Mauricio Pochettino leading candidate to become England's next manager
The Argentine recently stepped down from his position as Chelsea manager
Mauricio Pochettino is among the frontrunners to succeed Gareth Southgate as England manager should the position open up following the forthcoming European Championship, the Telegraph reported.
The Argentine recently stepped down from his position as Chelsea manager, surprising many with the announcement on Tuesday, citing a mutual agreement to end their association.
Currently, Southgate is occupied with preparing his England team for the UEFA tournament in Germany, having already announced his preliminary 33-man squad, which will later be reduced to 26 players.
The FA want Southgate - who has been in charge of England since 2016 - to extend his commitment to the national team but have named Pochettino as a potential successor if he decides to depart, as reported by the Telegraph.
Pochettino has a track record of developing young English players during stints at Southampton, Tottenham and Chelsea and maintains a relationship with the FA's technical director John McDermott, with whom he previously collaborated at Spurs.
The 52-year-old previously expressed interest in becoming a future England manager but is also believed to be the subject of interest from Manchester United as they consider whether to dismiss Erik ten Hag.
"Of course, my relationship with England has always been very good," he told to The Athletic.
"We have a very good relationship with the academies, trying to develop young players for the national team," he added.
On the other, there is the possibility of a long list of candidates wanting to take over from Southgate if he does leave his role, with Thomas Tuchel also expected to be interested.
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