If England loses to its oldest foe at Hampden Park, we run the risk of returning to the “Boring, boring Gareth” era.

Gareth Southgate thinks he “understands the never-ending cycle” that comes with a job that people once thought was impossible after seven years as Three Lions manager.

Gareth Southgate backed his decision to stand by Henderson in his pre-match press conference

There has been renewed demand for Phil Foden to start in a central position in lieu of Jordan Henderson following Saturday’s 1-1 draw with Ukraine.

But faces pressure to bring Foden into the midfield

But Southgate was having none of it prior to tonight’s match against Scotland.

Southgate, in a stinging move, questioned why Pep Guardiola rarely uses Foden in central midfield for Manchester City despite the fact that Foden claims he loves to play there.

And he claimed that because he is not strong enough outside of possession, Foden could only succeed against weaker competition.

And Scotland are currently not a weak opponent.

The team of Steve Clarke has a perfect record in their group of Euro 2024 qualifiers, and they are prepared to give Southgate’s team a genuine Glasgow kiss.

The Three Lions might use a victory in this match to quell a furious mob of unusually confident Scots and prevent a significant shift in the public’s opinion of Southgate in England.

But when it comes to choosing teams, Southgate never caters to the crowd.

He insisted that Henderson, 33, gave his most spirited England performance ever against Ukraine in Wroclaw. Henderson has chosen to play in semi-retirement in the Saudi Pro League.

There was no mistaking the message: Southgate has no intention of dumping the former Liverpool captain.

For those who think Southgate, England’s most successful manager since Sir Alf Ramsey, is terminally cautious, the Foden situation has once again become a flashpoint.

However, it appears that the manager will keep the City player on the bench rather than using him as a primary playmaker.

Southgate said when asked if Foden could play in a midfield three during England’s biggest games: “He doesn’t play there for his club. Therefore, there must be a cause for that. Actually, it depends on the game’s difficulty level. Everyone wants to discuss players with the ball in the middle of the field, but there is a lot of detail occurring without the ball.

And in the game against Ukraine, your opponents are so skilled at passing and moving around that you have to be on point with your pressing angles and responsibilities; else, the game won’t flow.

“You would need to speak with Pep, the best coach in the world, who watches him closely.

But if we play him wide, he always has the freedom to roam, and that’s crucial.

But Foden thinks that central midfield is his best position?

However, he doesn’t perform there. Southgate answered.

Has he talked it over with Pep since then?

Southgate said, “Yes, yes,” pausing for a very long moment before saying, “We are really satisfied with Phil. He participated in the Euros, entered the game in the semifinal, and made a significant contribution.

He’s only 23, yet he has incredible experiences, including playing in a World Cup.

“He is a terrific player, but he is still developing and growing.

“It hasn’t been easy because we have so many really talented young players,” said the player.

He has been with us since he was a young player and was a member of the squad that won the Under-17 World Cup, but he is competing against players of an extraordinarily high caliber at his club as well as Bukayo Saka, Marcus Rashford, and the rest of our players in that part of the field.

Henderson, Jude Bellingham, and Declan Rice continue to be Southgate’s first-choice midfield trio, and that may not change before the Euro championships next summer.

Southgate used his running statistics in Poland on Saturday to support the veteran’s claim because Henderson was an unpopular choice due to his contentious move to Al-Ettifaq, both from a footballing and moral standpoint.

We have been keeping an eye on his level since we have solid links at his club, according to Southgate.

“The physical outputs have varied because the environments have varied for the various games, but he was in good physical shape.”

“He was hitting what he should have done based on all of his statistics. And the performance he produced on Saturday was his best during an England game.

He had a large area to cover in order to complete his task.

Hendo and Dec covered a lot of ground and filled in a lot of spaces since our midfield wasn’t as tightly packed as it could have been. It was essential to our success in reaching a result.