EM appearance before England game
His mother warned the Southgate lookalike about the fans
Status: 21:32 | Reading time: 3 minutes
Neil Rowe already caused a stir at the 2020 European Championship in his starring role as Gareth Southgate
Quelle: picture alliance / Photoshot
Neil Rowe looks astonishingly similar to the English national coach Gareth Southgate and regularly appears as his double. He also travelled to the last group match in Cologne and caused a stir – even though his mother advised him against it.
Gareth Southgate announced the good news in a live interview with ITV the morning before the last group match. No one at home needs to worry, England will “play very offensively” against Slovenia, said the coach. He then posed for selfies with the numerous fans who were already milling around the Alter Markt in Cologne, signed autographs and even sang “Sweet Caroline”. A Slovenian fan who saw this was very impressed. “It’s super cool that he’s turning up here before the game and talking to the fans,” he said. Not many people would have thought that Southgate, who has a reputation for being a rather distant guy, would be so close to the people.
This could be because the man who attracted so much attention in Cologne city centre on Tuesday was not Southgate at all – but Neil Rowe. The enthusiastic football fan and amateur comedian, who is a pilot by profession, looks astonishingly similar to the coach. He has been taking advantage of this for many years and appears at games of the “Three Lions” as a double, which regularly causes confusion and amusement. In Cologne he arranged to meet the “Kölner Stadt-Anzeiger” for a walk through the city centre. English media also surrounded him.
Criticism of Southgate is reflected
When Rowe appears in a suit or one of Southgate’s typical vests, he regularly causes a crowd of fans. Many of them know him now and take it with humor – others, however, start to seriously discuss player selection or tactics with Rowe. This happened again in Cologne. A boy in an England shirt strongly recommended that the Southgate lookalike let Cole Palmer start against Slovenia and let Phil Foden play centrally. Rowe nodded in agreement.
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The resemblance even led to Rowe being mistaken for their old colleague by the English coach’s close associates. Gary Neville, Southgate’s former teammate in the national team, actually greeted Rowe like an old friend with a warm hug during a meeting during the 2018 World Cup in Russia – during a live interview.
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Rowe has also experienced Southgate’s extremely fluctuating popularity. When things were going well, such as at the last European Championships when England made it to the final, he was often celebrated by the fans – and once even carried on their shoulders.
Euphoria three years ago: Neil Rowe is carried on shoulders before the European Championship round of 16 against Germany
Quelle: picture alliance / Photoshot
At the moment, when the coach is under heavy criticism for his unconvincing performances so far, he is rather cautious. His mother even warned him. “The fans will be angry with Southgate, you have to look after yourself,” she told him. Nevertheless, Rowe played the Southgate again in Cologne – and most fans took it with humor.
