was forced into a much more sobering activity.
During his show at the York Barbican, In Conversation with Gareth Southgate – Lessons on Leadership, he said: “This is the difference between winning and losing.
“So, we travelled back. My family was still travelling back from the game, actually. I flew with the team, and we were able to fly chartered, I got back ahead of [my family].
“We had a lady looking after the dog overnight, who had decided that she needed to go. So, I said, ‘No problem. I’ll be home in an hour, leave the dog, no problems.’
“So, I get in with all my six weeks worth of bags. And there’s the dog, that lovely moment where he doesn’t care what’s happened in the game. I’m still a man. So I have a bit of fun with the dog. He’s a Cockapoo. Lovely little thing, fluffy.
“We go up to where the lovely cage is upstairs and there’s this enormous pile of sick. Our lady’s fed him. Obviously, he’s wolfed it down and got himself in a pickle.
“So, the first thing I’m doing, having lost a Euros final, and the Spanish manager’s in the middle of Madrid with a trophy, and I’m there [doing that].
“I’ve heard rock bands talk about coming back off tour and the struggle to get back into normal life. That was pretty hard-hitting.”
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Southgate claims to have decided before the Euros final that, whatever the result, it was going to be his last game in charge of England.
And two days after the Spain defeat, his resignation was officially confirmed.
Southgate has been out of management for well over a year, and a number of links have sprung up in the meantime, including to Manchester United.
But the 55-year-old says he’s “finding other areas” to use his skills and isn’t looking for a return to the touchline any time soon.
