Lee Carsley has called his promotion from England Under-21s manager “an honour” after the FA announced the 50-year-old will take charge of the Three Lions’ senior side “throughout autumn”.
Carsley, who was described as a “fantastic coach” by FA chief executive Mark Bullingham, will lead England for the first time away to the Republic of Ireland in the Uefa Nations League on September 7, taking on the nation he won 40 caps for as a midfielder.
“As I am very familiar with the players and the cycle of international football, it makes sense for me to guide the team while the FA continues the process to recruit a new manager,” said Carsley, whose predecessor, Gareth Southgate, initially took charge on a temporary basis in 2016 after guiding the under-21s.
“My main priority is to ensure continuity and our goal is to secure promotion in the Nations League.”
Carsley has been a candidate for the permanent role after leading England to the Euro Under-21 title in 2023, winning the tournament for the first time since 1984.
BREAKING: Lee Carsley has been appointed England’s interim head coach 🏴 pic.twitter.com/HwAIkFieGZ
— Sky Sports News (@SkySportsNews) August 9, 2024
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England Nations League fixtures
Bullingham said Carsley had partly been appointed because of his familiarity to “the majority of our current squad” at international and club level.
“He offers us a very strong interim solution and we are confident he will perform well in the Nations League games ahead,” added Bullingham. “We are grateful to Lee for stepping up to manage the team while we continue with our recruitment process.”
Speaking after Southgate’s departure, Bullingham said the aim had been to name a new incumbent “as soon as possible”. England travel to Dublin on September 7 (5pm BST) and host Finland three days later (7.45pm) at Wembley, where they will then host Greece on October 10 (7.45pm).
Lee Carsley stats
Carsley started his playing career at Derby County in 1994, helping the Rams reach the Premier League two seasons later.
Blackburn Rovers paid £3.4 million for his services in 1999, only to suffer relegation from the top flight and fail to regain promotion the following year despite Carsley scoring 11 goals in his second season.
A move to Coventry City for £2.5m in December 2000 also resulted in relegation from the Premier League, with Carsley leaving the Sky Blues in February 2002.
Lee Carsley 👏 pic.twitter.com/3K94KU1H9B
— England (@England) July 8, 2023
He became a Premier League regular during almost 200 appearances for Everton across six years before switching to Birmingham City in 2008.
Birmingham-born Carsley became club captain and won the Players’ Player of the Season award in 2008-09, finishing his career with a spell as Coventry skipper in 2010-11.
Eligible for the Republic of Ireland through his grandmother, Carsley’s international career included one appearance at the 2002 Fifa World Cup.
As a coach, Carsley had caretaker periods in charge of Coventry in 2012 and 2013 and was development manager at Brentford, where he won the Championship Manager of the Month award during a temporary reign as head coach between September and November 2015.
Carsley moved on to coach at Birmingham and spent 13 days as caretaker manager of the Blues following Harry Redknapp’s exit in September 2017. England made him their under-20s boss three years later, and he has been in charge of their under-21s since July 2021.
🚨🏴 Pep Guardiola on England job: “I have to decide what I want to do with my life”.
“I could stay here, take a break, national team… but right now I am here and fully excited for the season!”. pic.twitter.com/EiJ69R4uNS
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) August 9, 2024
Next England manager
Carsley is a slight favourite to be the next permanent England manager ahead of former Chelsea, Brighton & Hove Albion and Swansea City boss Graham Potter.
Newcastle’s Eddie Howe is third-favourite, while ex-Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp appeared to dismiss reports linking him with the role this week.
Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola was more equivocal when he was asked about taking over on Friday, although the man who has overseen the Cityzens becoming the dominant force in English football said he was excited about the new club season.
The FA has installed England Under-20s interim manager Ben Futcher to guide the under-21s squad through their Euro qualifiers in September.
