Matt Le Tissier lays into 'woke' Gareth Southgate and says he offered to coach England

England manager Gareth Southgate will lead the Three Lions into his second World Cup as manager, but Matt Le Tissier reveals he once offered his own services to the national team

Patrick Austen-Hardy Senior Sports Journalist

12:24, 19 Nov 2022

Matt Le Tissier said he thinks he could have been of use as a penalty taking coach(Image: GB News)

Matt Le Tissier revealed he has previously offered to coach England players in the art of penalty taking, but does not believe “woke” Gareth Southgate would give him the opportunity.

The Southampton legend converted 47 of the 48 penalties he took over the course of his football career with the south coast side. Considering England’s historic woes from shootouts, culminating in a heartbreaking shootout defeat to Italy in the Euro 2020 final, it is no wonder that Le Tissier has offered his services.

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However, the former Soccer Saturday star's controversial views have seen him confined to the sidelines of football. And Le Tissier made sure to aim and extra dig towards the England boss when asked about the time he offered his penalty taking expertise.

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“I have, on occasions in the past, approaching World Cups and European Championships, offered my services to go and coach the players, if they want some advice on taking penalties,” Le Tissier said to GB News.

Le Tissier had a superb record on penalties as a player(Image: 1994 Mark Leech Sports Photography)

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”To be fair, I mean, there were probably other managers that may have been more likely to listen than the woke Mr Southgate. I would quite happily take a penalty still, at my age.

“I really enjoyed the pressure of those situations. I really looked forward to taking penalties. And I think one of the biggest things you can have as a penalty-taker is your mindset going into it has to be really positive.

Do you think England could benefit with Matt Le Tissier in the coaching staff? Let us know in the comments section below.

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Southgate was labelled as "woke" by Le Tissier(Image: Andy Stenning/Daily Mirror)

“And I believe that was one of the biggest reasons why my penalty record was good.” England could find themselves in a dreaded shootout over the course of the competition in Qatar if they can navigate their way through the group stages.

But while Southgate does possess one of the most talented England squads in recent memory, Le Tissier does not believe 56 years of hurt will come to an end.

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“I suspect not. As much as I would love them to win the World Cup, I think with my realistic cap on I think there are perhaps better teams than us. However, you never know, football's a funny game.”

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