MARK BULLINGHAM claimed there is a lack of top-quality English coaches to choose from — yet never approached Eddie Howe.
The FA chief executive insists he had to go abroad for a new boss and that Thomas Tuchel was the ideal candidate.
The FA did not speak to Eddie Hower for the England job[/caption]
Thomas Tuchel was the leading candidate for the FA[/caption]
Bullingham revealed the FA spoke to ten managers but SunSport understands Newcastle boss Howe was not one of them.
He said: “We ran a really clear process. We spoke to approximately ten throughout the process.
“Clearly some were more up for the role than others.
“We were absolutely delighted to end up with Thomas and we believe he gives us the best chance of winning the World Cup.”
Although Howe was not spoken to, the FA knew that Newcastle would have demanded a large amount of compensation.
Another English boss in the running was Graham Potter, out of work since being sacked by Chelsea last year.
But Bullingham still believes the pathway for English coaches is clear.
He said: “If you look at St George’s Park overall, it has been a really good success.
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“Our pathway is really strong, both from a coaches and players point of view. There are a lot of fantastic young coaches.
“Clearly you would love to have five to ten domestic candidates who are coaching clubs in your domestic league, challenging and winning honours in your domestic league and European football.
“We are not quite in that place at the moment.
“As we set out our process, our priority was to find someone that can give our players the best possible chance to win.
“We have found that, and we have got Thomas — and we are delighted.”
Aside from Howe, only Everton’s Sean Dyche and Wolves’ Gary O’Neil are English Prem bosses but Southampton’s Russell Martin was born in England despite playing for Scotland.
Ashley Cole has been appointed as a full-time national coach at the FA.
And Lee Carsley returns to lead the Under-21s after his stint as seniors boss ends this year.
Bullingham added: “We would love to have more English coaches managing in the Premier League.”
Tuchel’s English No 2 at Chelsea and Bayern Munich, Anthony Barry, will join the German in the Three Lions dugout.
And Bullingham said: “We had a clear recruitment plan in place before the Euros and a shortlist if we needed it.
“Thomas was absolutely outstanding, providing a really clear vision for the role and how he would work with our players.”
