Speaking after the England defeat to Italy at Wembley on Sunday night, manager Gareth Southgate took responsibility for the decision to leave Bukayo Saka to take the fifth and crucial penalty. The Arsenal teenager missed which meant that the trophy went to the Italian side, with senior players such as Jordan Henderson not taking one of the first five.
England players console Saka after his miss
England players console Saka after his miss

Image credit: Getty Images

Alexander Netherton
BY
ALEXANDER NETHERTON
PUBLISHED 12/07/2021 AT 05:02 GMT+6
Gareth Southgate shouldered the blame for putting Bukayo Saka in for the crucial fifth penalty in their Euro 2020 defeat to Italy.
Saka was taking his first penalty in competitive football when other, older players such as Jordan Henderson and Jack Grealish were not required to step up, leading to some questions over Southgate’s decisions.
However, speaking to ITV, Southgate explained that the order had already been agreed with the players.
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“We prepared as well as we could for that, and it’s my responsibility. I chose the guys to take the kicks in the end we weren't able to see the game through in regulation time,” he said.
ITALY SHOWED WHAT AN OUTSTANDING SIDE THAT THEY ARE. OUR PLAYERS HAVE DONE THEMSELVES PROUD. EVERYONE HAS BEEN EXCEPTIONAL, THE FIRST TIME WE’VE BEEN TO A FINAL.
“Disappointed not to go that one step further.”
Southgate gathered his players in the wake of their defeat, and explained what he had said to the group.
“Just that nobody is on their own in that situation.. We decided to make those changes right at the end of the game. We win and lose as a team. We've been tight throughout.
“That’s my decision to dive [Saka] that penalty. That’s totally my responsibility. It’s not him or Marcus [Rashford] or Jadon [Sancho]. We worked on them in training. That was the order we came to. That’s my call as a coach.”

The coach then appraised the team’s tactics, and noted where they had failed to keep control of the game after an exceptionally promising start from Luke Shaw’s opening goal.
“We did start well, our system worked really well, our wingbacks overloaded well,” he said.
“They were bound to come back, they had some outstanding players. We didn’t keep the ball well enough in that initial period in the second half. We changed the shape to try and get a bit more of a grip. It was our lack of composure in possession that turned the game. We were defending OK.
IT’S HARD TO REFLECT ON THIS MOMENT BECAUSE THE DISAPPOINTMENT IS ENORMOUS FOR ALL OF US. THIS GROUP OF PLAYERS HAS DONE THEMSELVES PROUD. I HOPE THAT EVERYONE WILL REMEMBER WHAT THIS GROUP HAS GIVEN THEM.
“I think I've given everyone some fantastic nights and we wanted to give them one more, and it’s hard for me to put that into words.”