Anthony Barry's ambition and thirst for knowledge a perfect fit for England

The 38-year-old former Ireland coach, who was also Thomas Tuchel's assistant at Chelsea and Bayern, is huge talent and respected by players

SHORT STAY: Republic of Ireland manager Stephen Kenny with coach Anthony Barry during the World Cup 2022 qualifier with Serbia. Photo by Harry Murphy/Sportsfile

For all that turning to a foreigner again is a tacit admission by the Football Association that something is wrong with its homegrown production line, it is at least positive that appointing Thomas Tuchel as England manager means that one of the sharpest young English coaches will be working within the national setup.

Those who studied alongside Anthony Barry on the FA’s Pro Licence course will not be surprised that Tuchel has asked him to be his No 2. Barry graduated with top marks and his dissertation, The undervalued set piece, for which he and his co-authors analysed 16,380 throw-ins, caught the eye. Frank Lampard, who shared a classroom alongside the Liverpudlian, was impressed enough to ask him to join his backroom staff at Chelsea in 2020.