Gareth Southgate has been widely lauded for his management of the English national team, having moved on some of the old guard, bringing in some youth and team spirit, implementing a tangible style of play and most notably reaching a World Cup semi-final.
The former Middlesbrough boss was originally given the job on a temporary basis as a caretaker manager in September 2016, but he signed a permanent four-year deal for the top job two months later. Today we look back to the early days of the Southgate reign, and the first seven players who he handed international debuts to.
Here are Gareth Southgate’s first 7 England debutants: Where are they now?
7. Jesse Lingard – Manchester United
The only debutant in Gareth Southgate’s very first game in charge of England, which was a 2-0 win against Malta, was Manchester United winger Jesse Lingard. The four-time Championship loanee was a player Southgate knew well from his time with the under-21’s, and he has gone on to become a near nailed-on starter for the full international side. Lingard has now won 19 caps for England, and having scored 13 goals and making 48 appearances for Manchester United last season, the 25-year-old also scored one of the goals of the tournament at the 2018 World Cup.
6. Aaron Cresswell – West Ham
Aaron Cresswell of West Ham United arrives prior to the Premier League match between Everton FC and West Ham United at Goodison Park on September 16, 2018 in Liverpool, United Kingdom.
It took another three games before Gareth Southgate had a second debutant, and that man was Aaron Cresswell. A 79th-minute replacement for Danny Rose in England’s final game of 2016, a 2-2 friendly draw with Spain, Cresswell had been in excellent form for West Ham. A real outlet at left-back for the Hammers the previous season, Cresswell had begun the 2016-17 campaign brightly as well. Cresswell has won a total of three caps for England under Southgate, including one start against Lithuania, but his chances of a return to the national team look bleak now.
Currently battling with Arthur Masuaku for a starting berth in Manuel Pellegrini’s struggling West Ham side, the likes of Luke Shaw, Danny Rose, Ashley Young and Ryan Bertrand would all rank above him in Gareth Southgate’s left-back or left wing-back thinking one would imagine.
5. Michael Keane – Everton
Another player who Gareth Southgate knew well having been a regular in the under-21’s, he called the then Burnley centre-back up as early as October 2016, oddly as a replacement for Glen Johnson you may remember. It wasn’t until 2017 that Keane actually made his debut for England though, doing so in March as England lost 1-0 to Germany in Lukas Podolski’s farewell match. Keane has since won 4 caps for the national team and made a potential £30 million move to Everton, although there are three or four centre-backs seemingly ahead of him in Gareth Southgate’s pecking order right now.
4. Nathan Redmond – Southampton
Nathan Redmond of Southampton and Martin Kelly of Crystal Palace battle for the ball during the Premier League match between Crystal Palace and Southampton FC at Selhurst Park on September…
You may notice a rather unsurprising theme emerging here, and that is that the vast majority of Gareth Southgate’s England debutants were players he had worked with in the under-21’s. Nathan Redmond has the third most England U21 appearances in history, and he too made his senior debut in that friendly against Germany. An exciting wide man who is so quick and fairly good on the ball, Redmond just hasn’t been effective enough in the final third to justify anymore inclusions by Gareth Southgate. Aged 24, he scored once in 36 games last season, and is yet to add to his solitary March 2017 cap as of yet.
3. James Ward-Prowse – Southampton
A fellow Southampton and former England under-21 regular, James Ward-Prowse is exactly the type of player England are crying out for. A smart, assured and technically gifted central midfielder, if either Harry Winks or Ward-Prowse could really lay down a marker at their club sides, Gareth Southgate would surely be looking on with interest.
Sadly, although Ward-Prowse is clearly a classy operator, he hasn’t yet done enough to prove that he is of international class on a consistent basis. The third player to make his international debut in that 1-0 defeat to the Germans, Ward-Prowse also hasn’t been capped since, and he will turn 24 later this year.
2. Kieran Trippier – Tottenham Hotspur
Kieran Trippier of Tottenham Hotspur arrives at the stadium prior to the Premier League match between Tottenham Hotspur and Liverpool FC at Wembley Stadium on September 15, 2018 in London,…
It took until the age of 26 for Kieran Trippier to make his international debut, but he has made some impression in the 15 months and 14 caps since that debut. A tireless right-back who is an excellent crosser of a ball, Trippier was outstanding for Burnley before his 2015 transfer to Tottenham. He became the main man at right-back for Spurs following the departure of Kyle Walker, and he now looks to hold the right-back spot over the Manchester City man in the England squad too.
Trippier made his England debut in the countries 3-2 friendly defeat to France in June 2017. Trippier’s impressive form for Tottenham made him a regular under Gareth Southgate, and he was arguably the Three Lions’ most impressive player at the 2018 World Cup. Tripper created more chances than any other player at the tournament as England reached the semi-finals. The 27-year-old scored the opener in that semi-final against Croatia, but England succumbed to a 2-1 defeat in extra-time.
1. Harry Maguire – Leicester City
Everyone’s favourite England player, it’s hard not to like Harry Maguire. Seemingly a thoroughly decent and down-to-Earth Sheffield lad who was out on-loan at Wigan Athletic from Hull City only four seasons ago, Maguire is now a sure-starter in Gareth Southgate’s England team.
A deceptively gifted footballer whose 6’4” frame disguises a centre-back who is incredibly comfortable carrying the ball out of defence and playing pinpoint passes into midfielders and wide men. In terms of the basics, Maguire is just as proficient. A powerful athlete who is strong in the tackle and a real force in the air, Maguire has won 13 caps since making his 2017 debut against Lithuania, and the nation fell in love with him at the 2018 World Cup in Russia.
That’s it for the first seven, but the other players to have been handed their England debuts by Gareth Southgate are Harry Winks, Jordan Pickford, Ruben Loftus-Cheek, Tammy Abraham, Joe Gomez, Jack Cork, Dominic Solanke, James Tarkowski, Lewis Cook, Trent Alexander-Arnold and Nick Pope.
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