Taking over the England national coach position should in principle be attractive for all available coaches – except perhaps Jürgen Klopp, who after leaving Liverpool FC vehemently stressed that he would not be considering a coaching job this season. The successor to Gareth Southgate, who resigned after the European Championship, is currently one of the most prestigious positions football has to offer. The prospects are promising: the English team, led by captain Harry Kane from FC Bayern, are believed to be able to win the 2026 World Cup. The motherland of football is also co-hosting the 2028 European Championship, which will take place in Great Britain and Ireland.
England’s Football Association (FA) also fuelled the attention for the vacant job with its own job advertisement. It stated that the FA was interested in UEFA Pro licence holders who met the following criteria: They should have considerable experience in English football and a track record of success, as well as exceptional leadership qualities. And, not unimportantly, they should be able to handle the massive public scrutiny.
:So close to Olympus
England’s top scorer Harry Kane also seemed weak and inhibited in the final against Spain. Once again he missed out on a major title. There are several reasons for his lack of influence on the offensive game.
One week after the application deadline, the association realized that it already had the most suitable candidate under contract for the time being: England U21 national coach Lee Carsley. The 50-year-old was appointed interim coach of the senior team for the Nations League matches against Ireland and Finland – with the explicit prospect of being able to continue his duties in the autumn months. Carsley, born in Birmingham, England, once played 282 Premier League games as a midfielder for Derby County, Blackburn Rovers and Everton FC – and made 40 international appearances for Ireland, the country of his maternal grandparents. That makes his debut in the duel with the Irish on Saturday in Dublin doubly special.
Carsley is not exactly the most seductive name, moans a newspaper
After his playing career, Carsley learned the coaching trade in youth football, including in the Manchester City academy. As a professional coach, Carsley only stepped in sporadically three times, at Coventry, Brentford and Birmingham. Due to his rather unimpressive profile, the TelegraphCarsley is not exactly the most tempting name. Before the decision, the tabloids, eager for headlines, had pondered the appointment of various foreign specialists. But the FA is probably still too aware of the engagements of the only non-British national coaches to date – Sven-Göran Eriksson and Fabio Capello. The gossip press was much more pleased with the unproductive terms of office of the Swede and the Italian than the association.
By choosing Carsley, the FA is initially continuing the course taken under Southgate. The association temporarily promoted Southgate to head coach of the men’s team in autumn 2016 after his three years of development work with the U21 juniors, before appointing him as the permanent solution at the end of that year after the team’s good performances. Carsley has actually been with the association for four years, coaching the U20s for one season and then the U21s, which he led to their first European title in 39 years in 2023. At the same time, he was part of Southgate’s extended staff.
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Through their collaboration, Carsley knows how the professional team works and what is important to the association in terms of communication and appearance. Carsley incorporated this experience into the first squad nomination: he worked according to the performance principle and particularly promoted the young players. For example, he told vice-captain Kyle Walker, 34, of Manchester City that he would not be using him this time. The defender is still looking for form after the short summer break and was only substituted for a few minutes at the club. Walker felt almost submissively that this was the right decision – and, incidentally, Carsley came across as very nice on the phone. This statement was reminiscent of Southgate’s people management, who almost always managed to be appreciated by the players despite tough personnel decisions.
Manchester United’s Marcus Rashford and Ivan Toney, who has just moved to Saudi club Al-Ahli, were also left out; regular players Jude Bellingham and Phil Foden are also missing due to injury and illness. Instead, Carsley called up Noni Madueke (FC Chelsea), Angel Gomes (LOSC Lille), Morgan Gibbs-White (Nottingham Forest) and Tino Livramento (Newcastle United) for the first time; they had all been part of his U21 squad in recent years. Carsley’s juniors impressed with attractive football and strong nerves. The coach is also expected to implement both of these with the men, who have been waiting for a title since the 1966 World Cup home victory.
By taking this approach, the FA cleverly keeps several options open
With England relegated to the B pool of the Nations League two years ago, the upcoming matches seem to be ideal for taking a detailed look at the team’s playing style. It has sometimes suffered from Southgate’s rather pragmatic approach – this was identified as one of the reasons why he was denied the tournament victory he longed for despite reaching two European Championship finals in a row. The development of the playing style will probably determine whether Carsley can hold the position beyond the year and lead the English into World Cup qualification. The association demonstrated basic trust in him by allowing him to take his entire coaching team with him, which resulted in some changes in the juniors.
The FA is cleverly keeping several options open by its own non-binding approach to the search for Southgate’s successor. If it becomes apparent that Lee Carsley is not living up to expectations, he could be removed at any time without further ado. In this case, the association would probably push for an external appointment for next year – and perhaps even try Jürgen Klopp.