Nations League: Gareth Southgate takes responsibility as Hungary thrashes England 4-0

England was thrashed 4-0 by Hungary in its UEFA Nations League clash on Tuesday. Manager Gareth Southgate has taken responsibility for England's dismal show so far.

Image Credit: Getty Images

It is not turning out to be the right show for England in the A-category of the 2022-23 UEFA Nations League (UNL). It suffered a loss to Hungary in its Group 3 encounter. Played at the Molineux in Wolverhampton on Tuesday, England was thrashed 0-4. It remains winless in the competition, ranked bottom after four matches, with a couple of draws and losses, respectively. As the Three Lions stare at an early group stage exit, head coach Gareth Southgate has taken all the responsibility for their poor performance right now.

As for the match, it started with Roland Sallai's opener in the 16th minute, while Hungary was 1-0 at the half-time. In the succeeding half, Sallai doubled it with his brace in the 70th. Zsolt Nagy followed it in the 80th and Daniel Gazdag in the 89th. Further, England suffered a setback after defender John Stones received his second yellow of the tie and was sent off in the 82nd.

After the beating, Southgate told Channel 4, "The irony is, the two Nations League campaigns are arguably the ones that have heaped negativity and pressure onto us, and you wouldn't normally have that [the UNL] as an England manager. I've got to go with that. I've got to protect the players. They've been exceptional in their attitude. They've never stopped. The results are my responsibility."

In the meantime, English defender and skipper Harry Maguire feels it is not the time to panic yet, as he told BBC Radio, "Gareth has been a key part of transforming this England team to one of the most successful sides we have had in the past 50 years. I know it isn't very reassuring for the fans. It has been a disappointing camp. Now and then, football throws up a surprise. We have to look at the big picture. We've had two fantastic tournaments in a row. It's not the time to panic. We're disappointed with a loss, but we need to stay calm and know we have the stuff to work on."

Also, striker Harry Kane asserted that England created chances but failed to finish. "It's time to keep our heads up, look forward to the break now and come back stronger in September. Our defence has been the structure of our success over the last four or five years, and it was a night to forget. We've got to take it on the chin and move forward. End of the day, we're going to prepare for what's going to be a big World Cup, and that's the most important thing," he concluded.