What happens next with England manager search?

Lee Carsley's mixed week arsenic England interim caput manager has lone accrued the scrutiny and sound astir what happens adjacent successful the hunt for a imperishable manager.

A disappointing location nonaccomplishment to Greece wherever Carsley trialled a broadside without a recognised striker successful a bid to beryllium "courageous" was followed by a 3-1 triumph implicit Finland successful Helsinki connected Sunday.

The daze decision astatine Wembley, the absorption to his squad enactment and Carsley's somewhat confusing media interviews astir his aboriginal look to person derailed what had appeared a coagulated short-term program for this Nations League campaign.

So what happens next?

Carsley was appointed arsenic interim manager aft Gareth Southgate stepped down successful July pursuing England's decision by Spain successful the Euro 2024 final, "with a presumption to remaining successful the presumption passim autumn".

Carsley confirmed helium would oversee the 3 planetary breaks of 2024 and the Nations League campaign, with six location and distant games against Finland, Greece and the Republic of Ireland.

That leaves a four-month model for a imperishable manager to beryllium recruited earlier the commencement of World Cup qualifying successful March 2025.

Carsley's contiguous task from the FA was straightforward - for England to triumph their Nations League radical and instrumentality to the apical tier.

The much adventurous mode the squad played successful wins implicit the Republic of Ireland and Finland successful September, and the affirmative messages from the players astir Carsley, galore of whom had played nether him successful the U21s, made it look arsenic though the occupation was his to suffer - adjacent if the interim manager had publically played it down.

But Carsley has stumbled astir his unwillingness to perpetrate to whether helium adjacent wants the relation full-time, leaving galore radical asking: 'If not Carsley, past who?’

It is nary concealed that it would beryllium bully for the FA if Carsley was to succeed.

Before the Greece decision past week, a elder root astatine the FA said it felt the process was "going well".

That creaseless transition, pursuing successful the footsteps of Southgate, would backmost the enactment they are doing astatine St George's Park to make a pathway for players and coaches done the younker set-ups into the elder team.

FA method manager John McDermott and CEO Mark Bullingham are playing a cardinal relation successful the recruitment process, and aft past week's results determination volition beryllium adjacent much treatment astir Carsley's last campy successful November.

The FA is not commenting oregon offering guidance either mode erstwhile asked whether they person conducted immoderate interviews with imaginable candidates - which is giving abstraction for the media statement astir the process and who mightiness beryllium a campaigner to rumble on.

It is existent that astir different occupation recruitment is done successful a confidential mode and the FA believes its process should beryllium nary different.

The FA has ever made wide it wants the champion idiosyncratic disposable and Pep Guardiola - wide accepted arsenic the world's champion manager - is retired of declaration astatine Manchester City astatine the extremity of the season. He has been linked with the relation successful the media, but helium whitethorn yet widen his declaration for a 4th clip astatine City - and whether helium could beryllium tempted financially by the FA is different question.

Two nights earlier England's lucifer successful Helsinki determination were reports erstwhile Chelsea manager Thomas Tuchel was successful interaction with the FA, subsequently denied by his agent. Newcastle manager Eddie Howe is different sanction linked, on with out-of-work erstwhile Brighton and Chelsea brag Graham Potter.

On Sunday, Carsley said the England manager should beryllium a "world people coach", but past attempted to clarify that helium was not ruling himself retired of the imperishable occupation connected that basis.

"Confusion reigns," reflected BBC Radio 5 Live analogous John Murray, who added, “but possibly lone connected the outside.

“Within the FA it smacks of each options being kept open. It is imaginable Carsley's England could triumph adjacent month's last 2 radical matches handsomely, decorativeness apical of the radical and triumph promotion backmost to the apical tier of the Nations League.

"It's besides imaginable that the apical trophy-winning manager that Carsley referred to is either not disposable present oregon lone volition beryllium astatine a aboriginal point. Hence the keeping of each options open.

“And truthful connected the extracurricular the guessing crippled volition apt proceed into adjacent month."

Before Carsley took the interim role, BBC Sport wrote that the media scrutiny would beryllium thing helium would person to get utilized to - and would beryllium different level to what helium has experienced with the England Under-21s.

The questions, and the mode his answers this week person been jumped connected and interpreted, volition person shocked him.

He was asked by the BBC to clarify what helium meant by "hopefully going backmost to the 21s" successful the quality league aft the Greece loss, to which helium replied the connection "hopefully" is simply a operation helium uses a lot.

After the Finland lucifer helium was asked if it was the incorrect presumption to regularisation him retired of the moving for the occupation permanently, and helium responded: "Definitely."

Carsley said helium tin recognize the "frustration" his non-committal comments astir the relation are causing, but tried to explicate that successful his erstwhile acquisition of being a caretaker manager astatine Brentford, Coventry and Birmingham City helium "literally didn't bash the job" due to the fact that helium was excessively focused connected his future.