And the wonderful thing is, it really couldn't happen to a better bloke.
Not nicer, because that buys into the narrative of Gareth Southgate as Mr Nice Guy, the yes man, the company man, all things to all men, and he's certainly not that.
What he is, however, is a good man, because he's dead straight, and he's responsible and he's sensible and he thinks about the picture wider than his own.
Manager Gareth Southgate is the best thing that has happened to English football in decades
And he's also the best man because of what his success - and it is success, because the last manager to take England this far in consecutive major tournaments was Sir Alf Ramsey in 1968 - says about English football.
Namely, that the manager should be from here, with an understanding of this country's football culture, and if that means appointing a young coach, or a coach who hasn't had the career of Pep Guardiola, then we shouldn't be afraid as long as he's the right man.
Southgate is, quite simply, the best thing to happen to English football in decades. And guess what? He knows more about it than you, or me, or the 60million England managers out there questioning his every judgment call. He's got so much more right than he's got wrong.
Southgate has got so much more right than he's got wrong during his time with the Three Lions
There is a scene in 24 Hour Party People, Michael Winterbottom's film about Factory Records, in which Steve Coogan, as owner Tony Wilson, narrates the way the Hacienda nightclub changed Britain's popular culture.
'Suddenly, everything came together. The music, the venue, the dancing, the city. I was proved right - Manchester was like renaissance Florence.
'Mike Pickering was right - you don't need bands in a club. Shaun Ryder was right, New Order were right. We all came together. Everyone came to the Hacienda. It was our cathedral.'
And though he wouldn't shout it, Southgate was right, too. He was right about Kalvin Phillips. He was right about Jack Grealish. He was right about Bukayo Saka. He was right about Harry Maguire. He was right about Harry Kane.
His squad is built on the cornerstones of men who have been doubted, like Raheem Sterling (L)
He was right about three at the back, about guarding midfielders, about not resting players on yellow cards, about taking the knee, about reconnecting with the country, about discipline.
On all of these topics, and a hundred tiny ones that may seem irrelevant but are not, he was the voice of reason and insight. He just gets it. And he has from the start.
Southgate treats players like adults, and they make adult decisions in response. This is his way.
It is why he promotes youth faster than any predecessor, while maintaining a core of seniors who have his unswerving support. Kane, Maguire, Raheem Sterling, even Jordan Henderson, this squad is built on the cornerstones of men who have been doubted without, but never within.
'In any team there's a group that drive and I don't think you can underestimate their importance,' Southgate said. 'When challenges are made, when there's a need to dig in, when things are happening around the camp, that core group is key.
'The lads who were with us in Russia, like Kieran Trippier, like Jordan Pickford, they've been through these experiences together and pass that on to the younger group like tribal elders.
'It's not just about talent. Team building is so much more: relationships and the strength of those bonds. We talked in the autumn about how that group had allowed a younger group to come in and have a profile.
'The newer players recognise that and appreciate the way those older guys made them feel welcome. I loved some of the reaction on the bench when Jordan scored last night, because you could see the younger players were delighted for him.
'There's a lovely moment with Jude Bellingham, that shows you what Jordan brings to our environment. He's really accepted that this was going to be a difficult and different challenge but he's totally thrown himself into it.
'When I spoke with him a few weeks ahead of the first training camp, we talked through this scenario, and he was adamant he just wanted to be part of it and to contribute in any way he could. It's brilliant for him he's had a moment like Saturday night. He's been crucial around the camp with what we're doing.'
Team building is about relationships, as
