Had things turned out differently, Lee Carsley could quite easily be taking charge of the Republic of Ireland’s Nations League playoff against Bulgaria in Dublin on Sunday night. At the end of 2023 the former Derby and Everton midfielder was approached by the country he represented 40 times to see if he would be interested in leaving his role with England Under-21s.
Having held what Carsley described as “informal discussions” with the Football Association of Ireland, he opted to stay put. Their loss has been England’s gain as the 51-year-old stepped up to fill Gareth Southgate’s shoes when he departed after Euro 2024 and was only too happy to resume his duties with the under-21s when Thomas Tuchel was appointed as head coach of the senior side.
