Steven Gerrard has branded his England team-mates ‘egotistical losers’ as he explained why the Golden Generation routinely fell short.
Gerrard earned 114 England caps in his career and donned the captain’s armband at Euro 2012 and the 2014 World Cup.
He was a frontman of the Golden Generation, which habitually underperformed at major tournaments despite its star-studded makeup.
Speaking on the Rio Ferdinand Presents podcast, he backed the notion that the squad’s cliquey nature limited their chemistry.
“I hated it,” he said of England training camps.
“I used to love the games. I used to love playing for England. Really proud. I used to enjoy the training sessions, but it was 90 minutes a day.
“And then I was just on my own in London or in Romania or wherever. And I was thinking, I’m in this room from now till I have half an hour dinner, then till the next day.
“It was like I didn’t feel part of a team. I didn’t feel connected with my team-mates with England.”
He continued, saying the disconnect came down to inter-club rivalries, lauding former manager Gareth Southgate for how he brought England together.
“I think we were all egotistical losers. I watch the telly now and I see [Jamie] Carragher sitting next to Paul Scholes on this fan debate and they look like they’ve been best mates for 20 years.
“And I see Carragher’s relationship with Gary Neville and they look like they’ve been mates for 20 years.
“Why couldn’t we connect as England team-mates back then?
“I think it was down to the culture within England. All in our rooms too much. We weren’t friendly or connected. We weren’t a team.
“[There was] bitterness [between Chelsea, Liverpool, and Manchester United players], a little bit of hate, a little bit of hatred.
“But when you think about it now, looking back at the age I'm at and having gone through a bit of coaching, it's a bit immature.
“But also should there have been more emphasis on the staff to go to us, ‘Listen, you need to forget that now’.
“I think Gareth Southgate is underrated for how he connected with the England team.”
