Gareth Southgate definitely set to leave England job after Euro 2024

The Football Association have confirmed that Gareth Southgate will continue as England manager until his contract expires in 2024. It represents a u-turn in the feeling of the 52-year-old after he admitted he came into the recent World Cup determined to quit soon afterwards.

Even as recently as the quarter-final exit against France at the Al Bayt Stadium he was clearly conflicted about staying in the post after a difficult summer in which he had received widespread criticism from various quarters. It even emerged that he discussed making his intention to quit public before the tournament, only to be talked out of it by his assistant Steve Holland.

Then in another meeting on Friday, Southgate told Holland he would make his final decision when his family came home for Christmas – and the conversation over dinner was short one. A statement from FA chief executive Mark Bullingham on Sunday morning said: “We are delighted to confirm that Gareth Southgate is continuing as England Manager, and will lead our Euro 2024 campaign.

“Gareth and Steve Holland have always had our full support, and our planning for the Euros starts now.” The fact that the next major tournament – Euro 2024 in Germany – is only 18 months after the winter World Cup in Qatar has to be a mitigating factor.

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It means he will have largely the same squad of players with which to have one final crack at ending England’s 56-year drought without winning a major trophy. And it will be one more crack.

Although there is a rich vein of youth in his team, senior players such as Harry Kane, Raheem Sterling, Harry Maguire, John Stones, Kyle Walker, Kieran Trippier and Jordan Henderson would all have to fight for their places at the next World Cup in four years time. The steady conveyor belt of rich young talent emerging through the age ranks at St George’s Park is in a large part due to the hard work Southgate put in over a decade ago when the site was being devised and developed.

However, another failure to capitalise on a new golden generation centred upon Phil Foden, Bukayo Saka, Jude Bellingham, Marcus Rashford and Declan Rice would be considered too much of a waste by Southgate’s more prominent critics to allow him even a close miss in Germany. All indications anyway are that by then Southgate will be ready to try his hand in club management.

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Underlying everything he has done in the last six years since being coerced into taking on the role shortly after the debacle of Euro 2016 has been his philosophy of wanting watching and playing for England to be fun. Given the talent, the next 18 months could be the culmination of the most exciting period of English football for decades.

Southgate’s hope will be that it can this time carry the Three Lions back into the final and first up those podium steps. The FA’s role over the same period will be to identify a feasible successor – because whatever happens in 2024 all indications are that Southgate will definitely be gone after that.