Sam Allardyce’s first act as England’s new manager was to inform his players that the time has come “to deliver”, with this challenge readily accepted by Wayne Rooney.
“I think it’s a good appointment,” Rooney said after Allardyce was finally released on Friday by Sunderland. “He will probably bring a different way of playing to England and hopefully it’s a good way and we can be successful under him.”
Speaking from China where Manchester United are on a pre-season tour, Rooney made it clear that he not only endorsed the Football Association’s decision but had no intention of retiring from international combat in the wake of the Euro 2016 debacle against Iceland.
“I’ll be there,” Rooney said as Allardyce began setting out a manifesto for change. Once some prolonged haggling was over and Sunderland had agreed a £3m compensation deal, Roy Hodgson’s successor made it clear he could not wait to set about the business of “making the whole country proud”.
The 61-year-old has signed an initial two-year, heavily incentivised contract potentially worth about £3.5m a year. Should things go well during the 2018 World Cup in Russia, there is an option to extend the deal until 2020.
“I will do everything I can to help England do well and give our nation the success our fans deserve,” said Allardyce, who will almost certainly be succeeded by David Moyes at Sunderland, with the Scot’s appointment expected shortly.
“Above all, we have to make the people and the whole country proud. While my main focus will be on the senior team and getting positive results, I want to add my influence to the great work being done across the development teams at St George’s Park. I know we have talented, committed players and it is time for us to deliver.”
The unanimous choice of the FA’s recruitment panel – comprising Martin Glenn, the chief executive; Dan Ashworth, the technical director; and David Gill, the vice-chairman – he saw off competition from Jürgen Klinsmann, Eddie Howe and Steve Bruce, who resigned as Hull City’s manager on Friday.
Glenn described Allardyce as “the ideal candidate” and an “energising” force, having been impressed by the former Bolton and West Ham manager’s innovative use of psychology and sports science allied to a desire to restore England’s missing identity.
Although Allardyce’s appointment was ratified during a meeting of the full FA board at Wembley on Thursday, its confirmation was delayed as Ellis Short, Sunderland’s irritated owner, played hardball with the ruling body, demanding £1m more than the £2m compensation payment originally envisaged for a manager with one year on his contract.
Accordingly, Allardyce clocked on for work at Sunderland’s training ground for the last time on Friday as he waited to be confirmed in the post he had long craved but missed out on in 2006 when Steve McClaren was chosen instead.
“Sam Allardyce is the right man for the England job,” Glenn said. “His excellent managerial credentials, including his ability to realise the potential of players and teams, develop a strong team ethos and embrace modern methods that enhance performance, made him the outstanding choice. That was underlined when we sat down to talk and we could not help but be energised by his personal perspective on England’s future and how it complemented the extensive work that we are looking to build on at St George’s Park. Ultimately we could not look beyond Sam as the ideal candidate.”
Allardyce performed a minor miracle to save Sunderland from relegation after succeeding Dick Advocaat last October but the Wearside club, in a terse statement which will interpreted as churlish, failed to reference his contribution, let alone thank him or offer their good wishes.
“The focus of everyone at Sunderland AFC now is on moving forward quickly and decisively, with the appointment of the club’s new manager to be confirmed at the earliest opportunity,” it said.
Allardyce’s staff are yet to be named but there are strong suggestions that Sammy Lee, his one-time assistant at Bolton, who recently stepped down from a coaching post at Southampton, could have a key role, while Paul Clement, Carlo Ancelotti’s assistant at Bayern Munich, may be hired in a part-time capacity. The FA is also keen to involve former internationals and the possible candidatures of Steven Gerrard, Frank Lampard and Rio Ferdinand have been discussed. The new manager will select his first squad late next month for the World Cup qualifier against Slovakia in Trnava on 4 September. His first match in charge will be a friendly at Wembley on 1 September.
