23 April 2020

England women's football boss Phil Neville to step down next summer

England women's manager Phil Neville will leave his role next summer after it was revealed he will not sign a new contract.

The 43 year-old was appointed the Lionesses boss in January 2018 and led them to fourth place at last year's World Cup.

England were knocked out by eventual champions USA in the semi-finals of last year's World Cup (PA Images)

Prior to that, the former Manchester United and Everton defender also took the national team to a first ever SheBelieves Cup title in 2019.

But the revelation that he will leave in 2021 comes after a run of poor performances which have seen England win just three games out of nine since the World Cup.

This included a disappointing showing at the 2020 SheBelieves Cup where they were beaten by both USA and Spain.

However, when the pressure was continuing to build on Neville, England star Nikita Parris called for the players to take responsibility.

After the SheBelieves Cup, she said: "Too many of us are living off the hype of the World Cup.

"We haven’t improved and we have to take responsibility. Phil has protected us for far too long and ultimately we have got to step up."

Due to the knock-on effect of the coronavirus pandemic, the 2021 Women's European Championships has now been moved to 2022, meaning Neville will miss out on leading out the hosts in a home tournament.

But he is still expected to take charge of Team GB at the Olympic Games in Tokyo next summer after the FA appointed him as the head coach of the side in June last year.

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