Fabio Capello’s nightmare with the English national football team did at last come to an end, although many fans including myself wished it had taken place after the World Cup in South Africa.
Now the most coveted job in the world is vacant and there is a lot of curiosity as to who will take it.
Here is a list of five candidates, with some thoughts on their potential impact on the team and the nations’ Euro dream.
Harry Redknapp
The current Spurs boss is a huge fan favourite to take the job. He has had tremendous success with Tottenham since taking over in 2008.
Harry has proven himself one of the best English managers about. He has gained invaluable European experience with Tottenham and has shown he can deal with big personalities like Gareth Bale,Rafael van der Vaart, Luka Modric and Scott Parker to name a few.
The fact none of his big players left the club despite failing to qualify for the Champions League indicates the faith that the players have in him and the club.
He has also worked with a lot of players who could potentially be in the England squad, which is a bonus. His man management skills will be the biggest advantage, as English players are usually known for their bad temperament.
There is a high possibility of Redknapp being named the next English manager.
Jose Mourinho
The Special One has successfully faced and conquered every challenge in club football. To prove his managerial credibility to its ultimate degree, there would not be many jobs that bring more pressure than being English manager.
Mourinho also handled many English players during his time at Chelsea. Although he is not English, he is a world class manager who can speak perfect English.
His appointment would be a high profile one, but the only problem that could arise would be down to his temperament and the time can he could stay with the team if they failed to win Euro 2012.
Apart from this, I feel he is the perfect man to take the job. There are also rumours of him wanting to return to England.
Stuart Pearce
The man nicknamed ‘Psycho’ has been appointed manager of the English national team for their friendly against Holland. After his unsuccessful spell as the manager of Manchester City he has been in charge of England’s U-21 team.
During his spell many youngsters have been promoted to the main team for their club as well as to the English national team. The highlights include Danny Welbeck, Daniel Sturridge, Jordan Henderson, and Chris Smalling to name a few.
He is also one of the passionate Englishmen which fans have been asking for. If he can be successful in his part time role he might be given the full time job. At present I would consider him the favourite.
Rafael Benitez
Currently not managing any team, many English fans, especially in Liverpool will be hoping he is not the next manager after his recent performances with Liverpool and Inter Milan.
Having been at Liverpool, though, Benitez has experience of the English game and England players. He was successful at Liverpool in the early years of his reign there, especially in Europe where he made the Champions League final twice and won it once.
With the FA keen on an English manager, though, his chances of being named are slim.
Alan Pardew
A definite revelation at Newcastle, after initially having been booed by fans when he took over. Pardew was due for a short stint at Newcastle, but has definitely silenced his critics after guiding the club to a fantastic start this season.
Pardew has been relatively successful at all his clubs. He has never managed a big team, which is definitely a disadvantage, although keeping fiery Hatem Ben Arfa happy this year has shown he could be up to the challenge of handling the bigger personalities.
His chances of the English manager job, on balance, remain slim, especially after the nightmare that England suffered when the similarly placed Steve McLaren took over.
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