Former England boss Gareth Southgate has been rejected after reportedly submitting an “offer” to make a shock return to management with a national team.
Southgate has been out of work since deciding to give up his role as England‘s manager after his side were beaten by Spain in the Euro 2024 final.
The 54-year-old is the most successful England manager of this era, but he and his side came up short on the big occasion, losing in two finals.
While a free agent, Southgate has been heavily linked with a return to management and he was reportedly a target of Man Utd before they appointed Ruben Amorim to replace Erik ten Hag.
Towards the end of last year, Southgate poured cold water on reports suggesting a return to management is imminent, insisting he “won’t coach in the next year”.
“I won’t coach in the next year for sure, I’m certain of that,” Southgate said in October 2024.
“I need to give myself time to make good decisions. When you come out of a really big role you need to give your body time, you need to give your mind time.
“I’m enjoying my life, so there’s no rush. I’m fortunate that there are lots of opportunities presenting themselves.”
Despite this, a recent report by the Polish newspaper Przeglad Sportowy claimed Southgate has submitted his application to become the manager of their national team ahead of the 2026 World Cup, ‘personally expressing his desire to take over’.
Poland are searching for a new manager as Michal Probierz resigned in the aftermath of Robert Lewandowski claiming he would stop playing for his country if he remained in charge.
Now, the president of the Polish Football Association, Cezary Kulesza, has confirmed that he “received an offer” from Southgate to replace Probierz, but he turned him down for one key reason.
“We have received an offer to hire him, but we must remember one basic thing: no foreign coach will give us a guarantee that we will qualify for the World Cup,” Kulesza said.
“If he gave us such a guarantee, I would hire him immediately.”
Kulesza also used Fernando Santos as an example to back up his decision to snub Southgate, as the experienced boss had an unsuccessful stint in charge of Poland before guiding his country, Portugal, to huge success.
He added: “Fernando Santos is a perfect example. A successful coach, a big name, everyone applauded, and the verification was surprising and painful for all of us.”