Interim England manager Gareth Southgate insists he is ready to make tough decisions as he prepares to take charge of his second game against Slovenia on Tuesday night.
The England Under-21 boss has been criticised in the last few days following England’s 2-0 win over Malta at Wembley on Saturday.
Goals from Daniel Sturridge and Dele All ensured the Three Lions grabbed all three points but England were expected to add more goals against their opponents.
Southgate’s decision to select Wayne Rooney in midfield was also criticised and the Manchester United captain was booed by some sections of the crowd.
Rooney, who has picked up 117 caps for England so far, is expected to start in Ljubljana but Southgate says he is more than ready to make some big calls.
During his time at Boro he had to make several members of staff redundant and the 46-year-old insists that will help him going forward.
“Making some really close friends redundant – that’s probably as big [a decision] as you can get,” he told reporters.
“I’ve got to make decisions which are right for the team and whenever you select a team, with England, you’re going to leave some [players disappointed].
“You look at the bench [against Malta] and there are guys that are playing every week in the Premier League for their clubs and so you have to be prepared to do that, that’s part and parcel of the job.”
Southgate will be looking to secure maximum points during the international break and his side are 1.67 to win on Tuesday. Slovenia are priced at odds of 6.00, while the draw is available at 3.75 with Dafabet.
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