Rio Ferdinand says Jadon Sancho is perfect example of England’s improvement
Rio Ferdinand has hailed the atmosphere created by Gareth Southgate during his time as England boss – noting the inclusion of Manchester United's Jadon Sancho as a sign of the togetherness.
The Borussia Dortmund forward made his first ever major tournament start five games into the current competition, playing a key role as the Three Lions eased to a 4-0 victory.
Given his delight at starting the fixture, and lack of discontent before it, Ferdinand can see from the outside how each member of the playing squad is happy to play any part necessary.
The former United defender then compared that to his own England experiences, questioning how some players reacted to being on the sidelines and playing a reduced role.
Speaking on BBC One, Ferdinand said: "The togetherness, it all comes from Croatia in 2018, that's not something that's happened overnight. Since that, he's seen what went wrong and they've worked on it.
"They can change formations, they can bring in different players at any time, nothing changes.
"Sancho is a great example. He came in after not playing the first four games.
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"Look back at other teams, my teams for example, they'd have been sulking around the camp, speaking to their agents at home, when they get the excuse they'd be looking for excuses saying 'I'm not fit enough'.
"These guys are professionals. They know what their job is and they go out and do it to a T.
"I think our squad at the time had more world-class players. This team has a better squad, a much better squad.
"Players come in and change the game, there's no drop off in the quality of players at all."
Alan Shearer then added: "Especially with the attackers, you mentioned Sancho, the number of times he's rotated his players, the ones who come in have got to accept that it might not be right to play and someone else might have to come in.
"That keeps them on their toes and keeps them guessing."
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