Why the FA believe Lee Carsley is the right man for the England job, Bayern’s concerns over Matthijs de Ligt before selling him to Man United and Premier League plan for dressing-room interviews: THE SAMI MOKBEL COLUMN

Lee Carsley is ticking the boxes. As the 50-year-old approaches his third match in interim charge of England, there is a growing sense the permanent job is now his to lose.

If Carsley maintains his 100 per cent win record with victory against Greece on Thursday and records another triumph in Finland on Sunday evening, his claims to become Gareth Southgate’s full-time successor will harden.

Results, as ever, will dictate the outcome. Two more wins in November, then surely it’s an open and shut case.

The FA’s recruitment process has seen the organisation cast their net far and wide, with Pep Guardiola viewed by many at the governing body as a dream appointment.

But what guarantees are there that he’d consider the position? How much would he cost when the Catalan currently earns £20million a year?

Then, of course, there is Manchester City’s ongoing legal battle against 115 charges of financial breaches to think about.

Eddie Howe is another candidate to have been considered. But does he truly want to leave Newcastle, who have emerged as one of the most exciting projects in European football?

There is some concern at the FA that Howe may use the England vacancy to strengthen his hand at St James’ Park, although well-placed sources are adamant the 46-year-old would hold a genuine interest if the job.

But while the machinations towards appointing the next permanent England head coach continue, led by chief executive Mark Bullingham and technical director John McDermott, there is some belief that the right man is already under their nose.

Carsley has earned his crack at the biggest job of all. He’s put in the hard yards; he’s entrenched in the England culture.

Is he the sexiest name? No. Sexy, though, doesn’t always get the job done.

By all accounts, Carsley’s training sessions are fresh and innovative. That’s not to say Southgate’s weren’t – but eight years of the same voices and the same methods opens up the risk of tedium.

Players, so far, have enjoyed Carsley’s approach to training. Flanked by coaches Ashley Cole and Joleon Lescott, whose gravitas among the squad shouldn’t be underestimated, Carsley is said to take a substantially greater role on the grass at St George’s Park.

Under Southgate, No 2 Steve Holland, who is widely recognised as one of the best coaches England have produced in recent years, generally led training.

No way is the right way. Sir Alex Ferguson, particularly towards the end of his reign at Manchester United, delegated training to his assistants.

Carsley prefers a more hands-on approach, and the FA certainly see the merits of appointing an ‘on the grass’ manager.

John Stones, handed the captain’s armband against Greece on Thursday, has already compared Carsley’s philosophy to Guardiola’s.

That may be a stretch too far. But in terms of adopting an attacking game plan, Carsley in his two matches in charge has displayed a willingness to be expansive in his setup.

The fact he has explored packing Jude Bellingham, Cole Palmer, Phil Foden, Bukayo Saka and Anthony Gordon into the same team ahead of the clash versus Greece speaks volumes about Carsley’s mindset.

England supporters have yearned for a manager to harness the squad’s undoubted attacking flair. Carsley, at least so far, has shown he is working on finding a winning formula that does just that.

That’s an exciting prospect, particularly for the FA, who want to continue putting bums on seats at Wembley Stadium.

That Carsley has already worked with a vast number of the players in the senior squad in his previous role as Under 21s boss is also a compelling argument for those tasked with appointing the next manager, and there is significant support among the squad for him. That will count for a lot.

Marc Guehi, Rico Lewis, Angel Gomes, Curtis Jones, Tino Livramento, Morgan Gibbs-White, Gordon, Noni Madueke, Palmer and Foden have all worked with Carsley at junior international level.

Of course, this was what the national football centre at St George’s Park has been geared towards; to nurture playing and coaching excellence.

For teams to grow together towards the pinnacle of earning full international honours. Much of England’s current crop have grown into senior England players with Carsley by their side. There’s a lot to be said for that.

Carsley has already bred success, leading the Under 21s to European Championship glory last year.

If Carsley – a coach developed under the FA’s umbrella – can provide the national set-up with the ultimate success of winning a senior trophy then the £105million spent on St George’s Park will be worth every penny.

Cost, as ever, will be a factor. In 2020, the FA predicted loses up to £300m due to Covid, and made 124 positions redundant as a result.

Four years on, the financial landscape appears less depressing – but wages, inevitably, will be a consideration.

Southgate’s final deal with the FA was in the region of £5m a year, and it is logical that the FA won’t want to go beyond that.

That would mean Guardiola taking a drastic pay cut. Howe would be more within their price range. As would Carsley, of course.

There is an acknowledgement that Carsley isn’t necessarily as natural a public speaker as Southgate, though not many are.

Southgate’s knack of finding the right words for just about any topic was his most potent strength, and being an England manager is as much about what you say as how your team performs – Carsley found that out to his cost last month when the man who won 40 caps for the Republic of Ireland as a player confirmed he would not sing the national anthem.

There was certainly a nervousness about Carsley during his first international window in charge, with regards to his dealings with the media.

He was courteous, well-mannered and polite – but noticeably apprehensive all the same.

But, just four weeks on, it is entirely evident just how assured the former Everton midfielder has been in completing his media commitments. He is growing into that side of the job.

The question is: are the FA sufficiently impressed with his growth as coach to hand Carsley their most coveted role?

All the current indications suggest that they are.

Palace losing hope of holding on to Guehi 

Crystal Palace fear they are facing a losing battle in their attempts to persuade Marc Guehi to sign a new contract.

There is increasing resignation behind the scenes at Selhurst Park that they may have no option but to sell their England international in one of the next two transfer windows to ensure they don’t lose him for nothing when his contract expires in 2026.

Mail Sport has learned that Eagles bosses have tried to initiate talks over an extension for Guehi, but they have received little encouragement that the 24-year-old is willing to commit his future anywhere as of now.

Guehi wants to focus his attentions on leading the team, particularly in his new role as skipper. But as he approaches the final 18 months of his contract it is clear Guehi finds himself in a position of power and control.

Palace rejected an offer worth £70million for Guehi during the summer window – and as my Mail Sport colleague Craig Hope revealed in his Newcastle Confidential column last week, the Magpies retain an interest in the defender heading into the January transfer window.

Pogba wins payout 

Italy’s national anti-doping agency NADO have been ordered to pay Paul Pogba £4,500 as a contribution to the cost of his fight against a four-year drug ban.

Mail Sport exclusively revealed on Friday that the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) slashed Pogba’s original suspension for testing positive for banned substance DHEA last year to 18 months – meaning the World Cup winner can return to competitive football from March.

And we can now disclose that part of CAS’ ruling, communicated to Pogba on Friday, is that NADO must pay 5,000 Swiss Francs to the 31-year-old French midfielder.

CAS also insisted that the cost of the arbitration will be spilt equally between Pogba and NADO.

Special guests to attend Wembley fixture 

Baroness Doreen Lawrence and Thomas Hitzlsperger have been invited as guests of honour by the FA to Thursday’s clash against Greece for a special pre-match celebration of Black History Month.

Equalities campaigner Baroness Lawrence is the mother of Stephen, who was tragically murdered 31 years ago in a racially motivated attack in south London, while former Aston Villa and Germany midfielder Hitzlsperger, who revealed he is gay in 2014, has also been an equal rights activist.

Former England internationals Jermain Defoe and Martin Keown have also been invited to the event, which has been organised by the FA’s equalities advisor Paul Elliott, as have Kerry Davis – the first black woman to play for England – and Eni Aluko.

The family of Jack Leslie, the first black man to be selected for England, are also due to be present.

England and Greece to pay tribute to George Baldock 

UEFA have granted permission for there to be a period of silence and for players to wear black armbands in memory of George Baldock on Thursday night.

English and Greek football have been saddened by the news of Baldock’s passing on Wednesday.

The Greek FA lodged a formal request for players to pay tribute to Baldock, who played 12 times for their senior national team, in tonight’s Nations League game versus England.

The English FA were happy to wear the armbands during as a mark of respect for a player that many of the senior squad knew.

And UEFA approved the Greeks’ request at a meeting earlier this morning.

Baldock made over 350 appearances in English football before moving to Panathinakos in the summer.

League broadcasters heading behind the scenes 

Premier League clubs have been assured that broadcasters are ‘not looking not catch anyone out’ amid a raft of proposals aimed at bringing the viewer closer to the action next season.

All 20 clubs have been sent an outline of three initiatives aimed at improving coverage.

One of the ideas is the introduction of mid-game interviews – a development this column first revealed last week – which will see substituted players questioned as they come off the field.

Clubs are told that the interviews should be ‘positive’ and of no more than two questions which must be based purely on the game.

Mail Sport understands that both Manchester clubs, Newcastle and Arsenal were involved in the substitute interview idea being drawn up.

The Premier League also want clubs to agree controlled dressing-room filming during broadcasts. The footage, clubs have been told, should be ‘positive and not looking to catch anybody out’.

Clubs were also informed that there will be blackout and audio control options for broadcasting inside the dressing room as an extra layer of protection.

The third concept is for half-time interviews with either a player or a coach leaving or returning to the pitch. Broadcasters will select which individual they want to speak to from a list of five compiled by the club.

Again, the half-time interviews should be positive, be no more than three questions and only reference the match.

Crucially, clubs have been told that they should deliver on one of the three ideas at least twice a season.

Allardyce’s pitch-perfect reference 

Sam Allardyce was among those asked by Premier League clubs to provide a reference for winger Crysencio Summerville during the previous transfer window.

Summerville left Leeds for West Ham in a deal in excess of £25million – but there was significant interest from a range of rival top-flight sides.

And it is understood Allardyce, who worked the Holland Under 21 International during his short period in charge at Elland Road in 2023, was approached by clubs as part of their due diligence on the 22-year-old.

Brighton and Liverpool were among the other clubs linked with Summerville.

‘Clunky’ De Ligt raised eyebrows before United arrival

Bayern Munich coaches had become deeply concerned by Matthijs de Ligt’s lack of flexibility during his final season in Bavaria.

Mail Sport has learned that many behind the scenes at the Allianz Arena were left disappointed by the Netherlands centre back’s lack of mobility during his two-year stint in Germany.

Sources have indicated that there were increasing reservations about the amount of time De Ligt was spending in the gym and the impact it was having on the elasticity in his frame.

Mail Sport understands Erik ten Hag and Manchester United were aware of those concerns ahead of his arrival in the summer for £38.5m.

‘There was a feeling at Bayern that between De Ligt leaving Ajax for Juventus and then arriving at Bayern that he lost his flexibility and speed because he spent too much time in the gym,’ revealed a source. ‘There was little positivity about De Ligt from Bayern.’

Indeed, Chris Sutton noted in this week’s episode of the Mail Sport podcast It’s All Kicking Off: ‘He’s been in the gym too much. When he was at Ajax and making his way and he came to the fore, not only was he strong, but he was agile, he was mobile.

‘He just looks clunky, doesn’t he?’

Another major Saudi signing?  

Kevin De Bruyne is likely to emerge as a target for the Saudi Pro League next summer.

Mail Sport understands the Manchester City playmaker actively sought a potential move to the Middle East last summer but ended up staying at the Etihad Stadium.

Tellingly, he said in September: ‘At my age, you have to be open to everything. You talk about unbelievable amounts in what may be the end of my career. Sometimes you have to think about that.’

The Belgium international is out of contract at the end of the season and is set to re-emerge as target for a number of Saudi clubs.

Top flight plots Lord Ouseley tribute 

The Premier League plan to make a wider tribute to racial equalities activist Lord Herman Ouseley, who sadly passed away last week.

There has been some criticism of the organisation for what appeared to be a failure to make a visible tribute, in the way of minute silences or black armbands, to Lord Ouseley during last weekend’s round of matches, though the top flight did release a statement expressing their ‘extreme sadness’ at the campaigner’s death.

But Mail Sport understands that the Premier League want to make a fuller tribute to the pioneer, who co-founded Kick It Out in 1993, during their ‘No Room For Racism’ campaign later this year.