Reply to: Disgrace

[AtW]

Seems to me Sven is just milking whoever is picking up the huge bill for his "work".

[stackpole]

If it's got to be British, it's got to be Taylor. He had a great record at under-21 level with several of the current full England players.

McLaren is the only other one it might be.

Wendigo and Wageslave have got it right about good club managers. Being an international manager is not the same, so there go Allardyce, O'Neill and Curbs, but not Taylor.

Trevor Brooking would be totally crap, as would Gary Lineker. Bryan Robson isn't a good manager - he'll take WBA down this season.

Roy Hodgson? I never understood how he got into the frame in the first place.

[Lucifer Box]

Big Ron. He'll keep those uppity darkies in line.

[WageSlave]

WageSlave, I don't fancy any of those. The trouble is, good club managers rarely make good international managers. The jobs are very different.

Buggered if I have any ready alternatives though.

Wendigo, you speak for us both, and that's worrying. There aren't any exceptional English managers at the moment. The talented guys we do have lack top flight experience....

[shaunbhoy]

Give it to Jackie Charlton. He has tons of relevant experience as both player and manager and is English to boot.

[wendigo100]

WageSlave, I don't fancy any of those. The trouble is, good club managers rarely make good international managers. The jobs are very different.

Buggered if I have any ready alternatives though.

[WageSlave]

The Contenders

From the Mail...

Sportsmail identifies the contenders to take over from Sven, but could the new man get Beckham and the poster boys to perform?
STEVE McCLAREN
FOR... Bright coach, No 2 to Fergie during Manchester United's treble-winning season, decent record at Middlesbrough. Wants the job.
AGAINST... Part of Sven's coaching set-up, and if he's that good, why didn't he organise a team to avoid defeat in Belfast? Lack of experience at managing (he's in his first job), never played international football. ODDS: 6/4
ALAN CURBISHLEY
FOR... Brilliant success at a small club, just like Allardyce. Once a cultured midfielder who could show Lampard and Gerrard what they're doing wrong. Hasn't been part of Sven's coaching farce. He'd be cheap.
AGAINST... Not managed in Europe or won a trophy. Would the public accept the manager of Charlton Athletic running the national side? ODDS: 11/2
SAM ALLARDYCE
FOR... Amazing success at Bolton, tactically astute and gets over and above from his players. Well, would you say no to him?
AGAINST... Not managed in Europe (until next week), days when managers from unfashionable clubs got the England job surely finished. Would Beckham and the poster boys accept him? ODDS: 10/1
MARTIN O'NEILL
FOR... European Cup and League Championship-winning player, won trophies as a manager at Leicester and Celtic, where he made the UEFA Cup Final, progressed regularly in the Champions League and won two titles, despite limited resources. Outstanding organiser and motivator.
AGAINST... Personal problems that saw an enforced departure from Celtic. Not an Englishman. Perceived long ball style (but that doesn't do Jose Mourinho any harm). ODDS: 12/1
PETER TAYLOR
FOR... Great record at Under 21 level - one defeat in 23 games. Highly thought of at the FA, made Beckham captain during a previous one-game caretaker stint.
AGAINST... Hopeless replacement for O'Neill at Leicester and was sacked, limited top-level experience. Gave Seth Johnson an England cap in his previous one-game caretaker stint. ODDS: 28/1
BRYAN ROBSON
FOR... Captain Marvel, decorated England hero and now proving he can do the job at West Brom after being poorly treated at Middlesbrough and Bradford. Top coaching badges.
AGAINST... Still rebuilding his reputation after spell when he couldn't get a job, he needed Terry Venables to hold his hand at The Riverside. He wasn't wanted by Nigeria. ODDS: 16/1
SIR TREVOR BROOKING
FOR... Great international pedigree as a player with 44 caps, currently the FA's Technical Director and handily placed to step in as caretaker, a role he once successfully performed at his beloved West Ham. Players respect him.
AGAINST... Limited managerial experience, how tough would he be with the poster boys? Could he do it without Motty? ODDS: 200/1
GARY LINEKER
FOR... Germany gave the job to Klinsmann, Holland appointed Van Basten. It's trendy to go for the golden player of a generation. Is it our turn?
AGAINST... Never been in a dug-out (apart from when he was substituted in his final England game by Graham Taylor). He's too happy on his comfy couch at the Beeb. Didn't we try the golden player option with Keegan? ODDS: 200/1

As a wild card, how about Roy Hodgson? He has considerable European experience (including managing Inter Milan) and has managed International sides (Switzerland in a WC and U.A.E.).
He has a contract to manage Finland, but what does a contract mean in football today?

[AlfredJPruffock]

His wife will have to go back to singing to support him.

Singing!

For a dreadful moment Wendigo I thought you said "swinging"" rather than "singing."

Not sure what would be most odious though ..

[wendigo100]

What would Beckham have to do to get dropped? If he got dropped it might make the poncey tw@t realise that he is not indispensable and get him to start playing. Personally I have never thought he was world class. Yes he can put a good cross in and yes he used to have a high work rate. Now he is just a marketing gimmick.

His wife will have to go back to singing to support him.

Singing!

[BoredBloke]

What would Beckham have to do to get dropped? If he got dropped it might make the poncey tw@t realise that he is not indispensable and get him to start playing. Personally I have never thought he was world class. Yes he can put a good cross in and yes he used to have a high work rate. Now he is just a marketing gimmick.

[WageSlave]

Big Sam for England

From the BBC. Sam Allardyce wants the England job. He's a good manager, and despite appearances, advocates the latest thinking. My only concern is that he hasn't experienced European competition.

Bolton manager Sam Allardyce wants to succeed Sven-Goran Eriksson when he leaves his job as England boss, according to his agent.
The Swede is under pressure after England's shock World Cup qualifying defeat against Northern Ireland.

And agent Mark Curtis said: "Sam wants the job whenever Sven leaves - and the Bolton chairman knows it."

Bolton chairman Phil Gartside is a prominent member of the Football Association board.

And Allardyce's former right-hand man at Bolton, Derby boss Phil Brown, also backed his claims to succeed Eriksson.

He said: "There would be no better man to replace Eriksson. Sam would have no problems dropping big-name players.

"He has proved he can handle the superstars. He has worked with some of the best at Bolton, like Jay-Jay Okocha, Fernando Hierro and Ivan Campo. He has left them all out at some time.

"Sam was always ahead of his time. He was using technology long before other managers and could give you the lowdown on every team in the league and every individual player."

[WageSlave]

Where is Terry Venables?

Probably flogging watches down an alley somewhere
To be honest, I don't think he was the greatest England Manager. I've always had a lot of time for Hoddle (despite his many faults), given that he really started the Chelsea revolution.

Hargreaves is okay for a specific role; midfield donkey. He is a safe player, experience of playing German football, no thrills or added glamour. Sometimes you need that. Maybe we would be better off starting Hargreaves rather than playing both Gerrard and Lampard. Squeezing both into identical roles means neither is performing to their expected standard.

[Chico]

Whats the big dealwith Owen Hargreaves anyway? Whats the fixation with 4-5-1? Whose bedroom was Sven sneaking into last night? Where is Terry Venables?

[WageSlave]

And when it came to substitutions, who was the only midfield player not to be taken off?

Agree, the subs were a joke. First half I thought Wright-Phillips was our liveliest player, full of running and passion. Taken off. He then takes off Gerrard only to send on Hargreaves a few minutes later?! Owen was a gamble, clearly not match fit but always capable of stealing a goal.

[wendigo100]

I'll tell you what the problem is. David Beckham.

A coach should not be mucking around with his team to try and accommodate one man who is no longer good enough to be in it, and hasn't been for over a year.

What next, stick him in goal?

I suspect the rest of the players are privately p1ssed off with this, from Rooney, who is forced to play way out of position, to the likes of Parker and Hargreaves, who are the proper holding players for that role.

Gerrard almost said it afterwards - out on the pitch they didn't know what they were supposed to be doing. And when it came to substitutions, who was the only midfield player not to be taken off?

This is the best set of players I can remember England having, and it won't last forever. I'd bite the bullet and fire Sven now, and I've never said that about an England coach before. Several teams have done well in world cups after appointing a new coach to stir things up with less than a year to go.