A creative coach who is no stranger to the limelight, Lee Carsley has a passion for attacking football and has even won a trophy for England. It’s no wonder he’s been handed the top job (for now), writes JACK GAUGHAN

Although he coaches in the shadows, out of the spotlight and out of sight of the public, the bright lights are not an entirely unfamiliar concept for Lee Carsley.

Nothing that will come up when he takes charge of England, on an interim basis during the autumn, can be more troublesome than one morning in Saipan. The lights were flashing a little faster then.

As fate would have it, it was Carsley’s turn to address the world’s press, just hours after Roy Keane collapsed with Mick McCarthy and unrest broke out in the Republic of Ireland training camp ahead of the 2002 World Cup.

Carsley was thrust into the spotlight and sat next to Jason McAteer, without any preparation.

He laughs about it now, saying the two were simply told to get on with it as the Irish world collapsed around them. As the half hours passed, it wasn’t exactly comfortable.

Although he has coached in the shadows, away from the spotlight and public scrutiny, the bright lights are not an entirely unfamiliar concept for Lee Carsley

As fate would have it, it was Carsley’s turn to man the world’s media, just hours after Roy Keane (left) collapsed with Mick McCarthy (right)

He has always seen himself as a development coach and in fact this role is no different

Perhaps the episode unwittingly played a part in the fact that coaching school never really appealed to a central midfielder who was at his peak during his 17-year career at Everton, alongside Thomas Gravesen in David Moyes’ team that finished fourth.

He has always seen himself as a development coach and, despite all the fuss surrounding the England team, this role, however long it lasts, is no different.

His job is not to develop players, but to develop a style of play that has characterised his three successful years as coach of the Under-21 team.

The opportunity to do so suits him perfectly and despite his growing reputation, Carsley is still the one setting up the cones at the start of his training sessions.

He likes the routine of setting up and planning the next hour, and he is also a down-to-earth coach who will never be able to completely abandon that side of his management.

He will be called Cars of Lee when the squad arrives next month for the Nations League match against Ireland. There is no manager or boss.

And there is a pedigree. By delivering the first piece of silverware for men in 39 years, without conceding a goal in the European Championship, he introduced an expansive style to an England team rarely, if ever, seen before.

Angel Gomes and Curtis Jones were two progressive midfielders in the No6 positions, a method that seemed alien to the seniors at this summer’s tournament. England barely played a ball backwards at the Under-21s edition.

Carsley’s (left) 17-year career saw its zenith at Everton in David Moyes’ team that finished fourth

By delivering the first piece of silverware for men in 39 years, without conceding a goal at the European Championship, he introduced an elaborate style

There were Angel Gomes and Curtis Jones (right) who operated as two progressive midfielders in the No. 6 positions

But he’s undoubtedly come a long way to get here: an audition for the most coveted position in the country.

When he was given a head start at Coventry in 2012 and 2013 and took over the role on a temporary basis, Carsley wondered if he could bluff his way to the top. He knew, however, that this would not last long.

Coventry play in League One and after making a good start as interim captain, he told Mail Sport that a half-time team talk against Swindon convinced him he was far from finished.

His team were one goal ahead, albeit against the odds. Carsley ran into the manager’s office at the Ricoh Arena and stood motionless, listening to his players bickering next to him.

He had no idea how to counter a formation that Swindon had fooled him with. He didn’t even know what shape they were playing.

“I knew it myself, at that point I was way off,” he mused. “I thought, ‘My God, I can’t figure it out.’

‘All it would have taken was one of them asking, “Well, what are they doing?” and I would have been screwed. I couldn’t have gone to the tactics board and shown them.

“I realized that if I wasn’t careful, I would push myself beyond my limits and the game would spit me out.”

When he was given a head start at Coventry and took on the role of interim manager in 2012 and 2013, Carsley wondered if he could bluff his way to the top

Eleven years later, he is a genuine and deserving candidate to succeed Gareth Southgate

He has taken snippets from everywhere and described his view of Pep Guardiola’s sessions as a glimpse behind the curtain at the end of The Wizard of Oz.

Coventry eventually lost 2-1 and the self-reflection of that story is partly why Carsley finds himself in this particular situation at this particular time.

Eleven years later, he is a legitimate candidate to succeed Gareth Southgate as leader of his country and become the man calling the shots, working under an FA that has shown a penchant for internal promotion.

Swindon made him think about the best way to approach coaching, which meant learning the trade properly and developing players at Brentford, Manchester City, Birmingham and later England in various guises.

He has taken bits and pieces from everywhere and describes peering into Pep Guardiola’s sessions as the equivalent of peeking behind the curtain at the end of the Wizard of Oz. He saw that there were no special tricks, just simple, to-the-point instructions.

Now he is one of the country’s leading development coaches, with FA technical director John McDermott a great admirer – such an admirer that they pushed harder than you might think to keep him after the Euros triumph.

Winning is one thing, but the way it was done over the course of three weeks in Georgia was another. This looked like a Carsley team, a style England want to identify with, and justified the millions spent on St George’s Park.

The game plan was front foot, brave on the ball and stoic at the back. Further back there was the intuitive Gomes, but also Anthony Gordon as a false nine.

At one point Cole Palmer was playing in deep midfield. Levi Colwill said he got the feeling he was a striker in possession.

There was an identity, fault lines through the midfield and a rotation in positioning. Tactically complex, it was proof that even with limited coaching time, English players can adapt to the brand of football played at the very highest level.

If Carsley can do it with teenagers, he can do it with seasoned professionals.

“This is probably the best football team I have ever played in, in terms of play and the combination of play around the penalty area,” said Gordon, the tournament’s top scorer.

“It’s really an elite level. For me, that’s Lee.”

Every answer from every player, regardless of the point being made, was the same: it was down to Carsley, the man who wore a trusty cap to protect him from the sun every session.

The name Lee Carsley is unlikely to resonate with a public who have failed to shake off suspicions of Southgate’s lack of elite experience. He was an FA man and so is Carsley after seven years with them.

Carsley is an FA man, but so is Didier Deschamps, who has done well in France

He is now one of the country’s leading development coaches, with FA technical director John McDermott a great admirer

The game plan was front foot, brave on the ball and stoic at the back. Further out was the intuitive Gomes, but also Anthony Gordon (pictured) as a false nine

But so does Didier Deschamps, who has done well in France. Lionel Scaloni tried his hand at Argentina U20 before winning the World Cup and Copa America.

Carsley’s journey is similar to that of Spaniard Luis de la Fuente. There is no universal definition of what makes a successful coach in international football, but there is something to be said for a man who has established positive relationships with emerging talent.

And someone whose football you drag along.