Gareth Southgate's contract runs until December but the manager says he is open to extending that deal; England boss also accepts he may leave his role after this summer's Euros in Germany; "You've got to see how the summer goes - it's as simple as that," said Southgate
Friday 9 February 2024 11:40, UK
Gareth Southgate insists he is keeping an open mind about staying with England beyond Euro 2024 this summer.
The 53-year-old is under contract until December and is preparing to lead England into his fourth major tournament after taking charge in September 2016.
However, Southgate accepts it is also possible he may not be in charge by the time England play Nations League matches against the Republic of Ireland, Greece and Finland in the autumn.
The former Middlesbrough boss insists a decision over his future is not yet made and he remains open to the possibility of staying to work with England's exciting crop of players, led by Real Madrid superstar Jude Bellingham.
"There's a fair chance half the coaches won't be here after the Euros. That's international football," Southgate said at the Nations League draw in Paris on Thursday.
"You've got to see how the summer goes. It's as simple as that.
"In my view, I know what we're capable of achieving in the summer. I know what my own benchmark of success would be. After that, I'm not really thinking about anything else.
"It's always been exciting to take the team, whatever the strengths of the squad. In the end, we've got to deliver a performance and you've got to make the best decisions for everybody.
"I won't be in a position to make that decision before the tournament."
As well as the Republic of Ireland, England will also face Finland and Greece in Nations League Group B2 following their relegation from League A.
Southgate accepts England's objective has to be to return to the top division, telling Sky Sports: "There's some teams we haven't played for a while. There's going to be some difficult games for us.
"I think everybody in England will think it was a big disappointment to drop down to League B but you still have difficult games.
"Obviously our objective will be to try to win the group to get back into League A."
Discussing England's previous experiences in the Nations League, Southgate said: "We've had varied experiences. The first time, we finished third, the second two have been complicated for us. In all three versions, we've used it to look at new players.
"Of course, you have to balance looking at new players with winning games and we didn't manage to do that last time.
"The competition pairs the best with the best and my impressions of it have been really good.
"Unfortunately, the second one reminds me of Covid and the third one we didn't play well. It was the build-up to a World Cup so that was complicated for us."
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