ENGLAND football fans are demanding a statue of manager Gareth Southgate in his home town.

Hundreds have signed a petition calling for the "son of Crawley" to be remembered.

Council leader Peter Lamb said: "We are not ruling anything out. We are very proud of what he has done and we want to recognise that.

"I've been watching the World Cup - I'm generally pessimistic about everything but I'm getting increasingly excited about it and beginning to believe we can win."

Locals have been getting behind Southgate as he leads the national squad to the semi-finals.

Mary Connor said: "Crawley boy is going to bring it home!"

Jan Large added: "Well done to the Hazelwick boy, good luck England".

A petition on change.org started yesterday and has attracted more than 500 votes.

It said: "Gareth Southgate and the England team have achieved far more than anyone expected them to at this World Cup.

"Gareth grew up in Crawley, where his parents still live and we believe the council should recognise his achievements with a statue of the man himself!"

Stuart Brock added: "Gareth's a positive role model for kids getting into sport. Reflecting well on Crawley and paints the town in a positive light!"