Gareth Southgate steps in as England manager on short-term deal after Sam Allardyce departure
Under-21 boss to step up for World Cup games against Malta and Slovenia as Big Sam pays the price
GARETH SOUTHGATE will replace Sam Allardyce as England head coach.
Southgate, who refused to apply for the role when Roy Hodgson was fired, held talks with Dan Ashworth at St George’s Park on Tuesday.
The plan is for England’s Under-21 manager to take charge of the senior side for the next four games.
Allardyce had been due to name his squad for World Cup qualifiers against Malta and Slovenia on Sunday evening.
But all those plans were thrown up in their air when it emerged he had been caught on video allegedly advising businessmen how to flout third party player ownership rules.
He is accused to meeting up with a bogus consortium, who were in fact undercover reporters posing as Far East businessmen who claimed they were interested in bringing overseas players to England.
Allardyce, 61 – who is paid £3million a year plus bonuses as England manager – agreed to travel to Singapore and Hong Kong as an ambassador and explained to the “businessmen” how they could circumvent FA rules which prohibit third parties “owning” players.
He has been locked in talks with FA officials all day in an effort to save his job, but without the full backing of the board there could be only one outcome.
Southgate will embark on a hectic period as he assumes control, with the World Cup qualifying double header followed by two more games in November before a four month break before their next game.
That task will fall to Southgate when he accepts the challenge of leading the country in the short-term.