OK, Aunty reckons the FA's shortlist includes the "Special One", Fabio Capello, Martin O'Neill, Marcello Lippi & Jürgen Klinsmann, although the latest article on the site (backed up by The Times) hints at all sorts of differences of opinion! ;) Meanwhile, Simon Barnes, also in today's Times, enters a special plea for the Special One...

For the record, I wanted Martin O'Neill to get the job first time round, but the stupid buggers at the FA plumped for McClaren. I'd still like to see him given the chance, but it seems he's committed to the Villa job! :(

P.S. The topic description should've been longer than the one which actually appears on the front page. It should have read "[...] Everyone else seems to be...

I'm not sure where I stand on this ( a typical fence sitter, me :rolleyes: ) One thing I'm certain off: there ain't an English man I'd trust to do the job! :eek Martin O'Neill doesn't want it ( I think he's taken his ball home, though I can understand him not wanting to leave Villa. :hat ) Klinsmann shouldn't get it if he's not prepared to up sticks from California, or wherever he lives. Would the "Special One" be able to make silk purses out of sow's ears? :thought We have a few good players but a helluva lot of mediocre ones and he'll not be able to go out and buy better. :eek I don't really know enough about Lippi or Capello, apart from what's in the public domain and wonder if they have any concept of what being an England manager involves. :eek

One thing I have no doubt about. Barwick and his cast of misfits better get it right this time and make bloody sure the ones on the shortlist do actually want the job. Pity we can't replace them as well! :guns

California! Martin Samuel had a few choice words to say about that last week. ;)

Re O'Neill, interesting letter in response to another Samuel column (primarily about FA dithering...!) from someone from my home town:

I see there was yet another plug for Martin O'Neill in this article with its reference to an apparently commendable haul of trophies. The fact is that his three league titles and four of his cups were routine triumphs for Celtic in the (two team) Scottish League. His League Cup wins at Leicester were genuinely impressive achievements, but apart from that his record is nothing special and certainly not worthy of any particular push to make him England manager.

Anthony K, Middlesbrough

If he's Barwick's choice, we'll have to hope so... :rolleyes:

I very much doubt it!

The Special One apparently does! Can't think why! And the cull has already started... in the lower echelons... (worth looking at for the letters)! :rolleyes: I couldn't agree more with that last sentiment!

Not even 'Arry R, whose team has just beaten Villa 3-1 at Villa Park? He at least seems to have something of record for making silk purses out of sows' ears... ;) THen he went & got himself arrested... That said, this was one of the (not entirely literate) replies to Samuel's "Dithering FA" piece:

I agree with you martin, the FA need to act now and get that world class manager that would take the England team to greater heights..make England mentioned in the same sentence with other european and world greats. If they mess it up again, we are sure going to end up with the likes of harry redknapp, alan shearer (never coached before) or any other English manager. No offence intended, but how can a manager who cant even coach and inspire his players to win DOMESTIC trophies, let alone do well in EUROPE? Mind you he sees them everday and play at least 38 games a season?...go for the best that will curl the egos

Sam P, London

* He doesn't exactly stick his head above the parapet by offering a name to "curl the egos", either... :rolleyes:

Arsène doesn't appear to agree with "Sam P, London"

Wenger urges FA to ignore claims of Special One
David Hytner
Saturday December 8, 2007
The Guardian

Arsène Wenger has advised Brian Barwick to ignore the clamour for Jose Mourinho and appoint an English successor to Steve McClaren as the national team coach. The Arsenal manager considers himself an adopted Englishman and he is bemused that a country which he considers to be "very nationalistic" should be keen to embrace the Portuguese Mourinho or the Italian Fabio Capello.
"It is like you go to war and you say 'now we choose a general from Portugal or a general from Italy to lead our army'," said Wenger. "Would that idea cross your mind? Never."

Wenger met Barwick, the Football Association chief executive, on Thursday, having been asked for his input into the process of selecting McClaren's replacement. He refused to break confidences about the talks but he made his views crystal clear about the imperative for the new man to be English. And he insisted that there were at least half a dozen attractive candidates for Barwick to pursue.
"You have [Harry] Redknapp, [Alan] Curbishley, [Steve] Coppell, [Gareth] Southgate, [Stuart] Pearce, [Sam] Allardyce; you have plenty," he said. "But you do not rate them enough. Give them a chance.

"I do not understand your logic because you want people to represent the national qualities. Why do you go for a foreign guy? You are very nationalistic, you want the English national team to do well and suddenly, it's 'we want a Portuguese or an Italian to represent our national qualities'. I believe that you have to choose an Englishman who represents the country."

Wenger sought to make the distinction between his vision for the international game and club football, which is not bound by any rules on nationality nor, in his view, should it be. "A club is not a national item, a club represents the values of a club and that is where the difference is," he said. "The national team does not play with a Portuguese player or an Italian player so why should suddenly the leader just be foreign? The club is open to the world and the national team is representing the country. A national competition is only for people born inside the country; a club competition is for people born anywhere. I give you the example of Ryan Giggs. How many World Cups did Giggs play? Zero. Was Giggs one of the best players in the world? Yes. He has chosen to play for Wales. Therefore there is justice for these kinds of people. They can play with the best players in the world inside the club."

Wenger has only two English players in his first-team squad - Theo Walcott and Justin Hoyte - and has frequently stood accused of blocking the development of English players which, it has been argued, has in turn hurt the national team.

"I have said many times that from 1966 to 1996 we had no foreigners [in England] and you didn't win any more or any less," he said. "You cannot want the best league in the world and only play English players. It is not my responsibility that the English national team does well. I am happy if they do well but it is not my first priority or responsibility."

* Trouble is, none of the ones Arsène mentions has a proven track record in international football, except Pearce with the U21's and I'd prefer him to stay with them and get more experience under his belt. :hat GS has much to do at Boro and likewise SA at Newcastle, Curbs and Cops seem a bit low profile and I think 'Arry scuppered his chances. :eek As for 'giving them a chance'. :eek We did that last time and look where it got us, I'm not sure TPTB are willing to risk it again. :rolleyes:

Precisely! :rolleyes: But...

Mourinho rules out England job

Eurosport - Mon, 10 Dec 18:57:00 2007

Former Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho ruled himself out for the vacant job as England coach. "After deep and serious thinking I decided to exclude myself from being England manager despite it being a fantastic position for me," Mourinho said in a statement published on the website of Gestifute, his Portuguese agents.

England began the search for a coach following Steve McClaren's sacking after last month's failure to qualify for Euro 2008. Captain of England John Terry said last week that Mourinho, his former manager at Chelsea, would be the best choice to replace McClaren, saying the Portuguese "could make a big difference". But Mourinho thought otherwise, even though his representatives had contact with the Football Association after McClaren's departure.

"I'm sure the FA will hire a great manager, one able to place the team back where it belongs," Mourinho said in the statement. "I reiterate my respect for English football and, after three years in England, I firmly believe the England squad will soon be back to their usual great results."

Mourinho has been resting at home in Setúbal since leaving Chelsea by mutual consent in September. He has given no indication of his next career move. McClaren replaced Sven-Göran Eriksson after last year's World Cup finals in Germany, but his reign was doomed after England lost 3-2 to Croatia at Wembley and failed to qualify for Euro 2008 in Austria and Switzerland.

FA chief executive, Brian Barwick, and head of football development, Trevor Brooking, have been charged with finding a new manager and have been canvassing opinion from leading figures in the game. Mourinho had been one of the three favourites, along with Italian frontrunner, Fabio Capello, and his compatriot, Marcello Lippi, who won the 2006 World Cup with Italy.

Capello has expressed an interest in the job while Lippi told BBC sport on Monday he had had "no contact at all" with the FA. Other names in the frame include former Germany striker and World Cup coach, Juergen Klinsmann, Aston Villa manager, Martin O'Neill, and former England forward, Alan Shearer.

Reuters

* The smart money now seems to be on his landing a job with AC Milan... :(

I think they should camp on O'Neill's doorstep until he gives in but I doubt he even would if they went to those extreme lengths. They must have really pissed him off last time. :angry1 Out of the others Lippi would probably be my first choice - bin there done that, even if he is a bit defensive minded. Then Capello, but not Klingsman and definitely not Shearer. :eek

Call me a cynic, but I reckon he's been angling for that all along. To be fair to the man I think he likes the day-to-day running of a team and being hands-on with players, rather than seeing them for the shorter lengths of time as an International manager.

* Good job we're interested in this! :eek Nob'dy else appears to be. :guns

It looks as though it's gonna be Capello.

Cynic! :innocent But that makes two of us! ;) And to be honest, I couldn;t really see him in the role. Most of the articles I read were suggesting that he was using the reported FA interest to force the likes of AC Milan & Real Madrid to break cover, yet he indignantly & vehemently denied that at the weekend...! :rolleyes:

I'd noticed! Pity! :( I thought at least MJN & ILMJN would put in an appearance... :huh:

Impossible to escape that particular headline this morning, even in the free sheets! And the Beeb has jumped on the bandwagon, too. Trevor Steven, however, the ex-England player & now the footie commentator for City A.M., a business free sheet distributed only in the City, is distinctly unimpressed:

[...] For a start, Capello has never managed at international level. He may have an impressive CV decorated with silverware from Italian, Spanish and European club football, but international management is a totally different job. It's about making an impact over a few days. I know the same accusation could have been levelled at José Mourinho - the previous favourite before he withdrew at the weekend - but at least the Portuguese had an in-depth knowledge of our domestic game amassed durin g more than three years in charge at Chelsea.

Capello has never had anything to do with British football. The style of the English player is not something that Capello has dealt with. He doesn't speak the language very well, either. At that level, the job is to motivate - how can you pass on motivation? [...]

He also mentions Lippi, about whom he has similar reservations (though he, at least, has managed at international level & even won the WC!), but doesn't offer the name of any other likely candidate. We can but hope that, assuming it is Capello, with Franco Baldini, an assistant at Roma & Real &, apparently an English-speaker ([iThe Times[/i]), & Gianfranco Zola potentially on board, as more sources than the Beeb are suggesting, he'll stand a chance of pulling the FA's chestnuts out of the fire! And let's face it, whoever is chosen isn't going to meet with universal approval... :thought

Yes, I know the papers are full... Some of our players better look to their laurels or they'll be on gardening leave. ;)

No one's safe from Capello... Beckham may get century but even Terry may face axe
EXCLUSIVE By NEIL ASHTON

If David Beckham has been worrying about winning his 100th England cap since hearing the words 'Fabio Capello' and 'England' in the same sentence, he can sleep easy. Injury or catastrophic loss of form permitting, the LA Galaxy midfielder will walk out at Wembley on February 6 to clock up a century of appearances during England's friendly against Switzerland, Sportsmail can reveal. Having initially frozen Beckham out at Real Madrid over concerns about the distractions of his commercial activities, Capello was impressed by the way he knuckled down, worked hard and forced his way back into the side.

But if Beckham would be safe under Capello, who is the overwhelming favourite to succeed Steve McClaren, other big names have no such security — not John Terry, not Frank Lampard, not Steven Gerrard and certainly not Michael Owen.

Capello is flying to London this afternoon. He is due to meet FA chief executive Brian Barwick for dinner this evening and will outline his plans for the 2010 World Cup tomorrow morning. A morning may not be enough for Capello, but the former Real Madrid manager is eager to get to work.

According to those closest to him, there will be surprises in the squad for England's friendly against Switzerland. No one in the team that surrendered so meekly over 12 Euro 2008 qualifiers is safe.

"The one thing Capello has noticed in the England team is that there are only three or four personalities," revealed a close friend yesterday. "He is fascinated by the talented players like Wayne Rooney, but he wants them to express themselves. There are one or two big names in the dressing room that he really is not sure about. If Lampard and Gerrard cannot play together under him, he will simply drop one or both of them. There will be casualties, for sure."

Capello is convinced England's players have talent to compete at the highest level and even believes they are on a par with world champions Italy. So why couldn't McClaren tap into that rich source of talent? Capello was said to have been astonished when he saw a picture of McClaren, always eager to please, flashing his pearly whites for the cameras when he rugby tackled England skipper Terry on the artificial surface in Moscow last month.

The Italian, who has managed Real Madrid, Juventus, AC Milan and Roma during a hugely-successful managerial career, is not here to make friends. He will coach the team himself but the players can expect little dialogue. He will patrol the perimeter of the pitch during his notoriously intense training sessions, form his opinions and then post the team on the dressing room wall an hour or so before kick-off. Simple as that. Capello does not have time for disgruntled, disaffected or disillusioned players and it will be left to Franco Baldini, his trusted lieutenant, to explain why they have been omitted.

"The Italian national team has a mentality that England don't possess," continued the source. "That will change under Capello, everyone can be sure of that. Life is simple for Capello's players. Play well and you are in the team. Play badly and you are out. It is an easy choice. "Don't worry, they will soon find that out."

There will be no pussy-footing around with the £130,000-a-week footballers who failed to qualify for Euro 2008 under McClaren's weakwilled management. Not a chance.

Capello, armed with a c.v. boasting seven league titles in four cities and a Champions League triumph with Milan, will mean business when he arrives in London from his Swiss home (one of four dotted around Europe).

Dressed in his sponsored RH+ spectacles, Armani suit (Giorgio sends them direct from the factory, 'gratis Fabio') and a pair of finest black, Italian leather shoes, Capello has the class to carry it off. From the moment he intimated that he wanted the England job on November 22, he has been studying England's footballers in the finest detail.

Forty years of failure have ensured that the future of English football will be in Capello's hands when he is presented with a contract worth £4.5m a year and he is determined to lead from the front.

There will also be increased tactical responsibilities under the new regime. Capello prefers zonal marking, as opposed to the man-to-man system so prevalent in the Premiership, but he will encourage an expansive approach.

Those closest to him reveal that he became disillusioned with life in La Liga during his second spell with Real Madrid last season. He was appalled by the dives, the cheats and cynical side of the game in Spain.

From afar, he has always respected England's players for their honesty and his friends claim he has been revitalised by the six-month break from football.

Like his predecessor at Soho Square, he rarely reads the newspapers, but the FA's communications department can put their feet up for the next two years. Laura, his wife of 40 years, reads every word and has been known to set the record straight from time to time. There are no skeletons in Capello's closet — Laura details his every move in the same meticulous manner as her husband — and he always presents the perfect family image.

As for his views on the England WAGs, don't even go there. :eek

*The parts I have placed in italics I found quite interesting, if he gets the job it will be a learning curve for all - including the supporters.
** I'm dining out tonight with my friends from badminton so will catch up on any further developments tomorrow. :xmas5

Interesting indeed! Thanks for posting! :xmas5 It seems almost a racing certainty now that he'll get it. This extract from the back page story in today's Times reflects an interesting reaction to the impending appointment:

[...]Capello is expected to be a little friendlier [to the press] when he is finally paraded before the media, probably on Monday, and he is likely to find a few words for those former England players – Gareth Southgate, Tony Adams and Paul Ince – who expressed disapproval of his appointment yesterday.

Southgate, the Middlesbrough manager, said that everyone involved with the national team should be English, while Adams, the Portsmouth coach, said: “I’m a massive admirer of his, but I just wanted an Englishman to take the team forward.”

At least Capello’s grasp of English is better than had been thought. The majority of his meeting with Barwick and Brooking on Wednesday was conducted in English, dispelling the fears expressed by Rafael Benítez, the Liverpool manager. “Capello is a great manager,” Benítez said. “He is a winner. The one thing he will need to do is improve his English. When I came to Liverpool from Valencia, I found it very hard at first. The most difficult time is in the dressing-room at half-time because that is a difficult time for any manager.” By the sound of things, Capello will not leave too much open to interpretation.

I quite enjoy reading the readers' comments that appear after articles like that one. This one caught my eye:

Gareth Southgate, Paul Ince and Tony Adams voice "dissapproval" over Capello's appointment?? 16th place in the prem after in inheriting a decent team, no disrespect to Gareth as a person but I have plenty for his professional opinion. Ince's CV consists of avoiding relegation with Macclesfield by cutting out the happy meals in the players' diets, and Adams had one dodgy stint at Wycombe. I'm sorry, but why should we be trusting their judgements now?
Jon, London

* I must say, I find I'm starting to warm to the idea of his being the England "gaffer" (there's a word he's going to have to add to his English vocabulary... pronto!). He's either incredibly brave to want to take such a poisoned chalice without a proper mastery of the language - or incredibly foolhardy! :eek In any case, the time for moaning/carping is now past. We need to accept the FA's decision, get behind the man & give him a proper chance to prove himself before we start putting the verbal boot in again... ;)

Taking of "the Gate", just found a proper article on one of the inside pages. ;) You can't accuse him of not measuring his words! :hat

An interesting read :D and so were some of the comments which followed. ;) Funny, I often find the responses worth a read too. ;) In an ideal world I think everybody would prefer an English manager in charge of an English team but at the moment there isn't anybody either good enough or with enough experience to do the job. Whose fault is that, I've no idea? I'm inclined to agree with your sentiments in your previous post. The man has been appointed, let's see what happens from now on, give him the backing he needs and hope and pray he can get the overpaid superstars to perform. :guns
The appointment's made.

* Liverpool were excellent the other night. Shame on the robbers who burgled Stevie G 's home and all the other players who have suffered similar criminal acts. :angry1
** Good luck against Derby. :guns It's a visit to Bramall Lane for the Tykes. I do hope they can get one over on Robbo. :swords

I know. Unbelievable, wasn't it? :(

Thanks. The boys are going to need it! Something tells me Paul Jewell's team will try to do to Boro what Boro did to the Gunners last Sunday! :eek Out from about 3.30 this afternoon (long Wagner opera at the ROH...), so won't know the final result until I get home! :( They must win this one... :guns

* Good luck to the Tykes, too! ;)

And they did! :party :hat :clap A goal by Tuncay was enough and according to the studio pundits it's one worth seeing. :xmas5

They managed to lose 1-0. Damn and blast and bugger. :angry1

* I'm away tomorrow for a few days, back Wednesday. I'm down in your part of the world, RAH tomorrow evening for The Messiah and then a bit of sightseeing and... whatever. :)