It is fair to say that this has been a month Paul Simpson will never forget. Born in Carlisle four days before England’s only previous World Cup victory, the former Manchester City winger found himself on the managerial scrapheap six years ago when he was turned down by his old club for a role coaching their under-14 academy side. How times have changed.
Fresh from leading the England Under-20s to World Cup glory in South Korea, the 50-year-old found himself in the BBC radio commentary box in Kielce on Thursday watching Aidy Boothroyd’s under-21s book their place in the semi‑finals of Europe’s most prestigious youth tournament. “I applied for it but they obviously didn’t think I was right for it,” says Simpson of his rejection by City.
Undeterred, the man who began his managerial career in 2002 while he was still contracted as a player with Rochdale before moving on to Carlisle, Preston, Shrewsbury, Stockport and an ill-fated one-month spell with non-league side Northwich Victoria, headed to Portugal to head an academy for young players who had been recently released by Premier League clubs. He eventually returned when Steve McClaren was named Derby manager for the first time in 2013, taking up a coaching role at another of his former clubs before joining the ex-England manager when he moved to Newcastle in 2015.
Having had another six months out of the game after McClaren was sacked in March 2016, Simpson appeared to be a curious choice when he was appointed as a specialist youth coach by the Football Association in September.
Boothroyd’s promotion to the Under‑21 set-up when Gareth Southgate stepped into Sam Allardyce’s shoes with the senior side created an opportunity with the younger age group and Simpson seized the chance, leading England to a first global tournament victory at any level since 1966 by beating Venezuela in the final.
“I wouldn’t have been invited to Poland to co-commentate on the under‑21s had we not won in South Korea, that’s for sure,” Simpson says. “I’m really enjoying it. To be involved with the FA and pull that Three Lions tracksuit on is an honour in the first place. But to be part of the group of coaches and players we’ve got is a great experience. I’ve been overwhelmed by the messages I’ve received. It seems everybody is delighted with what we’ve achieved. That doesn’t surprise me because we’re all England supporters.
“I’m delighted too. There have been so many summers when we’ve had disappointments with the development teams and the seniors so this is a lovely change and long may it continue.”
Also part of Boothroyd’s backroom staff for last summer’s triumph at the Toulon tournament, Simpson has been welcomed into the fold once more as England plot a potential path to glory at a tournament that has proved particularly troublesome in recent years. Three successive exits at the group stages in Denmark, Israel and the Czech Republic had created a feeling of impending doom around this squad that has since been blown away by two clinical performances against Slovakia and Poland, with a first semi-final appearance since 2009 next up on Tuesday.
“It is a sign of the good things going on with England right the way through the age groups,” said Simpson. “There are some really talented young footballers at the moment. The FA has put in place a bit of a system for them to hold on to and play to. It’s a system that does not prohibit the players or stop them from showing what they’re about. You saw the football the U-21s played against Poland. We have some really talented players and now they have a platform on which to go out and play.
“We have got to play our football but also have to show we’ve got that bulldog spirit,” he adds. “If we roll up our sleeves and add that spirit to our technical ability we will produce football that will be give us a chance of progressing and be enjoyable to watch.”
England’s squad left their group stage base in Kielce the day after beating Poland to move to Krakow, where next Friday’s final will be played. The ancient Polish city that has become popular with stag and hen parties in recent years was also where Roy Hodgson’s senior side set up camp for the Euro 2012 campaign but after that ended in familiar circumstances with a penalty shootout defeat to Italy in the quarter-finals, Simpson believes Boothroyd’s side have the ability to go all the way this time and win the competition for the first time since the back-to-back successes in 1982 and 1984 under Dave Sexton.
“The first thing they have to do is get recovered,” he says. “When you are at a tournament, especially the development ones, the games come thick and fast. The Under-21s are in a fortunate position that they have had an extra day or two to recover. We have got to make sure we approach this game in the same way we have done the previous one.
“We can’t be anxious, we have to be positive about the way we go and play, confident in the way we play and just see what happens. They have nothing to be apprehensive about, it’s already a step forward from we have done at the previous three tournaments. There have been some good things going on in Poland and we just have to make sure we keep doing them.”
