“Big Sam” is the man who can take England to the next level, or at least that is what we think about the former Sunderland manager, Sam Allardyce.
Yes, this has actually happened, the former Bolton Wanderers and Blackburn Rovers manager is now going to be leading the English team out in the 2018 World Cup if the side can qualify. For once the FA have decided to take on and give the job to a man who doesn’t actually fit the description of an international manager but he could be the right person for the job.
England need a shake up and Sam is the man who will ensure that he gets things right, even if it means boring football, at least he knows how to get the best out of teams, even if it is Blackburn or Sunderland.
The Three Lions and Allardyce have to do a lot of work together but the 61-year-old has gotten more things right than wrong and here are the three immediate challenges that face him now.
No belief in the side
After the loss to Iceland, there really is nowhere the England team can go now. The side, which was touted to be one selected on merit, well some of the players were, all played poorly in France and were rightly dumped out of the competition.
Right now the team is feeling the lowest of lows and Allardyce will have to bring the belief back to the side. The English side aren’t the best in the world but they still are better than most of the other teams in Europe and that is the belief that the former Sunderland man will have to instil in the squad.
Players taking places for granted
This could be the biggest internal issue to deal with, the English players have taken their place in the side for granted and Allardyce has to shake things up. Taking the likes of Jack Wilshere ahead of the likes of Danny Drinkwater for the Euros made no sense and Allardyce is the man who will deal with this.
He has always been a man who has taken or given chances to those who deserve it and will not be afraid to make some of the tough decisions. That may make him an unpopular figure in the England team but that safety net that certain players have needs to be removed and players who deserve chances should be given an opportunity to perform for the three lions.
The high expectations of the fans
Even though Allardyce has just taken charge, there would already be a number of fans who would expect him to turn things around and with his rather unconventional approach, they believe that he will make England tough to defeat and become one of the best teams in the world.
The media too plays a part in all this and Allardyce has to manage the expectations. The former Sunderland manager might not play brilliant football but he does bring in effective football and fans would expect the side to be favourites for the 2018 World Cup.
England have to qualify for that first and that is something that Sam has to fix first. This will not be an easy job for the man but if anyone can do this, it has to be Sam.
Comments are closed.