IT is often said that the next England manager is the complete opposite of the one that has just departed. In that case, Gareth Southgate has to have an excellent chance of succeeding Sam Allardyce on a permanent basis.

Trustworthy, erudite and seemingly beyond temptation, Southgate is everything that Allardyce is not. If the Football Association want a safe pair of hands and a reliable figurehead in the wake of Allardyce’s antics, they could do much worse than appoint the former Middlesbrough manager on a full-time contract.

Southgate might not want the job of course, but the fact he has agreed to step up for the next four matches suggests he is more open to the suggestion of taking over permanently than he was when his candidature was first discussed in the immediate aftermath of this summer’s European Championships.

There will be plenty who claim he is not qualified for the post, but when the leading domestic competition comes from Alan Pardew, Steve Bruce and Eddie Howe, his credentials should not be dismissed too lightly.

He should certainly not be passed over because of his failure to keep Middlesbrough in the Premier League in his first managerial post. By Steve Gibson’s own admission, Southgate was promoted too high, too soon, and the former centre-half was also forced to carry the can for some poor recruitment at a time when Boro were beginning to look to scale back their spending.

Following his dismissal from the Riverside, Southgate has taken on a number of different roles at the FA, with his spell in charge of the Under-21s starting in August 2013. He led the Under-21s to the 2015 European Championships, where they were knocked out at the group stage, and has also guided his side to next summer’s European finals in Poland.

Those who have worked with him claim he has improved immeasurably during his time with the Under-21s, particularly when it comes to tactics and man management. Would he be strong enough to deal with the egos in the England senior squad? There is only one way to find out.

If nothing else, Southgate would restore a much-needed sense of gravitas and decency to the role of England manager. Starting with the home qualifier against Malta a week on Saturday, he has four games in which to prove his worth.