April 24 – England women’s head coach Phil Neville will leave the job in July 2021 at the end of his contract, the English Football Association (FA) confirmed today.
Neville was appointed in January 2018 on a contract until the summer of 2021 by which time the Euros, which England is hosting, should have been played. But the tournament is moving to July 2022 because of the men’s Euros being postponed a year as a result of Covid-19.
Neville led the Lionesses to the World Cup semi-finals last year but the team has lost seven of its last 11 games. He had been expected to lead Team GB into this summer’s Olympic Games, before taking control of the Lionesses at the Women’s Euros on home soil in 2021.
In a statement the FA’s director of women’s football, Sue Campbell, said that “in the best interests” of the team both the FA and the former England and Manchester United star agreed the Lionesses needed to have “continuity of coaching” going into the Euros and the subsequent World Cup.
“Once football returns after this difficult period, Phil will continue his work with the Lionesses on the further development of his squad. I will support him fully with that important task while moving forward with the crucial succession planning process,” she said.
“We’ll now discuss next steps with the British Olympic Association and the home nations with regard to Team GB Football and we’re not in a position to make any further comment at this time.”
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