JEFF POWELL: Carsley’s refusal to sing nationwide anthem is a betrayal

Lee Carsley has made his decision. He will not sing the national anthem as he assumes charge of England for the first time.

Now it is up to the Football Association to take theirs. Sack him. Ideally, right now. Just before kick-off if needs be.

Call him interim, temporary, stand-in or caretaker manager, this is no job for an Englishman who refuses to pay even so much as lip service to our realm.

Carsley was born, bred and lives in and around Birmingham. This is more of a betrayal than when England turned to foreign managers.

We all know how that misadventure turned out under Sven Goran Eriksson and Fabio Capello: Still not so much as a silver tea-pot since 1966 and all that World Cup jazz.

But at least we didn’t expect a Swede and an Italian to warble God Save The King. They came here for highly-remunerative work, not to pay homage to the mother country of football. It was one reason why this writer vehemently opposed those appointments, never expecting the FA to fall for a closet Irishman.

Not that it matters if Carsley conjures up a 10-0 victory in Dublin this Saturday. His answer to the Irish question has told us where his heart belongs. On the Emerald Isle. We don’t need it confirmed by lips stuck together as if by Sellotape on the Aviva Stadium touchline.

It was on this hallowed Irish turf when it was called Lansdowne Road that Carsley won plenty of his 40 caps for the boys in green. Without scoring a single goal from midfield, by the way.

Of course the issue of changeling nationalities in sport has become increasingly vexed and complex down the years. None more so than when it involves England and Ireland. All the more so when it enmeshes family heritage with pragmatic careers.

It becomes all the more aggravated as Carsley defers to his Republican antecedents even as he takes England’s helm. More difficult to forget, in these circumstances, that he chose to switch allegiance across the Irish Sea on the good old ship of his grand-parentage. 

All manner of ancillary excuses are being offered in his defence, everything from injury and opportunity among them. But it all boils down to a voyage of national sentiment.

Now, via varied echelons of the English coaching system, he is completing a return journey of convenience. Make no mistake, behind the contrived humility Carsley has his eye on becoming the full-time successor to Gareth Southgate. 

And as few as a couple or three successes in the Nations League – a tournament of little consequence and even less interest – may well get him the nod.

Better to put a stop before it starts. Could England really spring a new boss onto the Dublin bench overnight? Why not? For the clubs this is an international break from Premier League action. So how about asking a very English contender for this job, Newcastle United’s Eddie Howe, to pop over and get a feel for it this weekend?

A little extreme, maybe. But better surely to at least have someone calling the shots who is in a valid position to exhort the troops to greater effort in the country’s cause.

Carsley is technically astute. The FA hierarchy have been impressed by his coaching of the England Under-2ls in winning a European championship at that level. Well done the juniors, who are mostly singing his praises in hope of being promoted to the senior squad. 

But the FA should have been alerted by the sight of Carsley sitting on those benches with mouth frozen shut as the players belted out our anthem. They should know that there is more to senior England than schoolmasterly acumen. Much more.

Whatever has been said about Southgate failing to get over the line in major tournaments – some of it by myself – his patriotism has never been called to question. 

He dressed like an English gentleman. Conducted himself in the manner an English gentleman should. Took both victory and defeat like a sporting English gentleman. Gave ever last ounce of himself to the national cause and when it proved to be not quite enough, he took his leave like an English gentleman.

So listen to this from Carsley upon his ‘interim’ appointment: ‘Being head coach of England is a major achievement but I’m definitely proud of my (Irish) heritage.’

Well, thanks a lot for that Lee. Who went on to enthuse about his recent summer break with the family in… Cork.

Irish footballers who abscond to England usually bear the most fiery brunt of hostility in their homeland. Declan Rice, who turned his back on Ireland to become a soldier of fortune with England will provide a distraction from Carsley for the home crowd when he plays against them this Saturday afternoon. 

Contrarily Jack Charlton, a ’66 World Cup winner with England, made Irish eyes smile when he became their national team manager, while retaining the affection of the English public.

Now that the gush of eulogies for Eriksson have been duly served, it is not inappropriate to reflect on Southgate’s view of the ice-cold Swede under whom he played for England: ‘We needed Winston Churchill but we got Iain Duncan Smith.’

These are not the only border crossings on these isles which are fraught with peril. Carsley, before disowning the flag, might have paused for thought about how Sir Alex Ferguson politely declined a hefty offer from the FA by saying: ‘I could never conceive of leading out an England team against Scotland.’ 

There stood part of his greatness.

Now, unless immediate remedial action is taken, where England’s only World Cup-winning team used to have Sir Alf Ramsey we now have Little Lee.

Even though, can you believe, we already know his true colour: Green.