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• Southgate not planning on swift return to management

  Gareth Southgate will not be taking another management job within the next year, and he is unlikely to work with another national team.

  Southgate resigned as England manager following the Three Lions' 2-1 defeat to Spain in the final of Euro 2024, bringing to an end an 11-year association with the FA.

  The 54-year-old was in charge of the senior team for eight years and, within that period, led them to the finals of both Euro 2020 and Euro 2024, as well as the semi-final of the 2018 World Cup.

  In terms of tournament performance, he was the most successful England manager since Alf Ramsey, who led England to the 1966 World Cup – their only major honour.

  "Sometimes when you are in a big role you don't realise the weight until it's gone," Southgate told the European Club Association's general assembly, as reported by Reuters.

  "It is one of those jobs where everybody has an opinion."

  On life after the England job, Southgate was relaxed about where his next move would be. Despite that, he made it clear that he wasn’t going to take any coaching job in the near future.

  "I am enjoying my life, so there is no rush. For 11 years I committed fully to the national federation," he said.

  “I won't coach in the next year for sure. I am certain of that. When you come out of a big role you need to give your body time, your mind time."

  Southgate has, in recent times, been linked with a move to the Premier League, with Manchester United's decision-makers having reportedly considered him as a possible replacement for Erik ten Hag.

  While it is unclear how his self-enforced break from working will impact that, he confirmed that he would be open on a return to domestic football as long as the role was right.

  "Club football? Depending on what role that is," Southgate said.

  "I have been fortunate to have worked with fantastic players. You got to have excitement, passion to go to work every day.

  One thing it seems like Southgate will not do, meanwhile, is work with another national team.

  "It is unlikely to be another national federation. England was from the heart," he said

• Stones relishing 'special' England moment after being handed Three Lions armband

  Lee Carsley revealed that John Stones will lead out England in their Nations League clash against Greece on Thursday, with Harry Kane set to start the encounter on the bench.

  Stones, who has made 81 caps for the Three Lions since his debut in 2014, will captain his nation for the first time at the start of a match. 

  During Gareth Southgate's tenure, only Kane (81) and Kyle Walker (70) made more appearances than Stones (68 - level with Jordan Pickford). 

  The Manchester City defender has become a mainstay in the England side in recent years, helping his nation to their two major tournament final appearances in consecutive European Championships.

  "It's everything I could have dreamed of as a kid. More for my family, to be able to see me walk out as England captain is a special moment," Stones said. 

  "One I can't thank Lee enough for. An incredible moment for me.

  "To be walking out with the armband on is an absolute honour and a moment I'll cherish forever."

  "It was a great conversation I was able to have with John to ask him to captain the team," Carsley added. 

  "It's a brilliant achievement, something he deserves with the amount of caps he's got, the level of professionalism he's shown, the example he is to young players."

  Carsley later confirmed Kane could still play a part against Greece and would be in the running to face Finland on Sunday.

  Kane, who marked his 100th England appearance with two goals in the Three Lions' 2-0 win over Finland last month, suffered an ankle injury in Bayern Munich's draw with Bayer Leverkusen in his final match before the international break.

  The 31-year-old has since trained away from the main group of players. 

  "Harry is nursing an injury, a small knock, something we won't take a chance with," said Carsley.

  The interim Three Lions boss was also asked about the role of Cole Palmer, with the Chelsea forward enjoying a fine start to the Premier League campaign. 

  Palmer has scored six goals in seven games in the league this term, four of which came in a stunning display against Brighton, becoming the first player in Premier League history to net four times before half-time in a single match. 

  The 22-year-old leads the Premier League for the most goal involvements this campaign (11), with only Bukayo Saka (27) creating more chances in the top flight this season than Palmer (23 - level with Andreas Pereira and Dwight McNeil). 

  Palmer was also recently named England's Men's Player of the Year for 2023-24, and Carsley expects him to carry on his impressive form in England's next two fixtures.

  "Cole is in fantastic form. He's carried that into this week," said Carsley. "Such an exciting player, a player I've worked with for four, five years now.

  "Cole, along with a lot of other attacking players who have put themselves into a great position to start the game."

• Windies women eye vital win against Bangladesh to keep semi-final hopes alive at T20 World Cup

  After an impressive six-wicket win over Scotland, West Indies women will seek to build on that momentum when they take on Bangladesh in a crucial encounter that could define their campaign at the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup in the United Arab Emirates.

  The Caribbean side will enter Thursday’s contest knowing that another win would keep their semi-final hopes alive, as they currently sit in third position on two points, two behind leaders South Africa and England on four points each.

  The first ball is 9:00am Jamaica time.

  West Indies’ victory over Scotland was a much-needed confidence boost for the team, especially after a crushing 10-wicket loss to South Africa in their opening match. The win not only lifted their spirits but also boosted their net run rate, a key factor in determining the semi-final spots should multiple teams finish level on points.

  Assistant coach Ryan Austin emphasized the Hayley Matthews-led team’s readiness to handle what promises to be a tricky challenge, as Bangladesh bowlers, particularly their spinners, have proven to be formidable opponents.

  “The team is pretty prepared. We obviously know that Bangladesh is basically a spin-based unit, but with our philosophies, we are more focused on what we can control. Having said that, we still have that element of power within our batting that could counter the spin as well,” Austin said in a pre-game press conference.

  

  “If you look at the wicket, they are playing pretty slow at the moment. South Africa today (Wednesday) actually had a good total on the wicket, and if you watch how they batted, they actually used their feet a lot to the spin. So we are looking to obviously go into the game with that sort of temperament mindset with respect to their spin bowling attack as well. Sharjah has almost kind of a two-paced kind of wicket because during the day it's very low and slow, but in the evenings it kind of changes and comes alive,” he added.

  Austin exuded confidence in his team’s batting prowess, with the likes of Matthews, Stafanie Taylor, Deandra Dottin, and Shemaine Campbelle expected to play pivotal roles, especially with the group being poised for a tight finish.

  Though those proverbial big guns are yet to really fire, Austin believes their true potential should come to the fore in Thursday’s game, as well as the decisive fixture against England. West Indies currently have a positive net run rate of 1.154, only bettered by leaders South Africa, who have 1.527.

  “If you look at how our group is set up, net run-rate is really going to be a big factor later down, especially, if we win both games against Bangladesh and England. So one of the things that we really have to look at is how we go about executing, especially in this game against Bangladesh. So our game plan is to at least probably both first and then try to get to our target as fast as possible,” Austin reasoned.