England manager Gareth Southgate said he suffered abuse after joining a British government initiative to encourage people to get vaccinated against Covid-19.

Southgate, 50, recorded a video supporting the vaccination programme as part of a campaign to urge younger people to get inoculated, which he said was a “responsible” thing to do.

“Of all the things that I’ve received abuse for over the summer, of which there’s been several, that’s probably the one I’ve received the most abuse over,” Southgate told British media.

“Our only way out of this pandemic is vaccination, certainly for vulnerable people. I understand a lot of young people aren’t so keen, they are questioning things — I don’t know whether that’s accurate.”

Southgate said he knew he would face an angry reaction for supporting vaccination.