For Kyle Walker, it’s a matter of appreciation, and there is a Moment when he is discussing our position with England before the Euro qualifier against Italy at Wembley on Tuesday night, when the question is put to him. Is his own work duly appreciated?
“Maybe not,” the Manchester City right-back replies, wondering how it could not be before his retirement. Which he has managed to do almost twice at international level, with the 33-year-old having to be told by Gareth Southgate after Euro and the World Cup.
It is Southgate that Walker wants to highlight, the efforts of the England coach, and that almost includes a plea aimed at both the Fans and the media.
Walker acknowledges David Beckham’s Netflix documentary, which everyone in football seems to be talking about, and the former captain’s last free kick against Greece, which secured England’s place at the World Cup. The Point? Qualifying for a major tournament wasn’t always easy; Southgate just made it look like this. His team needs a point against Italy to secure a place in the European Championship with two matches to play. And that’s before Walker gets into Southgate’s positive record as a Manager: semi-finals, finals, quarter-finals. So, guess it.
Walker had attended the press conference alongside Southgate to preview the Italy match and had heard the series of questions about Jordan Henderson’s situation–in particular the way the Wembley crowd booed the midfielder after he was substituted in the 1-0 win over Australia last Friday.
Henderson’s decision to join Al-Ettifaq in the Saudi professional league continues to provoke hostilities given his alleged status as an ally of the LGBTQ+ community. Homosexuality is iljuristic in Saudi Arabia.
“He [Southgate] has to answer difficult questions instead of focusing on our performance,” Walker says. “We are more focused on the boos and what we haven’t done than on what we have achieved.
“With David Beckham’s documentary, it is not easy to qualify for a competition. Have you gotten used to the fact that we are just qualifying? If we didn’t qualify, God knows what would happen. I wouldn’t leave my house, I should just stay inside. Because we qualify and it is always difficult to leave your house.
“I don’t see The balance. We’re fine. Any Manager in the world would like to lead this team, and instead of really appreciating it, we try, in my opinion, to choose the negatives.”
