Redknapp: Next England coach should be English

Tottenham manager Harry Redknapp said the next England coach should be English, and effectively offered himself as a candidate Tuesday if the Football Association decides to fire Fabio Capello.

The FA is to decide in two weeks whether to keep the Italian as coach after England's World Cup exit. Redknapp said he strongly believed the job should go to someone born in the country with experience in English football.

"This guy (Capello) has a fantastic record at club level," the 63-year-old Redknapp said. "But look, we've had a go with it now. When he finally moves on, in four years or whatever, surely there has to be a young guy or somebody in this country. Surely we have to find a manager from England, an English manager.

"I'm not talking about a Scottish manager or an Irish manager, I'm talking about an English manager because this is where we're from. This is our country."

Swedish coach Sven-Goran Eriksson led England to two World Cup quarterfinals. Capello and his team were eliminated in the round of 16 on Sunday, losing to Germany 4-1 - England's heaviest World Cup loss.

"I am English," Redknapp said. "Who wouldn't want to manage England? No one is ever going to turn that job down. If you're English you cannot not want to manage your country."