Hungary on Tuesday overwhelmed Gareth Southgate’s men and left them on the brink of relegation after dealing the Three Lions a 4-0 win in Wolverhampton, their worst home defeat since 1928.
The backlash from fans has mostly been directed at Southgate who has accepted responsibility for the defeat and called on fans to stand by his players ahead of the World Cup coming up in five months’ time.
“I totally understand tonight is a chastening experience,” he said, “what I would say is this group of players have been unbelievable for the country and its important people stay with them because they are still going to be strong going forward.”
Skipper Harry Kane urged fans not to panic and dismissed any suggestion that Southgate should be sacked.
“It was a night to forget but we have to take it on the chin. We’ve got to move forward,” Kane said.
Two goals from Roland Sallai and late goals from Adam Nagy and Daniel Gazgad saw off the Three Lions and kept Hungary on course to reach the Nations League finals next year. England are now three points away from the bottom of the log and would need a win against Italy and Germany in September to avoid relegation.
