England followers say TED LASSO can be higher than Gareth Southgate

England fans today called for Ted Lasso to take over as manager after Gareth Southgate‘s team stumbled to a 1-1 draw with Denmark at Euro 2024.

Supporters joked that the boss of the fictional football team AFC Richmond from the Apple TV show would get more out of the players after a dismal performance.

One said Lasso ‘could get a better tune out of these players’ than Southgate, while another claimed Lasso ‘could manage a squad better’ than the current manager.

Angry supporters also asked whether Lasso is ‘busy at the moment’, with one tweeting: ‘The only thing that can help England right now is Ted Lasso honestly.’

Lasso is played by Jason Sudeikis, who attended a premiere of the show in July 2021 with a shirt bearing the first names of Jadon Sancho, Marcus Rashford and Bukayo Saka – who suffered racial abuse after missing penalties in the Euro 2020 final.

It comes after boos greeted the final whistle in Frankfurt yesterday as England missed the chance to top their European Championship group with a game to spare.

Serbia’s late equaliser against Slovenia in the early kick-off meant England knew a win would see them through to the round of 16 as Group C winners.

But Morten Hjulmand’s thumping strike cancelled out Harry Kane’s first group-stage goal since 2018 as England fumbled their chance at early progress.

England fans let their displeasure be known at Deutsche Bank Park, while many others watching back home voiced their frustration on social media.

Southgate faced significant criticism, with one fan saying the boss would ‘take the minus offer on the Chase’ and ‘100 per cent wears safety goggles to mow the lawn’.

Another added: ‘It’s so hard to make England’s players boring. But Gareth Southgate is utterly committed to his job.’

And a third tweeted: ‘I’ve watched Sheffield United concede 104 goals in a season and it’s not even as demoralising as watching Gareth Southgate’s England.’

After the game, Southgate admitted underperforming England are struggling to cope with the pressure.

‘Look, clearly, we’re disappointed with the two performances we’ve had,’ said the under-fire England boss, who has to refocus on Tuesday’s group finale against Slovenia.

‘We’ve got to go and analyse that in depth and find some solutions to addressing the issues that we have. Over the next few days we’ll spend a lot of time doing that.

‘We know the level has to be higher, we know the level can be higher.

‘Maybe the biggest thing is we have to accept the environment that we’re in and the expectations that are around us. We are going to have to walk towards that challenge.

‘At the moment we’re falling a little bit short of that. Ultimately that’s my responsibility. I’m the manager and I’ve got to guide this group in the best way possible.’

Meanwhile Alan Shearer said he felt there was ‘no excuse’ for a performance that lacked energy.

The former England captain, working as a pundit for the BBC, said: ‘You can see players lying on their backs – they look absolutely shattered, the England players. There’s no excuse for that.

‘There was no energy, no pace to the game. We didn’t run in behind until the last 10 or 15 minutes, we got caught too many times on the ball, too many sloppy passes and in truth, Denmark were the better team and deserved to win.

‘It was very poor, it wasn’t good enough. I wouldn’t say lack of effort, not trying, but there’s so much more to come from those players.’

And former England defender Rio Ferdinand bemoaned the tactics adopted by Southgate.

Asked about the performance, he said: ‘Lacklustre, lacked any sort of direction in my eyes, tactically well below par – we were overshadowed tactically, I thought, by the Denmark team.

‘You have to give them that respect, they were well-drilled, tactically superior, pressed us better, pressed us together.

‘I thought England looked very average. Our best players, our most decisive players, our best players (are) at the top of the pitch and we choose to set up to defend.

‘We’ve got too good players to sit back and hope to get through a game. We need to get to the bottom of, are they being told to do this, or are the players actually just being forced to do that by the opposition?’

The match was attended by Prince William, who shook hands with King Frederik X of Denmark after the game and were seen having an enthusiastic conversation.

But yesterday’s display was not one to strike fear into Europe’s elite, with Southgate’s selection and the underwhelming all-round team performance sure to be pored over in minute detail before facing Slovenia.

England started with the same team that beat Serbia and, yet again, took an early lead, this time through skipper Kane after Walker caught Victor Kristiansen napping.

But, as in Gelsenkirchen, they wobbled after going ahead and Hjulmand’s belting 30-yard shot in off the foot of a post saw their Euro 2020 semi-final opponents level.

Both sides had chances to win it, with Phil Foden hitting a post before being withdrawn as part of a bold triple substitution that failed to spark an improvement in a flat England performance.

The poor playing surface forced Walker into an early change of boots. And when the vice-captain returned he played the ball in to Foden to turn away from his man and get away a strike during a cagey start, which came to life after a Danish defensive error.

Kristiansen was so concerned by Saka’s presence that Walker managed to pick his pocket on the outside, driving forward and seeing a low cross ricochet into path of Kane to slot home from close range.

Denmark’s response to the 18th-minute opener was as impressive as England’s was alarming.

While Southgate’s men were defending the box well, they were allowing the Scandinavians too much space outside it and their pressure told in the 34th minute.

Kane swept a pass from a throw-in into no man’s land, with Hjulmand passed the ball and continuing to hit a beautiful strike from 30 yards that beat Jordan Pickford and crashed in off a post.

The red hordes roared as England continued to invite pressure, with Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg denied between Foden chances.

Kane raised his arms in frustration after the first of those openings, having seen the forward take a tame shot rather than slip him in at the end of a stunning run.

Declan Rice saw a deflected drive held and Saka bravely headed into the side-netting early in the second half, which was only nine minutes old when Southgate turned to his bench.

The ineffective Trent Alexander-Arnold was replaced by regular midfielder Conor Gallagher as England sought to get a grip on proceedings.

Southgate held his head in his hands when a low 25-yard Foden strike cracked a post, with Saka flashing the ball across the face of goal after Gallagher made an important intervention at the other end.

But England’s play became nervier as the game wore on, with Southgate introducing a new-look front three of Jarrod Bowen, Eberechi Eze and Ollie Watkins in place of Foden, Saka and Kane.

It was a bold move with around 20 minutes remaining and nearly paid immediate dividends, with Watkins put in behind by Bellingham and forcing Schmeichel into a save from a tight angle.

But the changes did not spark a noticeable upturn and Denmark looked most likely to snatch a winner.

Hojbjerg seemed desperate to score from distance and a superb Marc Guehi recovery tackle stopped a dangerous Alexander Bah cross.

England looked happy with a point as the clock wound down, but this was a view that their fans in Frankfurt – and back home – certainly did not share.