If a four-game audition does now conclude with the appointment of Gareth Southgate as England's manager, it will not be such a huge departure from the past.
A young English coach is far from uncharted territory for the Football Association. The search for a successor to Terry Venables might have included a tentative approach to Manchester United, for plain old Alex Ferguson as he was then, but eventually concluded with Glenn Hoddle.
While Steve McClaren was identified as the replacement for Sven Goran Eriksson, even if it only came after a bungled attempt to lure Luiz Felipe Scolari from Portugal.