England consider Arsene Wenger swoop with Gareth Southgate to be handed interim post after Roy Hodgson quits

Hodgson announced his resignation within minutes of England’s embarrassing European Championship second-round defeat to Iceland on Monday night

Arsene Wenger has divided Arsenal fans in recent seasons but remains an attractive option for England (Getty)

Arsène Wenger, the Arsenal manager, is among the list of possible candidates to replace Roy Hodgson as England manager as the Football Association undergo a global hunt for his successor.

Hodgson announced his resignation within minutes of England’s Euro 2016 second-round defeat to Iceland on Monday night, sparking bookmakers to speculate on who may fill his post.

The Independent understands that the FA’s three-man panel – made up of chief executive Martin Glenn, technical director Dan Ashworth and vice-chairman David Gill – are exploring the possibility of approaching Wenger.

The Frenchman has one year still to run on his contract at the Emirates and is known to have been approached several times before by England. With Wenger unlikely to leave Arsenal before next summer, it presents the likelihood of the FA looking for an interim manager to take charge in the short term.

Gareth Southgate, the England Under-21s head coach, is well positioned to step up to senior duty for the time being with Glenn admitting during a hastily organised press conference on Tuesday that no “perfect” English candidates exist.

With the qualifying campaign for the 2018 World Cup in Russia set to commence this autumn, time is of the essence for England but there is a feeling that Southgate is sufficiently qualified to bridge the gap for 12 months.

“If it did [affect qualification], it would be a wrong decision,” Glenn said on Tuesday. “It's a hypothetical. If you said you were going to wait a year, a lot of things can happen in a year which may undo your plans.

“So what I am saying is that it is a hypothetical, I wouldn't rule it out but it would be less likely.

“Arsène Wenger has been here since 1996,” Glenn added. “Has Arsène got a fantastic understanding of the Premier League, of English players, of the English media, of the expectations of England? Absolutely. So would you rule him out? Probably not, but he might not want it.”