Vacancy: Greatest job in the world

The Euro’s are drawing closer which can only mean two things; we are all going to build our hopes up only for them to be crushed, again, and Fabio Capello’s time as England manager is almost up. The latter has been on the lips of fans up and down the country and rumours have been thrown into the mill since the disappointment of the 2010 World Cup, as to who will be next in the hot seat?

Postman Capello of Greendale.

The appointment of Stuart Pearce as the manager of Team GB, or ‘Psycho’, as he is known to his beloved followers, surely points him in the right direction to being Fabio Capello’s successor, after the Italian’s contract runs out.

Capello’s reign could stretch right the way up to July 1st, that’s assuming the unlikely, that he can mastermind his way to the European Championship finals in Poland. No small task then for the man who, after stepping down from his position at the best job in the world, can always get a job delivering post in a little red van in Greendale.


The Football Association made a statement in 2010, after another dismal showing in a World Cup, that after Capello, England’s next manger should indeed be English, however they have also refused to rule out the possibility of a another foreigner coming in, saying they want the right man for the job.

Adrian Bevington of the FA bluntly said; “I think in the future, the England team should be managed by an English manager.”


It goes without saying really. Without drawing comparisons to the two, take for example, the triumphant success that Spain are currently enjoying. Put aside the fact that their players may be from a different footballing planet to ours, let alone of a different calibre, but they have flourished under the management of one of their own, Vincent Del Bosque. There is automatically a unique bond and understanding between manager and players and there the language barrier is not an issue.


England have a handful of exceptionally talented, world renowned footballers, but have shown over the years they haven’t got the depth in the squad to win a major tournament. The team is star-studded with the Premier League’s finest, however, put them all together and the outcome is rather too frequently a shambles. The veterans of the national team now include the likes of Rio Ferdinand, Frank Lampard, Steven Gerrard and John Terry to name a few, and the young players coming through look to be a promising and exciting generation with names such as Jack Wilshere, Andy Carroll, Phil Jones, and the Dannys, Welbeck and Sturridge, all breaking into the team. Perhaps someone needs to take the initiative and adopt the philosophy of ‘out with the old and in with the new?’


It would be a brave man to take on such a daunting job. The title of England manager has long come under scrutiny from the unforgiving press and it is possibly the pressure built up by the media that has caused England to fall so hard in recent years. The man for the job will have to devise a way to shield his vulnerable players from the expectations and hype created by the relentless English media.


With Pearce having been appointed Team GB manager for the London Olympics, could it covertly be part of his induction process for the lucrative England job? The former England defender and Manchester City boss has previously distanced himself, saying how he doesn’t have the necessary qualifications to be selected for the role. Pearce, who has been in charge of the England Under 21’s since 2007, has nurtured some of the first team’s greatest talent through the ranks and he certainly has the grit and determination, not to mention the raw passion and the fans approval required to become a successful and popular appointment.


Amongst the most probable candidates for the job is Harry Redknapp. Currently manager of Tottenham Hotspur in the Premier League, Redknapp is again one of the fans favourites for the job and has an impressive CV in English club football. The wiley Spurs boss has been the reason for his current team’s success, launching them into the Champions League last season and the Europa League this season, making Tottenham a genuine top four contender, so the North London outfit will want to keep hold of him. Redknapp has since told the media he thinks QPR manager Neil Warnock is an ideal candidate, whereas other names such as Newcastle boss Alan Pardew and Roy Hodgson have also been muttered. A foreigner in the mix is the man who said he was once ‘hours’ from being England manager when the ‘Wally with the brolly’ and the guy with the dodgy Dutch accent, Steve McClaren, was sacked in 2007. That’s right, Jose Mourinho still finds himself being linked to a sensational return to England, where he made a remarkable impact with Chelsea.


Capello has the chance to leave on a high after Euro 2012 and be the only foreign England manager (out of him and Sven) to be firmly cemented in our fragile English football supporting hearts forever. If England fail to impress yet again, the man to fill his boots will be have to implement severe change and lift morale, but possibly, as a boost for the nation, he might be an Englishman.