Gareth Southgate plays down role as 'fashion icon'

England manager Gareth Southgate has played down suggestions he may have inspired a fashion trend.

Retailer Marks & Spencer, which supplies the England team's official World Cup suit, said sales were up 35% "across all our waistcoats".

An M&S spokesperson suggested the spike may have been inspired by Southgate looking "smart on the sidelines".

When asked about the trend, Southgate said he doubted he was responsible, adding: "I'm no David Beckham."

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"I'm slightly concerned, because as a centre-half who took a lot of knocks to the head I'm not normally synonymous with being a fashion icon," he joked.

He told the World Cup Daily Podcast that if he was in fact behind the sales it would show that "anything in life is possible".

Southgate's England will face Colombia in the World Cup round of 16 on Tuesday evening.