LEE CARSLEY admits he will not sing God Save the King before his England side face the Republic of Ireland on Saturday.
The Three Lions’ interim boss, who played 40 times for the Republic, says he has never sung national anthems as a player with the Irish or as the England Under-21 manager.
Birmingham-born Carsley takes charge of England’s senior team for the first of a six-match Nations League campaign, which will serve as an audition for the full-time job.
But asked whether he would belt out the national anthem, Carsley said: “This is something I always struggled with when I was playing for Ireland.
“The gap between your warm-up, your coming on to the pitch and the delay with the anthems . . . it’s something that I have never done.
“I was always really focused on the game and my first actions.
“I found that in that period I was wary about my mind wandering off.”
Former boss Gareth Southgate always roared the anthem and asked his players to do the same.
But Carsley, 50, added: “I was really focused on the football and I have taken that into coaching.
“We had the national anthem with the Under-21s also and I am in a zone at that point.
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“I am thinking about how the opposition are going to set up and our first actions within the game.
“I fully respect both anthems and understand how much they mean to both countries.
“It’s something I am really respectful of.”
Carsley’s insistence on not singing God Save the King — hugely unpopular with many Irish people — will prove controversial to some England fans.
A hostile reception has been promised for Carsley — as well as Declan Rice, who played three times for Ireland’s senior team as a teenager, and ex-Ireland Under-21 player Jack Grealish.
Both England stars are set to face Ireland in an away match for the first time.
