England to wait to appoint new manager

In a report published by Soccernet this week on the heels of England's 3-2 loss to the Netherlands, it has been revealed that England will be waiting until the end of the season in May, a mere few weeks before the start of Euro 2012, to select the new man in charge of bringing England more long awaited silverware. If England are indeed to adhere to this appointment headline that has been laid out, you almost have to wonder if the FA are actually trying to bring such glory to England at all.

In a year without a major tournament to play in the summer, I would completely understand the FA's stance in allowing their prospective manager, who is probably chasing Champions League qualification at this moment, to continue on with his club responsibilities. As it is, however, this isn't one of those more sterile and pedestrian years. To leave the decision so late is to really play a game of Russian roulette with whatever chances England might have otherwise had this summer, though I'd be more likely to put my money on the bullet at this point considering how everything is shaping up.

What would be most curious about naming a manager so close to Euro 2012 is just he would go about implementing his tactics and preferred style of play with a group of players he has hardlt had any chance at all to work with. If it is to be one of either Roy Hodgson or Harry Redknapp, then yes, he would have some greater knowledge of the players in contention to be named to the squad on an individual form basis, but a group of talented players lacking in cohesion with their new manager is hardly the formula for success. England will have friendlies against Norway and Belgium in the short period of time between the end of the season and the start of Euro 2012, but 180 minutes of live action is hardly enough of a sample size with which a new manager can fully determine which players will fit into his system and just how they will do so.  

Adding to the new England manager's dilemma come May will be the issue of squad selection in and of itself, as perhaps over three dozen players could actually be in contention to make England's final squad of 23 that won't be so cut and dried as it might have been in years past. Never mind the aforementioned issue of getting a squad of players to be on the same page with you tactically; how do you even begin to have the players understand the system when you might not even know which players you're actually going to select in the end. Normally a new national team manager would have his slew of friendlies he could use for the purposes of experimenting by calling various fringe players into the fray, but such a luxury will hardly be available come May. The manager will have to just about get his squad right at the first time of asking. Regardless of a manager's pedigree and acumen, that's one hell of a request when there might also be some expectations, however misguided, of actually challenging for honors.

Despite the news of the FA's patience this week, I still have a hard time believing that all with remain quiet on their front until May. If they want to have England actually competing to any extent this summer, they would be wise to get this situation sorted out now, even if it means twisting their candidate's arm until he agrees to taking charge of England on a part-time basis until his club's season is over. There's just too much on the line in the coming months for all parties involved to merely sit on their hands.