How Gerry Francis ALMOST became England manager
7From the glorious failure of Italia 90 and the tears of Turin under Bobby Robson to the abject failures of Euro 92 and the 1994 World Cup, it was clear that Graham Taylor’s time as England manager was over.
The FA was in disarray and there was a short list of English managers who wished to take on a post which was nicknamed ‘The Impossible Job’.
Don Howe was one of the most respected coaches of his time, had the experience of Arsenal, QPR and Coventry City jobs and certainly had an in from a previous coaching role with The FA. He was a frontrunner, but didn’t get it.
Howard Wilkinson was, and shockingly still is, the latest English manager to win the league title with Leeds United. He was passed on.
Gerry Francis had masterminded QPR to a magnificent fifth position in the first Premier League season and Steve Coppell, too, played the role of a London underdog had dredged Crystal Palace to third place and an FA Cup final. Neither man took the job.
This week, we’ll look at all four of these alternate universes from the England national team in the 1990s.
#England #UEFAEuro #FIFAWorldCup
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Voice: Jake Doyle (@jakedoyle93)
Words: Jake Doyle (@jakedoyle93)
Edit: Jake Doyle (@jakedoyle93)
What If Football is a form of footballing storytelling that takes the audience down a different path to our current reality.
What If Football covers football in all forms, from the Premier League to the Champions League, European football and the EFL as well as international tournaments such as the FIFA World Cup and the UEFA European Championships.
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