Gareth Southgate says his England players are tapping each other up ahead of the summer transfer window

Gareth Southgate has joked that his England players have become ‘agents’ during the latest international break.

After the domestic season came to an end earlier in the month, a lot of players are now on international duty to round off the 22/23 season.

For England, they have one match left after their 4-0 win against Hungary on Friday night. Southgate’s men will take on North Macedonia at Old Trafford on Monday.

Ahead of the match, Southgate has joked that his players have been tapping each other up due to the upcoming summer transfer window.

The Three Lions boss said: “The players are tapping each other up on the quiet!”

Whilst Manchester United full-back Luke Shaw added: “A few! We have a joke and a laugh about it.”

This comes after Shaw sent United fans wild with his latest Instagram post.

Whilst at United’s Carrington training base, Shaw posted pictures of him alongside Harry Kane and Declan Rice, with a caption that read: “Carrington tour”, followed by the eyes emoji.

The full-back has since been dubbed ‘Agent Shaw’ as United continue to be linked with transfers for both Kane and Rice in the transfer window.

Speaking ahead of the match against North Macedonia, Southgate said: “They should have won the other night against Ukraine, really.

“We know the quality of some of the individual players, they have some players playing at big European clubs. As a team they function well. They knocked Italy out of the last World Cup, and they pushed Portugal close in those games.

“So they have got pedigree, they bring the game to you a bit more than perhaps we had the other night as well. So it isn’t just a case of rolling on from Friday, it’s a step up, it’s a step up in intensity and quality, and we have to be right in our game to be able to win the match.”