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'Not a bad job' Eriksson's England wait nearly over
Updated: Tuesday February 27, 2001 7:18 PM
By Simon Hooper, CNNSI.com LONDON -- For Sven Goran Eriksson, the wait is almost over. Five months since being named England's coach-elect and two months since quitting Italian champions Lazio, the Swede is getting back to the business of management. The 53-year-old has been conducting a whirlwind tour of English football, but while he may have acquired a detailed knowledge of his new country's motorway system, only now has the man charged with rebuilding the fortunes of its national team been able to take up the tools of his trade. Having unveiled his first squad on Friday, Eriksson finally met his players on Monday ahead of Wednesday's friendly with Spain at Villa Park, Birmingham. Eriksson concedes it has been a frustrating period of enforced inactivity as he has adjusted to the slower rhythms of international football after the high energy of Serie A. "It's quite a different job," he says. "Many times you're sitting in the office you feel as if you're not working, because work for me for the past 20 years has been to be on the pitch together with the players." The English Football Association is hoping the national side, currently languishing at the bottom of its World Cup qualifying group, will reap the benefits of that experience and reward its faith in making Eriksson its first overseas coach.
Eriksson's appointment has been criticized in some quarters as a snub to homegrown coaching talent. His early departure from Lazio on the back of a run of bad results also led to claims England had inherited damaged goods. "I'm a little sorry about that," admits Eriksson. "But what can I do? I'm a Swede and I was offered this job and of course I said yes. It's a big job, I'm very proud to have it and I'm looking forward to it. But I can understand that there are people who think the national team should be led by an Englishman." Having survived in the media hothouse of Roman football, Eriksson is well drilled in handling the media and knows a successful team will quickly win over hostile elements. In the short-term that means setting England back on course for World Cup qualification with wins over Albania and Finland in March. But as an outsider, Eriksson is perhaps better placed than his predecessors to cast an objective eye over the state of the English game. "There are many good players coming up," Eriksson said, his faith confirmed by the youthful flavor of his first squad. "We'll see in the future if they are ready or not to qualify for the World Cup. It will be interesting." Eriksson also points to the success of Manchester United, Leeds, Arsenal and Liverpool in Europe this season and Steve McManaman's achievements at Real Madrid as further indicators of the potential lying dormant in the English game. "We hope the national team will do as well as English clubs are doing. It might be that we have four English clubs in the quarterfinals of Europe and that's great. Let's hope that we, as a national team, can do as well. "I'm sure today the reason there are very few players playing outside England is not the quality of the players, because I can guarantee you there are many who could play in Spain or Italy." Many observers have questioned Eriksson's sanity for taking on what is widely considered to be one of football's least rewarding jobs, but for now Eriksson is simply enjoying settling into his new life. "So far I've been travelling and watching football games. Not a bad job is it?"
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