Betfair Big Interview: Gareth Southgate

FA Cup / Ralph Ellis / 24 March 2010 / Leave a Comment

Gareth Southgate

"I think the top four will be tough for Aston Villa now, with a backlog of matches because of two cup runs, and Manchester City and Tottenham seem to be finishing strongly. The FA Cup will be a real priority for them. On their day they've shown they can beat the big teams this year and have already beaten Chelsea."

Gareth Southgate

Football and job security don't go together - more than a third of the 92 clubs have changed bosses since the start of the season. So when Betfair bumped into Gareth Southgate we wondered what it's like to be an out-of-work manager...

Hi Gareth, is it odd being out of football for the first time in your life?
It was very strange the first six weeks or so. I found the loss of routine was very difficult to cope with. I've got my head round it now, though. I've been fortunate that a couple of TV companies have been good with me, so I've got to go to some good matches, and at the same time I'm having some time with the family. We went away at half-term, and I had Christmas at home for the first time ever

That's a consolation. How old are your children?
They're 11 and six, so it's great to have time with them. As a player it's great, although sometimes if you are involved in an international team you can be away all summer, basically you get to pick them up from school and stuff. But when you are managing you just don't see them. So this has been something to make the most of. We are going skiing next month, that I had never been allowed to do, and it's a good period of reflection for me

What's the plan now, then?
It's good just to have time to consider where we are at, and what we want to do. We are settled living in Harrogate, but also conscious that whatever business you go into you might have to move at some point. I think more I can look back on lessons learned over three-and-a-half years as a manager, three of them in the Premier League. I'm not even 40 yet so there are things I can draw a lot from. I also want to go and learn other skills and do other things - working at ITV as been a whole new environment.

There was a lot of fuss about taking your Pro Licence at Middlesbrough. Did you finish it?
Yes I did, that was last summer. I've got all my qualifications now, as if the workload wasn't enough I had that to do as well!

How much did it help you with the job?
The course deals with lots of leadership things, and has speakers coming from other sports or business. I found it very interesting, but the reality is that you need hands on experience more than anything. You can't recreate the scenarios you face day in and out, not so much on the field as off it

How do you feel about what's happened with Middlesbrough since you left?
Well it would be easy for me to say I thought we would be very close. Our only target was to get promotion, and we were a point off the top and with some players to come back from injury. We hoped to strengthen in January too because last summer we were just bringing in money we needed. But a new manager wants his own players with loyalty to him and that takes time. They still have a chance of the play-offs, so if they get there then everything is justified

Do you hope they do?
Yes I do, I'm not a bitter person. And also I think we put so much work into it, and they had such a good start, that you want that to be carried through. I'm very much on the outside looking in now. I've tried to keep out of the way. When you are a manager that's moved on it's no good for the new guy if you are in the background all the time.

You must watch your old clubs, though, for instance how do you feel about Crystal Palace at the opposite end of the table?
Sad, especially as but for the company putting them into administration they would have been up fighting for the play-off themselves. Because of that they've lost Neil Warnock who in that division is as good as anybody at getting results. The only good thing is that Paul Hart had exactly that scenario at Portsmouth last season and kept them up, and he's got players who performed like a top eight team before.

And what about Aston Villa?
I think the top four will be tough for them now, with a backlog of matches because of two cup runs, and Manchester City and Tottenham seem to be finishing strongly. The FA Cup will be a real priority for them. On their day they've shown they can beat the big teams this year and have already beaten Chelsea - but the slight negative is it's clearly a massive competition for Chelsea now, whatever Jose Mourinho might say about the FA Cup! They have a lot of senior players being questioned so they will want to respond

You're going to the World Cup with ITV?
Yes and I'm really looking forward to that. I've been to two World Cups as a player, covered some of the last one with ITV in Germany, but with this being in Africa it will be a completely different experience. I'm also involved with the 2018 campaign so hopefully we can make some inroads into that too. It would be great if we can bring that back to be held in our country. Most of all I'm hoping the England team do well

And finally get to win a penalty shoot-out?
Yeah, you might say that. I couldn't possibly comment!

Thanks for your time and we've a free £50 bet for your favourite charity
That can go to the Prince's Trust, and I'm being brave but I'll back Aston Villa to reach the FA Cup final once the market for their semi against Chelsea has been formed.