Gareth Southgate promised to bring some “stability” to the England set-up on Wednesday after Sam Allardyce admitted an “error of judgement” was behind his shock exit as the national side`s manager.
Allardyce`s one-game career as England manager came to a humiliating end after just 67 days on Tuesday following controversial comments made to undercover reporters.
Southgate has been promoted to caretaker boss of the senior England side from his post as Under-21 manager.
The former England central defender will be in charge for the World Cup qualifier against Malta at Wembley on October 8, followed by matches against Slovenia, Scotland and a friendly with Spain.
“It`s obviously been a difficult situation for the FA (England`s governing Football Association) but it was important that there was some stability and continuity for everybody,” Southgate said in an FA statement.
“So, from my point of view, it was important to step forward and give us the best possible chance to win these games.”
Southgate added: “The focus now has to be on playing football, putting in good performances and getting results, starting with Malta at Wembley.
“These are four big games for us as a country, I`m looking forward to the challenge and I`m confident that we can get good results.”
Southgate said he hoped his experience of the England set-up would prove beneficial.
“The fact that I know so many of the support team and the players already is really important, given the time that we have to prepare for these matches,” he added.
“It`s a difficult circumstance for me, because we`ve lost two senior coaches (Roy Hodgson and Allardyce) in the last few months who have both been very good to me, so that complicates my feelings. I certainly wish them both all the best for the future.”Earlier, Allardyce told reporters outside his home in Bolton, northwest England on Wednesday that he regretted his conversation with the undercover team: “I think that on reflection it was a silly thing to do.
