Harry Redknapp has tipped his nephew Frank Lampard as an ideal contender to take charge of the England national team in the future. The 79-year-old former West Ham United, Tottenham, and Portsmouth manager believes the Football Association should look domestically once Thomas Tuchel's time in charge concludes, insisting that Lampard possesses every credential required to take on the so-called "impossible job."
Speaking to Henry Winter for FourFourTwo, Redknapp stated that he wants the FA to "go English" when appointing their next permanent boss, identifying Newcastle's Eddie Howe and Lampard as standout candidates. Redknapp pointed to Lampard's extensive playing pedigree, with the Chelsea icon having earned 106 caps before his international retirement in 2014 after starting his career under Redknapp at West Ham. Redknapp stressed that his nephew has "been there and done it all" on the biggest stages, noting his deep understanding of tournament football across multiple World Cups and European Championships.
Lampard is currently managing Coventry City, having guided the Sky Blues back to the Premier League by capturing the Championship title last season to end the club's 25-year absence from the top tier. While Redknapp is determined to see him keep Coventry up following a difficult start to the campaign, he also vented his frustration at the lack of chances granted to domestic tacticians. An English coach has never won the Premier League title, with Redknapp himself remaining the last Englishman to lift the FA Cup with Portsmouth in 2008, while Howe is the only English manager since 2004 to win the EFL Cup courtesy of Newcastle's victory last year.
At present, Lampard stands alongside Ipswich manager Gary O'Neil and Manchester United's Michael Carrick—who was also given his senior break by Redknapp at West Ham—as the only three English bosses operating in the Premier League. Tuchel, who signed a two-year contract extension earlier this year, is just the third overseas manager to lead the Three Lions after Sven-Goran Eriksson and Fabio Capello. However, Redknapp is confident that after the German's era ends, England will once again turn to homegrown managers who have proven themselves at the highest levels of the game.