I’m so proud of Gareth Southgate… he’s shown leadership, like night he took THAT pen
IT’S not the sort of tune Stuart Pearce would include on any playlist.
This is an unreconstructed 59-year-old punk rocker.
A man who took Gareth Southgate to a Sex Pistols gig during Euro ’96.
A player, nicknamed Psycho, who once tried to run off a broken leg.
Pearce said: “When Frank Skinner and David Baddiel came to the team hotel, Burnham Beeches, and played Three Lions, we all looked at each other and thought ‘hmm, not sure about that!’.
“It certainly wasn’t my taste in music but it became an anthem, the players grew to love it.”
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When Pearce sits in the commentary box for talkSPORT tomorrow, and they play Three Lions over Wembley’s PA system, he admits “the hairs on the back of my neck will stand up”.
A quarter of a century after Pearce played a leading role in England’s last major tournament on home soil, he will look down on his old pal Southgate and the sound of supporters singing ‘Football’s Coming Home’ will ‘evoke so many memories’.
The furore over the Hong Kong ‘dentist’s chair’, Paul Gascoigne’s outrageous goal against Scotland, a masterpiece England performance against Holland, Pearce’s own spot-kick redemption against Spain.
And finally the night when Southgate boldly stepped up to take a spot-kick in a semi-final shootout against Germany and channelled the words of Johnny Rotten — ‘there is no future in England’s dreaming’.
Personally I’m very proud he is at the helm because of what he represents. There is a bit of Bobby Robson in him — Bobby was revered as a man like Gareth.
Stuart Pearce on Gareth Southgate
Having missed against the Germans in the Italia ’90 semi-final, Pearce was the man Southgate turned to as Terry Venables’ men drowned their sorrows.
Pearce said: “I didn’t know Gareth before we met up in that squad and we hit it off straight away, we were good friends from the offset.
“After the semi-final, we went back to the hotel — everyone was given the option of going straight home but to a man we stayed together.
“A few of us had a meal but it ended up just me and Gareth.
“We talked for hours, having a drink, because when someone says ‘I know how you feel’, they often don’t.
“But on this occasion, I was one of the few people who knew exactly how he felt.
“Gareth took the sixth penalty and like many who’ve missed for England — Chris Waddle, Paul Ince, David Batty, Jamie Carragher — they weren’t regular penalty-takers.
“In fact I bucked the trend in 1990 because I’d taken more penalties than anyone.
“We were all sombre, it was that ‘so near but so far’ feeling — we felt we played well enough to beat the Germans and that we’d have been too strong against the Czechs in the final.”
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And Pearce is seriously impressed by Southgate’s impact as England manager.
Pearce said: “Personally I’m very proud he is at the helm because of what he represents. There is a bit of Bobby Robson in him — Bobby was revered as a man like Gareth.
“He always had leadership skills, that was why he put himself forward to take that sudden-death penalty — that is the nature of the man.
“He is intelligent and he’s used his experiences on life’s journey to break down barriers in the England job.
“As a result, the relationship between the manager, players, public and media are so good that we’re going into a tournament where almost everybody is desperate for England to win — and I’m not sure that was true in the past.”
With Euro ’96 nostalgia at an all-time high, Pearce reminds us that golden summer hadn’t always looked so promising.
He said: “There was anything but a wave of expectation. There hadn’t been full stadiums in the build-up, our form wasn’t particularly good.
“There were question marks over crowd trouble.
“We didn’t roll into it thinking ‘brilliant, we’re going to have a fantastic tournament’.
“It wasn’t until Gazza’s goal and celebration in the Scotland game, that was the catalyst — and that was when we first heard everyone singing ‘Three Lions’.”
Gazza’s classic goal against the Scots, seconds after a David Seaman penalty save, was greeted with the ‘dentist’s chair’ celebration — replicating the infamous drinking session in Hong Kong during the warm-up.
Pearce added: “I never drank on England duty, but we’d played that afternoon and we were really poor.
“We were due to fly home and one or two players were talking about going out — so the writing was on the wall for anyone that had a modicum of commonsense.
Terry Venables knew how to handle him. He treated him like a naughty schoolboy — he’d scold him, then smile at him
Stuart Pearce on Paul Gascoigne
“But in hindsight, with Gazza’s celebrations against Scotland, the antics that went on that night almost galvanised the squad.
“Everyone became protective of Gazza — because we knew he was one of our big players and big personalities.
“Terry Venables knew how to handle him. He treated him like a naughty schoolboy — he’d scold him, then smile at him.”
After the 4-1 hammering of the Dutch, England were fortunate to draw 0-0 with Spain in the quarter-final — then the shootout which provided the defining image of Pearce’s career as he roared with relief after scoring.
Pearce said: “It is the photo I sign the most.
“When I was walking up to take the penalty there was more nervousness from the terraces than from me. I was nervous, I knew what it meant, but they all knew the history of six years earlier.
ENGLAND fans will have so many memories of Euro 96 — and here STUART PEARCE gives his views on each of the Three Lions’ matches 25 years ago . . .
ENGLAND 1 SWITZERLAND 1
It was a poor game, I gave away a late penalty and that draw did nothing to ease the pressure we were under.
Fans were underwhelmed — they had not really come to the party at that game.
ENGLAND 2 SCOTLAND 0
I was subbed at half-time as Terry Venables changed shape. Jamie Redknapp replaced me and he was brilliant.
Within a minute, from Dave Seaman’s penalty save to Gazza’s goal, the summer set alight.
ENGLAND 4 HOLLAND 1
I played 78 times for England and it’s the best performance I was involved in by a country mile.
The only downside was we conceded a late goal that knocked Scotland out on goal difference.
You may be surprised to hear that I wanted Scotland to qualify!
ENGLAND 0 SPAIN 0
(Eng win on pens)
We could not live up to the highs of Holland and Spain were slightly the better side.
We rode our luck when they had a goal ruled out and I fancied us in a penalty shootout with Dave Seaman in goal.
Scoring was big for me — but Dave was the real hero.
ENGLAND 1 GERMANY 1
(Germany win on pens)
We did enough to beat the Germans, they had to hang in there to get a draw — it was one of our best performances.
The first ten penalties went in, then Gareth Southgate stepped up . . .
“There had been no defined order with the penalties.
“After extra-time, I told Terry I’d take the third one and it took him almost by surprise — but nowadays shootouts are an exact science.”
The following night, Pearce took Southgate to that Pistols gig at Finsbury Park.
Pearce said: “It was The Gate’s first gig — so what better time to introduce the Pistols? It was the start and end for him with punk music.
“But I absolutely loved it — one of the best weekends of my life.”
So what of Southgate’s prospects this summer?
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Pearce said: “On home soil, with a feel-good factor, it could be our year.
“One or two must do what Gascoigne did, what Bobby Charlton did in 1966, and seize the moment to become world-class stars.”
Tune into Stuart Pearce’s commentary as part of talkSPORT’s wall to wall Euros coverage. Listen via DAB digital radio, 1089 or 1053 AM, talksport.com or the talkSPORT app.