An awful lot as happened in the world and in England since the Three Lions last kicked a ball.
Most fans may have drunk away the memories of that last match, the humiliating 4-0 defeat at Molineux to Hungary in the Nations League.
England have found themselves gasping for air at the foot of their Nations League table. Just the two draws served with two defeats in an admittedly tough group which includes Italy and Germany.
Autumn is here however, as England fans forget the pain of the last match in search for their second attempt at revenge following the Azzurri’s heart-breaking victory over England in last summer's European Championship final.
Gareth Southgate and his England side landed in Milan on Thursday night ahead of their clash with Italy on Friday and were more or less immediately ushered off the plane and into press duties.
Southgate touched upon Harry Kane’s recent announcement that he will wear a rainbow captains armband in the Qatar World Cup, the strength of Italy’s domestic league as well as the significance of playing tomorrow’s game in one of world football’s most iconic stadiums.
'OneLove' Campaign:
Following 2018’s World Cup held in Russia, FIFA have set a trend in holding the world’s biggest sporting competition in increasingly controversial nations, with the 2022 tournament being held in Qatar.
Homosexuality is illegal in Qatar, so outward and direct support of the LGBT community in the nation is a risk.
However, England striker Harry Kane announced that he would wear a rainbow captains armband during the World Cup, a clear mark of solidarity and support fitting of the captain of his nation.
"The FA have done a lot of due diligence with the NGOs (non-government organisations),” Southgate noted, “so there were certain requests that were made in terms of areas we might raise, talk about and support.
“I think what the FA have tried to do yesterday is put those on the table.
"Then, separate to that, is the armband. That’s an agreement between several European nations where we felt it was a collective stance that again would lead to people having discussions and talking about these issues”.
"There's only so much the players can actually do"
— Sky Sports News (@SkySportsNews) September 22, 2022
Harry Kane and Gareth Southgate backed the 'OneLove' anti-discrimination campaign but accepted it will have a limited impact on the human rights issues in Qatar. pic.twitter.com/TutA0GAMoD
England have joined nations including France, Belgium, Germany and Denmark (among others) in the ‘OneLove’ campaign which ‘will use the power of football to promote inclusion and send a message against discrimination of any kind as the eyes of the world fall on the global game”.
Southgate continued, "the people I’ve spoken to have explained to me – human rights lawyers in particular – that there’s not a lot more the players can do than talk about those issues and put them on the table.
In the end, we are asking for change in a country we are respectful of, that has made a lot of progress, but also we don’t have any control over."
England men's captain Harry Kane will wear a OneLove armband for the team's Nations League games and at the 2022 World Cup. 🏴
— BBC Sport (@BBCSport) September 21, 2022
More ⤵️#BBCFootball
Southgate on Serie A
The Italian national side is stacked with some of Serie A’s finest players, including AC Milan’s Sandro Tonali, Lazio’s Ciro Immobile and Inter Milan’s Nicolo Barrela.
Southgate has seemingly done his homework and claims him and his staff have studied many of Serie A’s finest players intently.
“We follow Serie A closely,” remarked Southgate, “I was in Italy two weeks ago to watch the derby and then Udinese. We know the Serie A players”.
With England in desperate need of three points in this Nations League group, Southgate will hope to have the tactical edge over his opponents and will hope his studying of Italy’s top division will help his side do just that.
Tough times
Despite much criticism, Gareth Southgate’s tenure as England boss has been a success. A World Cup semi-final in 2018, a Euros final in 2021 and making waistcoats cool again for a few weeks are achievements only truly matched by Sir Bobby Robson and World Cup-winning manager Sir Alf Ramsey.
However, the former Middlesborough manager and Crystal Palace player has had his fair share of tough times in the hotseat at Wembley, as he confesses himself:
“We were on a run going into that summer of 22 matches without losing and you maybe don’t analyse the victories quite as acutely as you analyse the defeats.
“That’s probably not the right approach in actual fact.
“But I felt I compromised certain decisions internally, and you don’t win if you compromise.”
Notably poor results under Southgate include the aforementioned 4-0 defeat to Hungary and a particularly memorable 2-1 defeat to Czech Republic in 2019, as well as England’s performance in the Euro’s final which has been criticised for being gutless.
However, Southgate remained as calm as ever and seemingly hopes to use these experiences to better his side going forwards.
“It was good for me to sharpen that focus again because what we’re going into we’ve got to be completely ruthless and I’ve got to create an environment for the players that allows them to excel.
“And to provide them with the best platform to be at the level they’ve been for the last five or six years.”
The San Siro
Legends have plied their trade on the iconic and beautiful pitch of the San Siro stadium, home of both Inter and AC Milan.
Kaka, original Ronaldo, Ronaldinho, Ruud Gullit to name a few.
On Friday, many England players will have their first opportunity to grace the same grass as these icons of the past.
“This is a very important tournament and we have already faced two very strong teams. We must improve after recent results and building up to the World Cup,”
“Getting to do that here at San Siro, in an iconic stadium, will be a great honour.”
“We already played against Italy, we know how formidable the players in the Italian national team are. It’s up to us to respond to the results of the last two meetings and improve.”
Following the Euros final, England and Italy met at Molineux to grind out a 0-0 draw.
English and Italian fans alike will be hoping for a more entertaining affair this time round.
“We play two of the strongest football nations historically in two of the most iconic stadiums you can play in, so great tests for us.
“We’re wanting to of course improve our performances from the summer and to leave the camp feeling good about ourselves going into the World Cup.
“To come here and play Italy in Milan is a great opportunity to do that.”
England and Italy face off in a make-or-break fixture for Southgate’s side at 19:45 on Friday.