The criticism of Gareth Southgate and the England team during the European Championship has been fiercely criticised by the manager’s best man, Andy Woodman.
The Three Lions had a slow start in Germany, with one win, two draws and just two goals in the group stage, which earned them negative reactions from all sides.
Gary Lineker even went as far as describing the performance against Denmark as ‘s***’.
This earned Harry Kane a thinly veiled swipe, suggesting that those who had worn the same shirt before him and also failed to win a match should have more empathy.
Lineker subsequently confirmed his position in his BBC Sport column on Sunday morning, stressing that he was critical of the performances and that he was not making any “personal attacks.”
Andy Woodman (right) was best man at Gareth Southgate’s wedding and criticised the criticism his side has received
Southgate and England were criticised earlier in the tournament for their performances
Gary Lineker in particular came under criticism for his comments about performances earlier in the competition
However, in a interview with the Sun On Saturday, Southgate’s former best man fiercely criticised comments his friend had made.
“The criticism is disgusting,” he said. “When I see ex-teammates, pundits and journalists that Gareth knows well — and he’s given them access to him and the team — suddenly saying things for clickbait or for their own agenda, it’s not right.
‘People forget that the national team used to be so far removed from the country, it was terrible.
‘We’ve had years where we had so little contact, but now we have a team we’re proud of and a manager we can be proud of.
‘Gareth is patriotic and understands, and yet people still want to criticise.
‘One or two TV pundits should be ashamed of themselves and look back on what they said.’
Woodman indicated that Southgate is not so concerned with what people say about his side of the story, but is more concerned with protecting his family and friends from the consequences of criticism directed at him.
Lineker stressed in his column that his comments were nothing personal and pointed out that even the England staff admitted that ‘something was wrong’ in the early stages of the competition.
Lineker wrote in his column for BBC Sport that his comments were not a “personal attack”
England started slowly but improved steadily throughout the competition until the final
I don’t think I’ve been critical of [Kane] “Not at all, really,” he wrote. “I’ve only talked about his strengths and not necessarily his weaknesses, but the things he does and doesn’t do in his game.
‘He may not be at his best but he is still the best finisher England have ever had. He just never misses and is a constant threat wherever he is.’
‘As a television panel we just tried to evaluate all those things, but sometimes newspaper journalists let experts ask them questions because they don’t have the courage to say it themselves.’
He added: ‘You can’t win in principle, but I think the crowd, when you see their reaction, agree that England didn’t play well in their first games, and they are playing well now.
“So I think most people understand where we’re coming from. Our job is to be critical, to be analytical, and to say exactly what we think, and I think we’ve done that, and in a very honest way.”
Southgate’s team could become the first England men’s team to win a major tournament since 1966
Lineker also wrote that his ambition as a reporter is to announce that the men’s team has won the World Cup or the European Championship, and he hopes Sunday will be that day.
England take on Spain in Berlin at 8pm, with the men aiming for the first major trophy for the men’s team since 1966, while La Roja are aiming for a record fourth European title.