England fans name ‘future captain’ after spotting what one player did at full-time after Spain defeat

England fans think they have already found the Three Lions’ next captain once Harry Kane steps down from the role.
Gareth Southgate’s side lost 2-1 to Spain in the Euro 2024 final in Berlin, following a late goal from substitute Mikel Oyarzabal.
Spain earlier opened the scoring on 47 minutes through Nico Williams, before Cole Palmer equalised for England.
It was a second consecutive European Championship final heartbreak for the Three Lions, who lost to Italy on penalties three years ago at Wembley.
It was also a disappointing night for Kane, who failed to make an impact on proceedings and was substituted after an hour in Berlin.
At 31, Kane will doubtless continue in his role after Euro 2024 and spearhead England’s World Cup chances – but fans already have their eye on who will replace him once he does decide to give the armband away.
That is after what Jude Bellingham did after the full-time whistle in Berlin, with the 21-year-old taking time to console every England player after the devastating defeat.
The Real Madrid star assisted Cole Palmer for England’s equaliser, but was on the losing side in an international final for the first time as he did not feature in the final against Italy.
Speaking in his post-match interview after the defeat, Bellingham said: “We’ve given everything, and to lose in that way is really cruel.
“We probably didn’t play our best game, but there were definitely some good moments, and we felt like we got back into the game.
“To be sucker-punched with the late goal, it’s heartbreaking. We all wanted nothing more than to make history and to make the people of England proud, but we didn’t quite deliver.
“There are reasons for that. I’m sure as a team and going forward, we’ll analyse it.
“It’s a young group, still. It’s really disappointing because, at some point, we do have to deliver. But there are experiences and things we can take going forward – if you look at everything negative, nothing will ever change.”
England midfielder Jude Bellingham has explained why he will be “even more determined” to win a major tournament if Gareth Southgate remains in charge.
The Three Lions fell at the final hurdle on Sunday night after Mikel Oyarzabal’s 86th-minute goal handed Spain a record-breaking fourth European Championship title in Berlin.
At one stage, it looked like England were in the driving seat. Second-half substitute Cole Palmer beat Unai Simon with a brilliant strike to level the scores and a brief surge followed.
But in the final stages, Gareth Southgate’s side appeared to run out of stream before Oyarzabal tapped home from close range to break English hearts.
After he came agonisingly close to securing the country’s first piece of silverware since 1966, an emotional Southgate was asked about his future.
“Now is not the time for me to speak about that,” he said in his post-match interview with the BBC. “I need to talk to the right people and give myself a bit of time.”
Southgate added: “To get to another final… it was a privilege to have the opportunity. But to come up short is hard at the moment.”
Not long after, an equally-as-devastated Jude Bellingham was asked for his thoughts on Gareth Southgate’s future at the helm.
“For me, it’s down to the manager and what the FA decide,” Bellingham said. “I’ve got nothing but respect for Gareth giving me my debut in the squad, made me feel very at home.
“He is someone who, I think, in the last year or two as well, our relationship’s kind of gone a little bit past football, where I feel like I can open up to him a lot and I think that speaks volumes of the kind of man he is as well.
“Whatever happens with Gareth, I’ll always respect him. If he stays, then I’ll be even more determined to win something for him because he deserves it. Sometimes the numbers and the kind of statistics, the records don’t lie, he’s been our most successful manager since 1966.
“So whatever he decides, he will always have my respect and my love.”
Bellingham would later reflect on England’s tournament in Germany. “It’s really disappointing because at some point we do have to deliver, but there are experiences and there’s things we can take from this tournament going forward,” he added.
“I suppose if you look at everything negatively, nothing will ever change. So it’s important we pick the positives and the negatives together and find a way to one day get England over the line.”
“I came here to win,” he added. “We came here to win. Like I said, there’s experiences that we can take going into the next one.
“So I suppose you could say that’s kind of some solace. It’s one of those where you probably need a bit more time to digest it and analyse it, and we’ll do that as a team, individually, look over how it went and bounce back.
“It’s a young team with a lot of potential and I know people be frustrated that we haven’t delivered yet, but I definitely feel that it is coming.”