Gareth Southgate's decision is bad news for Ireland - and why Lee Carsley is the man the FA should turn to
Gareth Southgate confirmed on Tuesday his decision to step down after eight years in charge of England.
Let there be no doubt that the decision by Gareth Southgate to step down as England manager is bad news for Ireland and for new manager Heimir Hallgrímsson.
While it does mean that both teams in next September’s Nations League opener will be operating under new management, Hallgrímsson could have done with guarded Gareth in the opposite dugout.
Unfortunately from an Irish point of view, Southgate recognised that his time was done and that a change was best for both himself and for England.
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What will likely happen now is that a new head coach will come in - be it Eddie Howe, Lee Carsley or any of the many names linked with the post - and they will be charged with unleashing the undoubted attacking talent that seemed to be anchored down under the previous boss.
And not just at Euro 2024, but long before the Three Lions stuttered and stumbled all the way to Berlin for last Sunday’s showdown with Spain.
Their new man will have the same amount of time to get a tune out of Jude Bellingham, Phil Foden et al that Hallgrímsson has to make his mark on the Ireland squad.
And that’s why Carsley would make sense - either as the permanent pick or as a John O'Shea-style interim appointment.
The former Ireland midfielder has worked with many of those bright young talents.
Jude Bellingham was working his way through the Birmingham City youth ranks while Carsley was coaching there.
Bellingham’s outstanding ability meant that his England Under-21 career was over before Carsley took that post, as he was elevated to the senior squad at the age of 17 and made his debut in the 3-0 Wembley win over Stephen Kenny’s Ireland.
Cole Palmer, Anthony Gordon and Jarrad Branthwaite were European Under-21 Championship winners under Carsley last year.
Chelsea midfielder Conor Gallagher also played under the 40-time capped Ireland midfielder and one-time top target for the senior Boys in Green job.
So while there are plenty of big names in the running for the job - with Graham Potter, Mauricio Pochettino and Thomas Tuchel also attracting reasonably short odds in the early hours of this new market - Carsley has a lot going for him as he goes up against some higher-profile rivals.
By earning a promotion from the Under-21 job to the senior post, a Carsley appointment would see him follow in Southgate's footsteps.
And Carsley was much more successful than Southgate in that job, winning the Euros while Southgate could only manage a fourth place finish in Group B behind Portugal, Sweden and Italy in 2015.
While Carsley has left close friends in no doubt that he would one day like to manage the country he represented as a player, he would also love a crack at the top English job.
If the FA want to hedge their bets, they could offer him the caretaker role for the games in Dublin on September 7 and at home to Finland three days later.
That would give the Birmingham-born Irishman an opportunity to work once again with some of the players that came close to Euro 2024 glory this summer.
It would give the FA time to formulate a long-term plan and figure out if Carsley is, indeed, cut out for the top job.
And it would give England’s heartbroken stars a fresh start and - one would imagine - a more attacking mandate under a very highly-rated coach.
Bumping up another Under-21 manager - after Southgate’s elevation led to a World Cup semi-final and two Euro finals - would also mirror their Berlin conquerors Spain.
Luis de la Fuente’s managerial CV hardly screamed ‘future European Championships winner’ before he got the Spain job in December 2022.
As a player, he was twice a La Liga champion with Athletic Bilbao, but as manager he struggled to make any headway during two spells in charge of Bilbao and then a very short stint with Alaves.
But at international level he thrived with the Spanish Under-19s, 21s and 23s. Like Carsley, he won the Under-21 European Championships, before leading his country to senior glory this summer.
Southgate’s decision to go has nullified, to some extent, one of the problems that came with the FAI’s 231-long search for a new senior boss.
Now, both nations will head into September’s Nations League clash under new management, with two squads adapting to new regimes.
Carsley’s appointment would give some continuity to England.
Regardless of who gets the job, they will be charged with getting the best out of England’s embarrassment of attacking riches, something their conservative former boss was reluctant to do.
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