Gareth Southgate rules out Manchester City-style documentary for England squad

A recent eight-part, access-all-areas Amazon series on Manchester City caught the eye as some of the secrets behind Pep Guardiola’s success were made available for all to see.

A similar show chronicling Sunderland’s relegation to League One will air on Netflix later in the year.

Sergio Aguero featured in the All or Nothing: Manchester City documentary (Nick Potts/PA)

Former England boss Graham Taylor was the subject of a fly-on-the-wall documentary during the ill-fated qualifying campaign for the 1994 World Cup.

Taylor’s reputation was affected by the series and Southgate said he never intends to appear in a warts-and-all programme. He made his stance clear while coincidentally speaking in the Graham Taylor Suite at the Football Association’s St George’s Park headquarters.

“Not a chance,” Southgate said when asked if he would consider being part of anything similar to the Manchester City series, which he has watched in its entirety.

“I enjoyed it as a piece of TV of course. You are always looking for more tactical insight or what happens in training sessions, so it was well edited! But yes, I thought it was interesting to watch.

Graham Taylor was captured on film during England’s failed bid to reach USA 94 (Michael Stephens/PA)

“And of course you had an insight into Pep’s personality which I have seen a little bit having met him, but for a fan you’d see some of the players’ personalities which of course we know but they wouldn’t. So for them that would be more of a discovery than it was for me watching it. But no – it was fun to watch but no, not a chance.”

While City’s players were also shown in a new light, Southgate believes the limited time spent in international camps means his players would not feel as comfortable knowing they were on camera.

“(It would be) very difficult especially in our environment,” he said.

“Where at a club players are probably more comfortable in that environment, internationally it’s a little less comfortable at times because it’s just different from the day to day.

“Then to expect them to really relax and be themselves and not be inhibited in meetings and things is a really tough challenge. So if a camera crew is with you for a year, I’m sure after a period of time it just becomes in the background.”

England captain Harry Kane played darts in front of the cameras during the team’s World Cup campaign (Owen Humphreys/PA)

England were commended for their openness with fans and the media throughout their run to the World Cup semi-finals over the summer, a clear departure from previous campaigns.

But Southgate feels that is as far as it can go for international coverage, and he would actively discourage the Football Association from agreeing to any such offer.

“In an international environment where you are there for a week and apart for a few weeks you are building trust all the time,” Southgate added.

“I think in the World Cup we got our messages out, we put up with (FA cameraman) Eddie (Keogh’s) camera in our face all the time which captured some lovely memories for us, but it’s not something I would be encouraging from an England perspective.”