- Lee Carsley is England’s interim manager for this month’s Nations League matches
- Carsley won the European Under-21 Championship and is a strong candidate for the starting spot.
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Lee Carsley reportedly has growing support among England players to take on the Three Lions coaching job on a full-time basis.
Carsley, 50, was appointed as interim boss for this month’s Nations League games against the Republic of Ireland and Finland after Gareth Southgate stepped down following Euro 2024.
The former Republic of Ireland international is a highly-rated coach and guided England’s Under-21 side to European Championship glory last year, with Carsley winning 23 of the 29 games he managed for the Young Lions.
He has previously coached a number of clubs including Man City, Coventry, Brentford and Birmingham, and enjoyed interim spells in charge of the latter three clubs, while working with a number of England youth teams before taking on the Under 21 role.
And, according to The telegraphAlthough Carsley is yet to take charge of a Three Lions game, support among players for him to get the job on a permanent basis is growing.
Lee Carsley is believed to have growing support from players to become England’s permanent manager
Carsley has been appointed as interim coach of the Three Lions for this month’s Nations League matches.
Carsley led England Under-21s to glory at the European Championships in Georgia last summer.
The report goes on to add that the 50-year-old, who is a strong candidate for the position, has even been described as the “perfect man for the job” in some quarters.
In his first England squad, Carsley selected six players who were part of his Euro Under-21-winning side, while Noni Madueke, Angel Gomes, Morgan Gibbs-White and Tino Livramento all earned their first caps.
And Nottingham Forest star Gibbs-White, who was part of the triumphant squad last summer, was effusive in his belief that Carsley is the right man to take England forward.
“Tactically, you just have to look at our performances at the Euros last year,” Gibbs-White said. “We didn’t concede a goal, so that says a lot.”
“I think he’s the perfect man for this position. Tactically he’s very, very good and his man-management skills are also very good.”
Should Carsley get the job, he would follow in Southgate’s footsteps by coming up from the Under-21s, and the former midfielder has promised to help England dominate games in a way they have not always been able to in recent times.
Morgan Gibbs-White, who was called up by Carsley, said he was “the perfect man for the job”.
There are several new faces in England’s squad for the fixtures over the next seven days.
“I think he’s the right manager for the team and hopefully we can get back to trusting and respecting him for the next few games,” Gibbs-White added.
‘He’s a great coach, he always asks how you are as a person, how your family is, he shows that he really cares about his players and that’s the best way to get the best out of players, showing interest in their life and how they are as people.
“And I think Lee is great at that. Give him time in practice and in games and you’ll really see him bring out the best in players in this camp.”
England face the Republic of Ireland in a huge clash at the Aviva Stadium on Saturday night, before hosting Finland at Wembley on Tuesday.
