England manager Gareth Southgate insisted the Three Lions crest was the most important part of the national team’s shirt as the Football Association faced criticism of the latest kit from Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer.
The shirt’s manufacturer Nike has altered the appearance of the St George’s Cross using purple and blue horizontal stripes in what it called a “playful update” to the shirt ahead of Euro 2024.
Sunak warned Nike “should not mess” with the flag, while Starmer urged Nike to “reconsider” the design.
Southgate, though, was more interested in the iconography surrounding the traditional Three Lions badge rather than being drawn on the “artistic take” on the St George’s Cross.
He said: “It’s not been high on my list of priorities but that depends which bit it is (causing the controversy) because I don’t know if the debate is about the St George flag needing to be on the England shirt, because obviously it hasn’t always been.
“I think the most important thing that has to be on an England shirt is the Three Lions, it’s our iconic symbol, it is what distinguishes us not only from football teams around the world but from England rugby and England cricket.
“It’s the thing that, when I put my shirt on at Burnham Beeches, 30 years ago, I looked in the mirror – and I clearly don’t look at my face too often when I do that – but the Three Lions really stood out.
“So I suppose what you’re really asking is, should we be tampering with the Cross of St George?
“But in my head, if it’s not a red cross on a white background, it isn’t the cross of St George anyway, so it is a hard question to answer really because it is presumably some artistic take on, which I am not creative enough to understand.”
The Football Association stood by the controversial design of the new kit and said it was “very proud” of the red and white St George’s Cross but gave its support to the new look.
“The new England 2024 home kit has a number of design elements which were meant as a tribute to the 1966 World Cup-winning team,” a spokesperson said.
“The coloured trim on the cuffs is inspired by the training gear worn by England’s 1966 heroes and the same colours also feature on the design on the back of the collar. It is not the first time that different coloured St George’s Cross-inspired designs have been used on England shirts.
“We are very proud of the red and white St George’s cross – the England flag. We understand what it means to our fans, and how it unites and inspires and it will be displayed prominently at Wembley tomorrow – as it always is – when England play Brazil.”
The Prime Minister was asked about the kit design on a visit to Derbyshire on Friday.
“Obviously I prefer the original and my general view is that when it comes to our national flags, we shouldn’t mess with them,” Sunak said.
“Because they are a source of pride, identity, who we are and they’re perfect as they are.”
Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer called on Nike to reconsider and told The Sun: “I’m a big football fan, I go to England games, men and women’s games and the flag is used by everybody. It is a unifier. It doesn’t need to be changed. We just need to be proud of it.
“So, I think they should just reconsider this and change it back. I’m not even sure they can properly explain why they thought they needed to change it in the first place.”
A petition on Change.org calling for a design change had already attracted more than 21,000 signatures by noon on Friday.
Nike issued a statement on Friday afternoon insisting it “was never its intention to offend” with the design but did not indicate any intention to change it.
“We have been a proud partner of the FA since 2012 and understand the significance and importance of the St George’s Cross and it was never our intention to offend, given what it means to England fans,” the statement read.
“Together with the FA, the intention was to celebrate the heroes of 1966 and their achievements. The trim on the cuffs takes its cues from the training gear worn by England’s 1966 heroes, with a gradient of blues and reds topped with purple. The same colours also feature an interpretation of the flag on the back of the collar.”
The kit pricing has also been criticised.
An “authentic” version costs £124.99 for adults and £119.99 for children while a “stadium” version is £84.99 and £64.99 for children.
Seattle Sounders v LA Galaxy: Sluggish starts frustrating Vanney
LA Galaxy coach Greg Vanney has urged his team to start sharply when they take on the Seattle Sounders on Sunday.
The Galaxy went down 2-0 to Austin FC last time out, and will look to get back to winning ways when they head up the West Coast to face the Sounders, who they beat 1-0 in March.
Vanney’s side found themselves 2-0 down after just 19 minutes against Austin, though, and the Galaxy coach is growing increasingly frustrated with his team’s sloppy starts.
In quotes reported by The Galactic Tribune, Vanney said: “We've got to do a better job of not starting slow and getting ourselves behind the game one and two goals because then it certainly incentivises the opposition to sit a little bit lower and really kind of protect the face of the goal.”
Vanney also pointed out that sluggishness in the final third is proving equally as costly.
He added: “The speed of our final actions when we are in possession and we do find those moments that we need to break, with the timing of things, needs to be sharper. I feel like we weren't so sharp on that side of things so that we can get to the necessary spots.”
For experienced defender Maya Yoshida, there were few excuses after the Austin loss.
“We were not enough. I don't deserve anything for my performance,” he said. “We deserved to lose. We are very disappointed. We have to learn from this defeat.”
The Galaxy went into the weekend second in the Western Conference, 10 places and nine points above the Sounders.
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Seattle Sounders – Raul Ruidiaz
Ruidiaz and team-mate Jordan Morris have each scored nine goals against the Galaxy in their MLS careers. Since 2016, the only players with more goals against a single opponent are Carlos Vela (10 vs. Galaxy), Jeremy Ebobisse (10 vs. Galaxy) and Kei Kamara (10 vs. Montreal).
LA Galaxy – Riqui Puig
Puig had a fine campaign last year and the former Barcelona midfielder has picked up where he left off, scoring three goals and creating two more so far this season.
MATCH PREDICTION: SEATTLE SOUNDERS WIN
The Galaxy’s loss to Austin ended a run of 18 straight matches with at least one goal in all competitions, scoring 41 total times during that run (2.3 goals per match). It was the Galaxy’s longest run of games with a goal in all competitions since a 21-match run in 2014.
The Sounders won their second match of the season on Tuesday, a 3-2 victory in Philadelphia. Seattle have scored eight goals in their two wins this year (5-0 vs. CF Montreal in April) and six goals in their other eight matches (D3 L5).
The Galaxy beat Seattle at home on March 30, ending an 11-match MLS winless run against the Sounders (D4 L7). The Galaxy last won consecutive MLS matches against Seattle in April-August 2015.
OPTA WIN PROBABILITY
Seattle Sounders – 53.9%
LA Galaxy – 20.1%
Draw – 26%
Haaland pinpoints collective Man City quality after four-goal blitz of Wolves
Erling Haaland blasted four goals past Wolves in a one-man Premier League show but the Manchester City forward says it would not be possible without manager Pep Guardiola or his team-mates.
The City talisman took his top-flight tally to 25 for this season, moving five clear of his nearest challenger in the Premier League Golden Boot race, after Saturday's 5-1 thrashing of Wolves.
Haaland was twice on target from the penalty spot as part of his first-half hat-trick, adding another after the interval with an arrowed strike into the top-left corner.
It was the first time the Norway star has managed four goals in one Premier League game, with his quartet of strikes coming in 54 minutes. Only Gabriel Jesus has scored as many earlier in one match, doing so in 53 minutes against Watford in April 2022.
Haaland also became the third player to score multiple first-half hat-tricks in Premier League history (also against Nottingham Forest last season), along with Andrew Cole and Michael Owen (two each).
Yet the superstar attacker says his exploits would not be possible without his City colleagues or boss Guardiola.
"I've got a not-too-bad manager who pushes me and look at the players around me," Haaland told Sky Sports when asked about his motivations.
"Without them, it would not be possible. Look ahead, look to next one – four finals left for the season. We're going to go for it and focus on Fulham."
It was Haaland's sixth Premier League hat-trick for City, with only seven players netting more in the competition’s history. All six of those trebles have been at the Etihad, only three have more at a single venue.
Haaland's second strike came from a towering header following Rodri's right-wing centre, which he suggested would delight his father Alfie.
"That's a beautiful goal," the Norwegian said of his headed finish. "My father is going to be happy with that one.
"A nice celebration, I enjoyed that one. I'm scoring more headers, I try to develop and keep going."
City are within a point of Premier League leaders Arsenal and Guardiola's side still have a game in hand against Tottenham on May 14.
Despite the thrashing of Wolves, Haaland insists Guardiola remains intent on winning the remaining games, rather than calculating the probabilities needed on goal difference.
"First of all it's about winning the games but, of course, you want to have the best possible goal difference," he added. "Let's not think about that. Think about Fulham."
Mallorca 0-1 Atletico Madrid: Early Riquelme strike earns narrow win
Atletico Madrid closed in on a Champions League spot after winger Rodrigo Riquelme's early strike earned his side a 1-0 win at Mallorca in LaLiga on Saturday.
With four games remaining, Diego Simeone's side are fourth in the standings on 67 points, six ahead of fifth-placed Athletic Bilbao, who beat Getafe on Friday.
There was an end-of-the-season feel at a half-empty Son Moix stadium with both teams lacking urgency in a lacklustre match, with the only standout moment being Riquelme's fine individual effort in the fifth minute, which ultimately secured the win for the visitors.
Riquelme pounced on a loose ball in the edge of the box and cleared two defenders before unleashing an unstoppable strike just inside the right post.
Data Debrief: Mallorca's blunt attack easily stopped
Mallorca mustered an expected goals of just 0.24 in this game, and they have now failed to score in 15 of their 34 league games this season. Only Cadiz (17) have failed to score more often in the competition this term.
That is despite the hosts having attempted 526 passes in this game, their highest total in a single league match this season.
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