Where Gareth Southgate’s XI from his 2016 England debut are now

GARETH SOUTHGATE brought the curtain down on his eight-year stint as England manager by announcing his departure on Tuesday morning.

The Three Lions legend, 53, took over back in 2016 following the Sam Allardyce debacle and has become the country's second most successful men's manager in history.

Successive European Championship finals, along with a World Cup semi-final and quarter-final, have sent England fans on a thrilling journey.

While a trophy ultimately alluded Southgate, he leaves with an impressive body of work.

His transformation of the England team can be seen by looking at the line-up he fielded for his first game against Malta.

A 2-0 victory at Wembley on October 8, 2016 marked the first of 102 matches at the helm.

Coming off the back of a humiliating Euro 2016 defeat to Iceland, Southgate's development of the England team has been a sensational one.

Two of the players who started against Malta also lined up for Southgate's final game in charge as they lost 2-1 to Spain in the final of Euro 2024.

But six of them have retired and one is now playing in South Korea.

SunSport has taken a look at each player in Southgate's first XI and where they are now.

Joe Hart

Joe Hart swiftly made way for Jordan Pickford under Southgate, before he was also moved on by Pep Guardiola at Manchester City.

After a number of years in relative obscurity, he signed for Celtic and won back-to-back league titles before retiring at the end of last season and beginning what could be a new career in punditry.

Kyle Walker

Right-back Kyle Walker has been ever-present under Southgate, earning his 90th cap in the Euro 2024 final against Spain.

He started the 2016 win over Malta and remained the England manager's first-choice right-back/right centre-back up until the end.

At club level, he joined Man City in 2017 and has gone on to play more than 300 times, winning every trophy possible at the Etihad.

John Stones

Another stalwart of the Southgate era, John Stones began England's new era at the heart of their defence and ended it there.

He was a key part of Southgate's first tournament, scoring twice against Panama at the 2018 World Cup.

Since then he has barely missed a match for his country, while also remaining a key part of Guardiola's Man City side.

Gary Cahill

Some may be surprised to learn Gary Cahill racked up 61 caps for England - the last of which came in 2018.

He played one tournament game under Southgate - a 2-0 defeat to Belgium in the group stage of the 2018 World Cup - and retired from international football later that year.

He left Chelsea in 2019 having played 290 games and hung up his boots in 2022 after stints at Crystal Palace and Bournemouth.

Ryan Bertrand

Ex-Chelsea left-back Ryan Bertrand played 19 times for England during a post-Ashley Cole period where the country had few options.

He started against Malta but his final international cap came the following year.

Spells at Southampton and Leicester ended in 2023 as he was released as a free agent.

He has since confirmed his retirement.

Jordan Henderson

Jordan Henderson spent seven years in Southgate's squads having made his England debut back in 2010.

He amassed more than 50 caps under Southgate and went to all of the major tournaments under him until this summer.

An ill-advised move to Saudi Arabian side Al-Ettifaq threatened to see him ousted from the England squad.

He attempted to salvage his England career by signing for Ajax, but Southgate still left him out of his final 26-man roster for Euro 2024.

Dele Alli

Dele Alli scored the second goal against Malta in Southgate's first game in charge.

But he would score just once more in three years as an England player - which came in the quarter-final of the 2018 World Cup.

His final Three Lions cap was in 2019 and he has endured a difficult run of form since then.

He left Tottenham for Everton in 2022 but has been unable to re-capture the level he had years ago.

During his slump in form he has also bravely opened up about battling tragic off-field issues including being sexually abused as a child.

Wayne Rooney

Wayne Rooney was England's captain for Southgate's first game in charge.

But he made just two more appearances before effectively ending his international career - aside from a farewell cap in 2018 which brought his total to 120.

Rooney's final Premier League season came at Everton in the 2017/18 campaign, before spells at DC United and Derby led to his retirement in 2021.

He has since gone into management, taking charge of Derby, DC United and Birmingham.

Rooney is now at the helm of Championship side Plymouth and will manage his first competitive game when they go to Sheffield Wednesday on August 11.

Theo Walcott

Former Arsenal man Theo Walcott was still in the England picture when Southgate took over.

But his final international cap came just one month after England's win over Malta.

He left Arsenal the following season, but continued his career for a further six years at Everton and Southampton before retiring at the end of last season. Was still at the Euros though - working as a pundit for the BBC.

Daniel Sturridge

Daniel Sturridge scored the first goal of the Southgate era against Malta.

But the ex-Chelsea and Liverpool man was capped just three more times by Southgate as injuries plagued his career.

After his international career tailed off, he spent two more years at Anfield before signing for Turkish side Trabzonspor.

A one-year stint in Australia with Perth Glory ended in 2022 and he subsequently retired, taking up a punditry role on Sky Sports.

Jesse Lingard

Jesse Lingard became a fan-favourite under Southgate, playing a key role for England at the 2018 World Cup.

But the last of his Three Lions caps came in 2021, before he failed to make Southgate's final squad for the Euros later that year.

At club level he has struggled since then - aside from a fruitful loan spell with West Ham.

He left Man Utd for Nottingham Forest in 2022, but is now playing for South Korean side FC Seoul.