Gareth Southgate’s timeline so far as England manager

Gareth Southgate will stay on as England manager despite the World Cup quarter-final defeat to France.

Here, Football Mad takes a look at the timeline of his six-year tenure to date.

27 September 2016 – Southgate was placed in temporary charge following Sam Allardyce’s departure. The England Under-21s manager was initially put in charge for four games.

Sam Allardyce lasted just one game in charge of England before being replaced by Southgate (Nick Potts/PA)

8 October 2016 – Southgate enjoyed victory in his first game in charge as England beat Malta 2-0 at Wembley with goals from Daniel Sturridge and Dele Alli.

15 November 2016 – His interim period came to an end after a 2-2 draw with Spain at Wembley, which saw England go unbeaten in Southgate’s four games. The former Middlesbrough manager called for a quick decision on whether he will get the job permanently.

30 November 2016 – Southgate signed a four-year deal to become England’s permanent manager.

10 June 2017 – Harry Kane scored an added-time equaliser as England avoided an embarrassing World Cup qualifying defeat against Scotland at Hampden Park.

5 October 2017 – England booked their place at the 2018 World Cup in Russia with a 1-0 win over Slovenia.

3 December 2017 – Football Association chief executive Martin Glenn gave Southgate an overwhelming vote of confidence, insisting he would keep his job even if they lost every game at the World Cup.

3 July 2018 – After breezing through the group stages in Russia, Southgate banished painful memories of Euro 96 penalty heartbreak as his side beat Colombia in a shoot-out to progress to the quarter-finals.

England won a World Cup penalty shootout for the first time in 2018 (Owen Humphreys/PA)

7 July 2018 – Southgate became the first England manager to lead his country to the World Cup semi-finals since 1990 after a 2-0 quarter-final win over Sweden.

11 July 2018 – Hopes of ending 62 years of hurt were curtailed with a 2-1 extra-time defeat to Croatia in the World Cup semi-final.

15 October 2018 – Southgate led England to a first victory in Spain in 31 years with a 3-2 win in the Nations League.

28 December 2018 – Southgate was awarded an OBE in the 2019 New Year Honours list for services to football.

Jordan Pickford’s penalty heroics helped England finish third in the Nations League (Tim Goode/PA)

9 June 2019 – England finished third in the inaugural Nations League after a penalty shoot-out win over Switzerland in the third-place play-off.

6 April 2020 – Amid the Coronavirus pandemic, Southgate agreed to take a 30 per cent salary cut.

22 June 2021 – England topped their group in Euro 2020 after a 1-0 win over the Czech Republic, but Southgate attracted criticism for their style of play.

29 June 2021 – Southgate became the first England manager since Sir Alf Ramsey in the 1966 World Cup final to lead his country to victory over Germany in a knockout match with a 2-0 success in the last 16 of Euro 2020.

11 July 2021 – After reaching the final of the European Championship for the first time, Southgate’s England suffered more heartbreak as they lost the Wembley showpiece to Italy on penalties after a 1-1 draw.

15 November 2021 – Southgate’s side scored 10 goals in a game for the first time since 1964 as they hit double figures against San Marino to book their place in the 2022 World Cup.

22 November 2021 – As reward for his impressive work with the side, Southgate earned a new contract which ran until Euro 2024.

Gareth Southgate’s side suffered a Molineux humiliation against Hungary (Nick Potts/PA)

14 June 2022 – England endured a dismal Nations League campaign, which included a 4-0 hammering by Hungary at Molineux – the worst home defeat since 1928. Southgate faced boos and critics called for his head.

10 December 2022 – England eased through to the quarter-finals in Qatar before being beaten 2-1 by defending champions France, but the performance of Southgate’s side attracted praise.

18 December 2022 – The FA announced Southgate would stay on to lead England’s Euro 2024 campaign.