Jose Mourinho has once again refused to rule himself out of
the running to succeed Steve McClaren as England coach, despite
Arsene Wenger's claim the job should go to an
Englishman.
With Mourinho, Fabio Capello, Marcello Lippi, Jurgen Klinsmann and
Ulsterman Martin O'Neill the current bookies' favourites, there
appears little chance of Wenger's plea being heeded, even though he
was one the major footballing figures the Football Association have
consulted over the job.
However, Soho Square chiefs remain optimistic there will be some
English presence within the new coaching team, no matter who is
eventually appointed.
Mourinho remains the most popular choice and amid reports he had
flown into London for talks with FA chief executive Brian Barwick,
the former Chelsea boss emerged from his home in Setubal and
continued a game of cat-and-mouse which leaves no-one clear about
his intentions.
Rather than either commit to the job - as Capello did almost as
soon as McClaren was dumped - or reject the idea of it, as some
fear the 44-year-old will to pursue a career in club management,
Mourinho again skirted around the issue.
"Why not?" was his reply when asked if he could be the next England
manager by Sky Sports. Mourinho then went on to reveal why he had
cancelled a trip to the UK.
He declared: "I am in Portugal. I would like to be in London with
my family for a couple of days but nobody would believe the reason
why I would be there - to see friends and family and do some
Christmas shopping.
"So to try to stop the speculation I decided not to go and stay
here. It is sunny and beautiful."
