Jan Hoeksema
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The English Football Association is aiming high when it comes to Gareth Southgate's successor. According to The Independent The FA hopes to recruit Pep Guardiola as national coach. The Spaniard still has a contract for one season at Manchester City.
The latter fact is not seen as an obstacle by the English. The FA is prepared to wait until Guardiola's contract expires in the summer of 2025. Until then, the association would work with an interim coach.
The Independent immediately places a caveat to the ambitious plan. “Although it is not the federation's first choice to wait, the Catalan is such an excellent candidate that the FA will reconsider its options if there is any chance of signing Guardiola,” according to the English media.
One of the reasons Guardiola is a suitable candidate is his experience in the Premier League, as the FA is looking for a coach who has an affinity with the culture of the English national team.
Moreover, Guardiola has previously indicated that he is charmed by the idea of managing a national team. Not so long ago, the former midfielder was on the radar of the Brazilian federation.
Incidentally, it is far from a foregone conclusion that Guardiola will leave Manchester City in 2025, although the coach has hinted at it. “The reality is that it is more likely that I leave than that I stay longer,” Guardiola said after the last Premier League season. “I have been here for eight years now, soon nine. For now I have the feeling that I will stay until next season.”
Interim solution
If the FA really goes all-in on Guardiola, another coach will have to be in charge of the group in the meantime. The Football Association will probably look around within its own stable for that role. Lee Carsley, currently head coach of the England Under-21 team, may then be put forward.
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