Alan Shearer Reveals England Didn’t Speak to Manager Who Was His ‘Outstanding Candidate’

Striker-turned-pundit Alan Shearer has revealed that England and the Football Association (FA) didn’t speak to Newcastle United’s Eddie Howe in their search for a Gareth Southgate replacement – one that ended in securing the services of Thomas Tuchel.

Ever since Southgate, one of the best managers in Three Lions history, left his post in the wake of his side’s 2-1 loss to Spain in the Euro 2024 final, the FA – a process spearheaded by chief executive Mark Bullingham and technical director John McDermott – were sounding out replacements.

Krumbach-born Tuchel is the man, according to reports, who will be given the reins over the England squad from January 1, 2025, onwards, with him set to put pen to paper on a deal worth £5 million per year – a figure double what Southgate pocketed, per annum, across his stay.

Shearer ‘Surprised’ Over Lack of Howe Talks for England Job

‘I really hope they have spoken to English managers’

​​​​​Shearer, speaking on the most recent episode of ‘The Rest is Football’ podcast discussing Tuchel’s impending appointment, suggested that Lee Carsley ruled himself out of the running for a reason: “It’s happened so quickly, hasn’t it? We said the other day there’s probably a reason why Lee Carsley was ruling himself out. Maybe you were right saying he knew something we didn’t know.

More importantly, the Premier League’s all-time top goalscorer insisted that, to his knowledge, the FA failed to contact Howe. He claimed that the lack of talks with the ex-Bournemouth boss came as a surprise given he is the outstanding candidate, who was born in England.

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Rio Ferdinand Reveals how England Players Would Have Reacted to Tuchel Appointment

The former defender-turned-pundit has backed the Thomas Tuchel to lead England to the Promised Land, while revealing the common feeling in the camp.

”[England appointing Tuchel] is a bit of a concern because what is the pathway for England coaches? If they’ve bought this centre along and want to promote English managers, then the outstanding candidate it [Eddie Howe],” he continued.

That said, given that Shearer plied his trade for the Magpies, amassing 405 appearances for the club, he insisted that he is pleased that Howe – who he labelled as an ‘outstanding manager’ – is remaining at Newcastle beyond England’s managerial search.

Harry Redknapp Slams FA for Tuchel Appointment

‘I wanted an Englishman to manage England’

Former manager Harry Redknapp, who once won the FA Cup with Portsmouth in the 2007/08 season, has slammed the FA for appointing Tuchel to succeed Southgate, claiming that the person to oversee the England job should, in fact, be English.

Tuchel is the third non-English manager, following in the footsteps of Italian Fabio Capello and the late Sven-Goran Eriksson, who was Swedish, to be appointed as the England manager. He is also the first German-born chief to be given the reins in the Wembley hotseat.

All statistics per Transfermarkt – correct as of 16/10/24