Gareth Southgate tells England players he constantly monitors their behaviour on and off the field in wake of James Maddison casino visit

Gareth Southgate has delivered a clear warning to the England players that he is continually monitoring their behaviour off the field as well as their performances on it.

It comes as the England manager is due to speak to James Maddison later this week after a Sunday newspaper published a story that the midfielder had visited a casino on Friday evening despite having withdrawn from Southgate’s squad through illness only the day before.

Maddison was photographed, with the hood of his top up to try and remain anonymous, at a gaming table in the casino in Leicester at the same time as England were losing their Euro 2020 qualifier 2-1 away to the Czech Republic in a performance that Southgate said was the worst during his three years in charge and may affect their seeding at next summer’s tournament.

Maddison texted Southgate on Saturday, prior to the publication of the story, to warn him as to what had happened. While Southgate said it is “down to every individual player” to behave as he saw fit once “released from the squad” he was clear that it was a harsh lesson learnt by the 22-year-old and a reminder to the rest of the squad of the “spotlight” that comes with playing for England.

“I don’t really want to discuss individuals but I know pretty much everything about all of my players,” Southgate said. “I watch every minute of their football whether that's live or downloaded on a Sunday morning or a Sunday night, or a Monday morning. I speak to their club managers, I speak with (Under-21 coach) Aidy [Boothroyd] and all the coaches of the junior teams. So, we never know absolutely everything, but we have a very clear picture of every player, and that’s the due diligence that we should always do.”

There is already a perception that Southgate may not be totally convinced by Maddison’s previous behaviour – something the England manager has denied – but undoubtedly he will be annoyed at the distraction to the preparations for Monday’s qualifier away to Bulgaria with England desperate for a much improved performance.

England have to bounce back after the loss to the Czechs, the first qualifier they have been defeated in since a ‘dead rubber’ against Ukraine 10 years ago and the first meaningful defeat since losing to Croatia in 2007 which meant they did not go to Euro 2008 and cost Steve McClaren his job.

Whether Maddison’s casino visit costs him his place in the next England squad remains to be seen but, at the very least, he will be reminded of his responsibilities by Southgate.

“He sent a message to say that the story was going to be in the paper and that’s it,” Southgate explained. “And, to be honest, my focus has been on getting the reaction that we want and getting everybody in the right place for the game tomorrow. So, there’s been many hours spent doing that…I’m sure (I will speak to him).” It is understood that Southgate will make it a priority to talk to Maddison once the squad returns from Sofia.

Asked whether Maddison had apologised in his text, Southgate added: “I don’t think (to divulge) anything in detail is really the right thing, whether it’s a message or a telephone conversation. I think in this instance, I’m sure he recognises now that when you’re involved with England, then there is a different sort of spotlight on you.

“For any young player coming into the squad, they probably aren’t as aware of that. Some of the others now are aware that when you lose a game with England then the reaction is completely different to anything that you face with your club so I don’t think that will do any of us any harm. We have to bounce back from it, and we have to show that we have resilience, but defeats tell you a lot about people and how they respond and how everybody reacts, and we’ve got to make sure we get the reaction right.”

Southgate has spoken in the past about the lack of “jeopardy” in Group A with, it appeared, England coasting to qualification but that has emerged with their poor performance in Prague. It means, possibly, that even if they win their final three qualifiers they might not be one of the top six seeds at Euro 2020 which, evidently, will affect their chances at the tournament.

“Certainly in the last 18 months, that would be the first time that we’ve let ourselves down in terms of the level of the performance, but I’m also realistic: that can happen,” Southgate said of Friday’s loss while even a draw would have meant a win against Bulgaria secures qualification. That can still be the case but only if Kosovo fail to beat Montenegro.

There will be changes with Southgate suggesting he will lean on the experienced players in his squad in Sofia. “Whilst I am excited by the team we still only have a couple of players with over 50 caps and still a team that has got to go through those sorts of experiences,” he said.

“You’re not going to win every game by four or five goals, especially going away from home and you do have to manage those periods, especially the last 10 minutes, where you’ve got to say ‘OK, we haven’t played well but we’ve come away with a point’…so that’s a good lesson for everybody.” It felt like a day when lessons were learnt.