Some big claims have emerged from The Guardian on England’s ongoing search for Gareth Southgate’s replacement and it could be good news for Newcastle United.
Miguel Delaney reports that the FA are eager to appoint Pep Guardiola and are willing to wait for the Man City boss, who is expected to the Etihad when his contract expires at the end of the 2024/25 season.
As this would leave England waiting almost 12 months, The Guardian report that FA chiefs would be willing to bring in an interim manager to step in Southgate’s shoes if they can strike a pre-contract agreement with Guardiola; who has hinted at a role in international football in the past.
That interim boss could be Lee Carsley, with the former Everton midfielder the current head coach of England’s U21s, who he lead to European Championship glory last summer.
It’d be a huge coup to land Guardiola and a tough deal to pull off, but if they receive assurances he’d be keen on the role and prepared to step in at the end of the 2024/25 season, this could be a solution that allows Newcastle to keep Howe and England to bring in a top-tier manager.
Eddie Howe has done a fantastic job at Newcastle and will keep NUFC in contentention for Champions League qualification and/or UEFA Cup qualification contention. The thing is that this might not be enough for the Saudis so I wouldn’t be surprised if Howe is moved on be it for the England job or somewhere else.
Robert Dunaway(Quote)
Arrogant and presumptuous, this makes it sound like Newcastle and Eddie Howe would be powerless to resist. He doesn’t want the England job for several years and not hard to see why. He is in BC a good place and wants to make his mark as a trophy winning club manager, which is where his strengths lie.
Greggsboy(Quote)