Lee Carsley’s Continued FA Role Makes Coventry City Return Improbable

The prospect of Lee Carsley returning to Coventry City as head coach appears to have diminished, following an indication from the FA that he will remain with England’s Under-21s. The former Sky Blues midfielder concluded his interim period leading England with his fifth victory in six matches on Sunday evening, securing a 5-0 win against the Republic of Ireland at Wembley. While Thomas Tuchel is slated to assume leadership of the national team, FA CEO Mark Bullingham stated that Carsley continues to hold a ‘vital role’ in nurturing talent for the senior squad. “Lee will now return to the Under-21s and will continue to play a vital role supporting the seniors by developing England’s best young players,” he said.”His leadership and coaching gives us the best possible chance of back-to-back U21 Euro wins next summer, and he will continue to play a big part in elite football development across the FA.” Meanwhile, Frank Lampard is considered the strong odds-on favourite by bookmakers to succeed Mark Robins. Coventry owner Doug King has confirmed that the former Chelsea and Derby boss submitted his CV, while one-time Sky Blues striker Robbie Keane is a distant second in the betting odds. Carsley previously served as a development coach at Coventry early in his career. He also took on the role of caretaker first-team Sky Blues boss in February 2013 after Robins’ departure to Huddersfield, before leaving for Sheffield United that summer.