Eddie Howe
The attacking approach that has always been Howe’s hallmark as a manager and his unflappable temperament could make him the obvious choice to replace Gareth Southgate. At the age of 46, however, he may feel this opportunity has come too early and there would undoubtedly be resistance from Newcastle to losing the manager that led them to Champions League qualification in 2023 and seventh last season. Howe’s contract lasts until 2027 but the departures of Amanda Staveley and Mehrdad Ghodoussi – who played a key role in his appointment – as directors last week may prove to be significant. Could he be tempted by the outstanding crop of players that would be at his disposal at the 2026 World Cup?
Graham Potter
Out of work since being sacked by Chelsea in April 2023, the 49-year-old has been installed as the early favourite by bookmakers. Potter was linked with a return to management earlier in the summer with Leicester and Ajax and remains on the market, even if his record at Stamford Bridge after his acrimonious departure from Brighton did little to enhance his reputation, losing 11 of his 31 games in charge. The former Birmingham, Stoke and West Brom midfielder earned plaudits for taking fourth-tier Swedish side Östersund into Europe before joining Swansea. Brighton snapped him up a year later and Potter guided them to ninth in his third season. He could be a popular choice for the FA given his commitment to possession-style football, although his teams have not been renowned for their goalscoring exploits.
Mauricio Pochettino
Pochettino has spent most of his coaching career in England but would be a controversial appointment given he faced David Beckham and co for Argentina in the 2002 World Cup and won 20 capsin all. The 52-year-old showed his undoubted ability by guiding Chelsea to a respectable sixth in another topsy-turvy season at Stamford Bridge and left after falling out with the club’s owners. He has been linked with the England job in the past and is thought to be on the FA’s shortlist, even if Pochettino has only won silverware during his spell as Paris Saint-Germain manager after losing the Carabao Cup final last season with Chelsea.
Thomas Tuchel
Another former Chelsea manager looking for work. Tuchel guided them to victory in the Champions League in 2021 before being sacked 14 months later and replaced by Potter. The German is thought to be open to taking over from Southgate after leaving Bayern Munich at the end of last season and is believed to have some support among FA officials. He would become the first England manager from overseas since Fabio Capello’s ill-fated reign came to an end in 2012 and could be an attractive if expensive option given his record of winning trophies in several different countries at club level.
Lee Carsley
The continuity candidate. A former Republic of Ireland midfielder who was born in Birmingham and played at the 2002 World Cup, Carsley’s stock is extremely high at the FA thanks to England’s triumph at last summer’s European Under- 21 Championship and is likely to be the man entrusted with taking over on an interim basis if required before September’s opening Nations League game against the Republic of Ireland. That could end up becoming a permanent appointment if the FA decides to follow the same approach that led Southgate to taking over the senior side in 2016. Luis de la Fuente, Spain’s winning manager at Euro 2024, also progressed from the under-21s to the senior side and Carsley would be able to build on his existing relationship with several players in the squad.
Jürgen Klopp
“Whatever will happen in the future I don’t know now but no club, no country for the next year,” said Klopp when he left Liverpool in May. “No other English club ever, I can promise that.” The 57-year-old has moved to Mallorca and appears determined to stick to his plan to take a sabbatical as he did when he left Borussia Dortmund in 2015 after reportedly turning down an offer to manage the United States. It appears to be wishful thinking to expect him to ride to England’s rescue, even if he has hinted that international management could be an option one day. “I don’t see myself continuing at the same pace as before,” he once said.
