Wenger says England job a possibility one day
>> LONDON: Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger has admitted for the first time he would be willing to manage England in the future if he had no club commitments.
Wenger has been linked with the England j ob f ollowing the Football Association’s decision to part company with Sam Allardyce on Tuesday.
Allardyce’s self-inflicted exit after his controversial comments to undercover reporters has left the FA searching for a new boss and they have appointed England Under-21 coach Gareth Southgate as interim manager to buy them time.
Southgate will pick the team for England’s remaining four matches this year and could be persuaded to remain in charge until the end of the season if there was a chance to hire a top-class boss like Wenger.
The Frenchman’s contract with Arsenal expires at the end of the current campaign and there has been no confirmation yet of whether the 67-year-old will sign a new deal with the north Londoners.
Quizzed about the England job at a press conference yesterday, Wenger said: “My priority is to do well here. If I am free one day, why not?”
Meanwhile, the Football Association (FA) have urged the Daily Telegraph to provide “full and unfettered disclosure of all available material” following allegations of corruption by the newspaper.
A long running investigation by the newspaper was printed this week, which resulted in Allardyce being sacked as England manager and eight current and former Premier League managers accused of receiving ‘bungs’, or illicit payments, for player transfers.
Southampton assistant manager Eric Black was named in the newspaper investigation, though he has denied the allegations, while Barnsley assistant Tommy Wright, who also denied any wrongdoing, was sacked by his club.
“We have requested full and unfettered disclosure of all available material from the Daily Telegraph,” the FA said in a statement on their website (www.thefa.com). “This is yet to be provided.
“The FA wants to be in a position to investigate these matters fully at the earliest opportunity and to this end the FA will also be meeting with the City of London Police next week.
“The FA treats any allegations of this nature seriously and is committed to investigating them thoroughly, in conjunction with any other appropriate body.”