This is my first article for Sportingo and firstly I feel obliged to introduce myself. Briefly, I used to play for West Brom and Plymouth Argyle at youth level, I have two coaching badges - and I've been a football fan all my life. Yes, I think it's fair to say, I have football in my blood.

Enough of the introductions. The first topic I want to write about is quite easy and straightforward. Who should be the next England manager - or to put it more professionally, who is the best candidate for the job?

Newspapers and Internet sources suggest the list of serious contenders in made up of Fabio Capello, Marcelo Lippi, Jose Mourinho, Guus Hiddink, Martin O'Neill, Harry Redknapp, Gerard Houllier, Phil Scolari and Jurgen Klinsmann.

'Perhaps Mourinho's best asset, apart from his CV, is the fact that he has one of the best rapports with the English media and fans'


Capello is certainly one of the most organised and cultured managers in terms of European competition, with numerous titles for Milan and Madrid, Juventus and Roma. But does that mean he is fit for England? And, as with Lippi - does he have a good enough grasp of the English language? Is it a culture thing? Could a man who has never managed in England possibly know how to control its unique players?

Of course, both Capello and Lippi could easily be taught English. After all, it's not as if we have to hurry the new guy in now that we have a free summer. Can Capello's man-management skills also be questioned? He fell out with Ruud van Nistelrooy, David Beckham, Roberto Carlos and Ronaldo at Real Madrid, upset Raul, and changed the team to one which beat out results rather than simply playing them out. However, is that not what England need? An ego shake-up would certainly be welcome, alongside the idea that we will actually just get the job done and win.

Mourinho is both the fans' and the players' favourite, but is he the FA's favourite? I know the FA and how they work. They look for people who are going to do what they want, to do youth training, open facilities, be a public face for English football; a Steve McClaren, you might say. This, Mourinho is not!  Jose will want his team and his players, not somone telling him he has to be at a dinner party for the FA. In fact, from the sort of arguments he had with Roman Abramovich, it would not be surprising to see a few expletives being thrown the FA's way should the Special One not agree.

To sum up Mourinho, it is not his footballing knowledge that will seal or kill an offer. As we all know, Jose has as much knowledge of the game as just about anyone, but it will all come down to the whole package.

Klinsmann is a difficult candidate who I feel I must give some time to, as everyone else has exhausted the rest! Firstly, I am surprised that whenever the German's name has been mentioned, not a single jibe about the war or any historical influence has come in! Well done, nation -or maybe everyone just thinks this is a joke candidate.

Jurgen is certainly the least proven of all the managers, a man who before the World Cup - in which he was such a success - was being told he was a traitor for living in the US, and that he had no idea what was going on in German football at the time. He then shut the collective mouths by getting the Germans to the summit (almost).

To support him, Klinsmann has a good knowledge of English football, fans and teams. He knows the culture, and is respected in most quarters (Arsenal fans will disagree, I'm sure!). But it is his international management skills that catch the eye. The fact that he took an arguably mediocre German side to such an advanced stage in a World Cup was almost a miracle. Or was it just the German fans in the stadium!?

So, there are three managers in contention. I think O'Neill is happy at Aston Villa - money, young English players and a soon-to-be big club! Why would he leave? Redknapp, well, his stumbling block is similar to Mourinho, but Harry has never won a major European trophy. Should that not be a minimum requirement for an England boss?

Hiddink simply has Russian mafia money rolling out of his eyeballs, so I think he will happily stay attached to them. Houllier is another outside chance, although Korea seem to be calling (that level team really tells the story). Scolari seems to be the almost man - he has done it before, but with Brazil. Does that make any difference?

In conclusion, for me the choice is obvious, and by the look of this morning's papers, a foregone conclusion. Mourinho has everything in my eyes - he's young, ambitious and non-compromising! But perhaps his best asset, apart from his CV, is the fact that he has one of the best rapports with the English media and fans. It would be fair to say that this is a man who would get a bigger backing for England than almost any manager before him.