Sven-Goran Eriksson has been invited to relaunch his career
with Manchester City after face-to-face talks with representatives
of the club's prospective new owner, Thaksin Shinawatra. Eriksson,
out of work since the World Cup last year, has indicated that he is
ready to return to football and sources close to the deal confirmed
last night that he was now the "hot favourite" to be named as
manager.
Eriksson met Thaksin's advisers yesterday, after an initial meeting
in London on Sunday, and has been identified as the leading
candidate once the former Thai prime minister's takeover is
complete. A formal takeover offer is anticipated before the end of
the week, possibly in the next 24 hours, and Thaksin's position
does not appear to have been irreparably damaged by the current
investigations into corruption and fraud from his time in
government.
If, as expected, Thaksin takes control, the new regime expects to
unveil Eriksson as the club's first non-British manager, having
promised him about £50m in the transfer market. The talks are said
to have gone well and the only potential stumbling block appears to
be the Swede's wage demands. Eriksson, who is still on the Football
Association's payroll almost a year after stepping down as
England's head coach, has always had a high opinion of his value
and City will look elsewhere if he makes "ludicrous" demands.
Thaksin, whose personal fortune is estimated at £2bn, will be able
to make Eriksson one of the highest-paid managers in the
Premiership. A bigger problem, however, might be convincing City's
supporters that Eriksson is the right man for the job. His
professional reputation has been at a low ebb since the end of his
reign with England and City's current board would not have
entertained the idea of bringing him in but for Thaksin's
intervention.
