Sam Allardyce appointed New England manager

Sam Allardyce has been appointed England manager, the Football Association (FA) has announced.

The 61-year-old leaves Sunderland to take charge of England as they seek to rebuild after a disappointing Euro 2016 campaign that ended with a round-of-16 defeat to tournament debutants Iceland.

📰 The @FA appoints @OfficialBigSam as new #ThreeLions manager on an initial two-year deal: https://t.co/Cej8KjmH5s pic.twitter.com/I5292ur38w

— England (@England) July 22, 2016

Allardyce said: “I am extremely honoured to be appointed England manager, especially as it is no secret that this is the role I have always wanted.

“For me, it is absolutely the best job in English football.

“I will do everything I can to help England do well and give our nation the success our fans deserve. 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 – a facility I have used with my previous clubs.

“I know we have talented, committed players and it is time for us to deliver.”

Allardyce will hold a news conference on Monday at St George’s Park and his first match in charge will be a friendly at Wembley on Thursday 1 September against yet-to-be-named opponents, ahead of the World Cup 2018 qualifier in Slovakia on 4 September.

Hodgson stepped down after a shock 2-1 defeat to Iceland ended England’s Euro 2016 participation at the round-of-16 stage, and Allardyce and Steve Bruce interviewed for the vacant position earlier this month.

Accoeding to sources the FA’s three-man selection panel – chief executive Martin Glenn, technical director Dan Ashworth and vice-chairman David Gill – had told the FA board that they were recommending Allardyce.

Agreement on a compensation package was subsequently reached with Sunderland, allowing the FA to confirm the hiring of Allardyce on Friday afternoon.

And Glenn said after the appointment was confirmed: “Sam Allardyce is the right man for the England job.

“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.

“Dan Ashworth, David Gill and I have carried out a thorough process in the last three weeks and ultimately we could not look beyond Sam as the ideal candidate.”

Current and former Manchester United managers Jose Mourinho and Sir Alex Ferguson are among those to have expressed their support for Allardyce in the role.

Although Allardyce’s initial deal only extends to the end of the 2018 World Cup, there appears to be scope for him to remain at the helm for a longer period.

An FA statement read: “Alongside his primary target of qualification for the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia, Allardyce has a mandate to shape a strong, purposeful team identity and maximise the performance potential of a young, talented England squad at a major tournament.

“Allardyce is also charged with helping Ashworth integrate and strengthen the FA’s elite performance and coaching programme across the England senior and development teams at St George’s Park.”

Allardyce guided Sunderland to Premier League safety last season after replacing Dick Advocaat last October, and the club said in a statement on Wednesday evening that “they share in the anger and frustration of our supporters” after reports emerged that he was to take the England job.

The former Bolton Wanderers, Blackburn Rovers and West Ham United boss, though, has long made clear his desire to manage England.

Allardyce had first been interviewed for the job after the 2006 World Cup, when Steve McClaren was ultimately selected to replace Sven-Goran Eriksson.

McClaren’s tenure proved unsuccessful as England failed to qualify for Euro 2008, and Allardyce wrote in his autobiography last year that he “should have got” the job.

He added: “As I’m a better manager now than I was then, I believe I should be in the running whenever it comes round again. I had a shot at the England job, impressed in an interview but missed out to Steve McClaren.

“That’s not vanity or being full of my own importance. My track record entitles me to be considered. Being a national team boss intrigues me. I’m ambitious and I still want the England job but I have less chance now even though I’m better equipped to do it now.”

Allardyce had said while in charge of Blackburn in 2010 that he would be “more suited to [managing] Inter Milan or Real Madrid” and that he “would win the double or the league every time” if given the chance.

In 2014, he said his brief, unsuccessful stint in charge of Newcastle United in the 2007-08 season had proved a major setback to his hopes of being given a top job but said he hoped he would get the chance to succeed Hodgson.

“When the job does become vacant, you are talking about one of the most iconic jobs in international football, so you have to be on top of your game at that particular time,” he said then.