Is Wenger heading towards England job?? FA chairman gives massive update
Sep 29, 2016 at 1:48 PM
The Football Association chairman Greg Clarke insists England’s next permanent manager doesn’t have to be English, amidst strong interest on arsenal boss Arsene Wenger.
The Three Lions parted ways with Sam Allardyce this week, just 67 days after the 61-year-old was appointed as England manager.
It came after Allardyce was involved in am embarrassing newspaper sting, which saw him being filmed making comments to undercover reporters regarding ways to get around third-party rules set by The FA.
The FA have since told England U21 manager, Southgate, to take charge of the nation’s next four games – at least – as they look to find the perfect fit to fill the permanent vacancy.
However, Clarke has dismissed suggestions the next appointment has to be an Englishman, with latest reports suggesting the Three Lions are waiting for Wenger’s contract to expire with Arsenal next summer.
“We will look at what have we learned from the Sam hiring process and how do we apply that to the next hiring process,” Clarke said, as reported by the Guardian. “The most important thing is we’ve got Gareth focused on the next four games. That buys us time to really give some thought to how we do it this time round.
“My view is that you need someone who really understands English football. That could be an English person or someone who has worked in England and managed at a senior level. But to parachute someone in who has never managed in this country would be a big ask.”
Meanwhile, Clarke insists he has no problems with how the information came about regarding Allardyce’s sacking, instead praising the media for bringing the findings to light.
“My view of these things is that if you think there is actually something going on, go after it. If you hear something and you want to run it down, then run it down,” Clarke added. “Because transparency and a strong media is vital to our society.”
England face Malta on the 8th October at Wembley Stadium, before they then travel to Slovenia to take on Srecko Katanec’s men.
Southgate will also be in charge for games against Scotland and Spain, which take place in mid-November.