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EURO 2020

Gareth Southgate’s Pizza Hut advert blunder and penalty heartbreak deja vu


ON THIS DAY: Sixteen years ago Gareth Southgate first suffered penalty heartbreak with England as the Three Lions lost the Euro 96 semi-final to Germany

Gareth Southgate regrets taking part in the Pizza Hut advert after his Euro 96 penalty heartbreak for England
Gareth Southgate regrets taking part in the Pizza Hut advert after his Euro 96 penalty heartbreak for England

It was on this day sixteen years ago that England suffered penalty shootout heartbreak on home soil.

The Three Lions flourished as the host nation of Euro 96, and were one step away from reaching a major final for the first time in 30 years. Old adversaries Germany stood in England’s way, and the semi-final ended in agonising fashion.

Alan Shearer’s early opener was quickly cancelled out by Stefan Kuntz, and the contest almost inevitably went to a penalty shootout. On this occasion, Gareth Southgate proved to be the fall guy as his tame sudden-death effort was beaten away by Andreas Kopke, and German captain Andreas Möller converted his spot-kick to seal England’s exit.

The spectre of that saved penalty haunted Southgate for the rest of his professional career and beyond into management. He told FourFourTwo in 2012: “When I missed, my first thought was for my team-mates as it was a great chance for them to win something.

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“It affected me massively afterwards and it still does to this day. Every single day now, when I walk down the street, it is always mentioned to me. Of course, it is annoying.

“When you have played for 20 years and that is the first thing people think about you, it is a bit of a downer. Some people still abuse me about it in the street.”

UNITED KINGDOM – JUNE 26: EURO 1996 Halbfinale GER – ENG n.E. 7:6 London; Gareth SOUTHGATE/England verschiesst Elfmeter (Photo by Bongarts/Getty Images)

HAVE YOUR SAY! Can Gareth Southgate lead England to glory at the World Cup? Comment below!

In the same interview, Southgate went on to outline his regret with his involvement in the infamous Pizza Hut commercial which aired in November of the same year. It was Stuart Pearce who convinced the future Three Lions manager to take part alongside Chris Waddle.

All three players had seen crucial penalties for their country saved or miss the target, and it was this shared anguish which was brutally mocked in the advert. Southgate sat around the table with a bag over his head due to the shame of his recent failure as Pearce and Waddle regularly remind him of his ‘miss’.

The former Aston Villa and Middlesbrough defender wishes he hadn’t agreed to the advert, admitting it looked like he was ‘cashing in’ on the shootout failure. But 25 years later, Southgate was presented with the perfect chance of redemption at the same venue of the scene of his heartbreak.

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Gareth Southgate regrets agreeing to the Pizza Hut advert
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Having restored faith in the national team with an unlikely run to the World Cup semi-final in 2018, England enjoyed another successful tournament at Euro 2020. Built on defensive resilience rather than attacking flair, Southgate’s side knocked out Germany, Ukraine and Denmark on the way to a Wembley final.

Luke Shaw gave the Three Lions a dream start with a goal after just two minutes, but the Italians grew into the final and deserved Leonardo Bonucci’s second-half equaliser. It was almost inevitable that England’s first ever European Championship final would be decided by a shootout following a nerve-wracking period of extra time.

The script was written for Southgate to complete the perfect redemption arc from penalty villain to mastermind of only the Three Lions’ second major trophy. However, Gianluigi Donnarumma denied Bukayo Saka’s effort to create further heartbreak for both England and Southgate.

Progress to a semi-final and a final following years of mediocrity and underachievement still represented progress for the Three Lions. However, on this occasion the reaction to another shootout defeat was tainted by online racial abuse directed at Marcus Rashford, Saka and Jadon Sancho for their unsuccessful efforts.

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Despite this record at major tournaments, the subject of Southgate’s future as England boss has come under scrutiny ahead of the winter World Cup in Qatar. The 51-year-old is contracted until December 2024, but has faced criticism for a dismal summer showing in the Nations League.

England boss Gareth Southgate consoles Bukayo Saka after his penalty was saved in the Euro 2020 final
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England have not won any of their four opening group games, and have been beaten twice by Hungary including an embarrassing four-goal thrashing at Molineux. In the face of his critics, Southgate admits he won’t ‘outstay’ his welcome but is confident the squad can still succeed at the World Cup.

The England boss told reporters: “I don’t know maybe having the balance of that hasn’t been where it might have been, but look that’s going to continue – I’ve got to manage in the way I see fit. Don’t get me wrong, I sense I’m not reading it but I sense where the room is with it.

“I won’t outstay my welcome but I think I can do a good job for the team and I think we’ve done a good job for the team. I think we’ll continue to improve the team, which we have done over a consistent period of time and I think we’re also developing young players as well that will leave England in a good place for a long period to come.”

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