Phil Neville says he hopes to be succeeded by a British manager when his contract with England Women expires next summer.
Neville said he had been impressed with his generation of British coaches — but failed to mention a single woman among the success stories.
“I really hope so [to be succeeded by a Briton],” Neville told BeIn Sport. “Big Sam [Allardyce] and ‘The Gaffer’ David Moyes were pioneers for British culture in an era where it became fashionable to go to a foreign coach.
"I really want [British bosses] to succeed — Frank [Lampard] at Chelsea, Scott Parker at Fulham, Stevie [Gerrard] up at Rangers, even Ryan [Giggs] with Wales. We need all these young coaches to succeed. They need to be given opportunities and they need to be backed.”
Neville’s decision to step down came after this summer’s Olympics and next year’s home Euros were both delayed by 12 months due to coronavirus.
“My plan was always just to go for the three years and then get into the day-to-day running of a club,” he said. “It’s been brilliant and I’ve loved every minute of it, but ultimately you don’t get to see the players. You don’t get to impact them every single day, which is what I feel I need to do.”
