I would boo England if I was fan at Wembley, says Gerrard

Steven Gerrard says there are “no excuses” for England’s dismal World Cup campaign and admits he would boo England if he was a fan at Wembley tomorrow night.

The England skipper spoke to the media ahead of the friendly against Hungary and said the national side would have to “show how sorry they are” for their poor displays in South Africa by improving their performances on the pitch.

“There are no excuses at all,” said Gerrard. “The simple message is that we have to show how sorry we are by our performances on the pitch.

“It’s simple sitting here saying words, the difficult thing is putting it into action on the pitch and showing how sorry we are by our performances going forward.”

When asked whether he would boo England at Wembley if he was a fan in the stands on Wednesday, he said: “I probably would, yes.”

The midfielder added that the intense pressure of playing for England perhaps proved too much of a mental strain for some of the squad in South Africa.

Gerrard said: “Maybe it is the case, but you have to take that on your shoulders when you’re playing for England.

“There’s a big following with the best support in the world and massive media coverage every time you join up so you have to deal with that.

“We have to study where we went wrong on the pitch in South Africa and try and put those things right.

He added: “The mental side will only improve by winning games.”