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Former England manager Sam Allardyce says England cannot appoint a foreign manager, adding that such a decision would be ‘unacceptable.’
The Three Lions currently have Gareth Southgate in the dugout, but his future remains unclear, with the manager recently explaining that he needs some time to make a decision on his next steps.
England ‘cannot’ appoint non-British manager
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England have previously employed the likes of Swede Sven-Goran Eriksson and Italian Fabio Capello, but Allardyce says such a situation cannot happen again. And now both Thomas Tuchel and Mauricio Pochettino have been linked with the position.
But Allardyce, who himself managed the Three Lions, albeit very briefly, believes appointing a non-British manager would be a huge step backwards for England.
“It can’t happen, not again,” said Allardyce, as reported by LiveScore. “There are enough qualified British managers in this country to pick the right man.
“I just don’t see it. I think it would be a massive knock-back for our country, and a massive knock-back for young managers trying to make their way.
“It’s hard enough to get in the Premier League as a British manager, but to think that it’s taken away from you to become the national team’s coach… I think it’s unacceptable, personally.”
Three Lions job comes with immense pressure
Southgate led England to the quarter-finals of the 2022 World Cup, having previously led the nation to the semi-finals of the tournament in 2018. He also led the Three Lions to the final of Euro 2020, with the side ultimately losing out on penalties to Italy.
Allardyce was in charge of England for just one match in 2016, and says he understands it if Southgate chooses to walk away given the immense pressure of the job.
“How long do you want to put up with that scrutiny and that pressure?” said Allardyce. “Lots of managers will leave their positions at the end of the World Cup.
“While it’s an experience and a job you could never turn down, not in my opinion anyway, there’s a time when you have gone through the mill enough.
“I think this squad is good enough for him to think: ‘I need to carry on because I think we could win the Euros.’
“But there is the other side of it to consider: ‘How much more pressure do I want to continue to cope with, and is it time for me to bow out?’”
England skipper ‘strikes a penalty so well normally’
Allardyce also chipped in on the Harry Kane penalty debate, after the England captain missed a crucial penalty in his side’s quarter-final loss to France.
Having already scored from the spot in the match, the Tottenham Hotspur striker was given a chance to level things late on, but fired his penalty over the bar.
His club teammate Hugo Lloris, who he had beaten with the first effort, was in goal for France, but Allardyce doesn’t believe the miss was due to those circumstances.
“I don’t get any of that rubbish about Lloris sussing him out because they play for the same club. It was the pure pressure of the event,” added Allardyce.
“He strikes a penalty so well normally, and if he struck it as well as he did the first one, Lloris would have had no chance.”
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