The wacky world of English managerial jobs has turned yet again, with dismissed England manager Sam Allardyce listed among the candidates to replace former Italian international and NewEngland Revolution head coach Walter Zenga at Wolverhampton.
Gruff, blunt Allardyce stepping into a job vacated by the flamboyant, elegant Zenga? Strange but not out of thequestion.
Zenga got the boot earlier this week, just 87 days after being hired by Wolves, who are struggling near the bottom of the League Championship in 18th place. The BBC reported Fridaythat another candidate, Nigel Pearson, has already been interviewed for the job. He was dismissed by Derby County three weeks ago.
Door, er, candidate No. 3 is Paul Lambert,another well-traveled manager who has been looking for work since getting the pink slip last spring from Blackburn Rovers, which hired former Houston Dynamo head coach Owen Coyle just a weekafter he ended his MLS stint.
Wolves sporting director Kevin Thelwell is spearheading the search for a new manager after apparently not participating much in the hasty hiring of Zengaafter the European Championships. That move was conducted by Jeff Shi, a board member appointed by the team’s owner, Fosun International, to find a successor to Kenny Jackett, whohad been selected by Thelwell three years ago.
Jackett was cut loose just a week after Fosun took over ownership of the club. Zenga previously coached Red Star Belgrade, Steaua Bucharest, andPalermo – as well as Al Shaab in the UAE – and didn’t fare well in the English game. A 1-0 loss to Leeds last weekend left Wolves with a 4-6-4 record (W-L-T) and 16 points, just twopoints above the relegation zone.
Representatives of Fosun International visited the team offices Friday to monitor the managerial search. Rather than gamble again on a Continental option suchas Zenga, they are seeking a British manager with experience in the Premier League or the championship.
All three of the candidates have managed a team promoted to the Premier League.Allardyce took Bolton and West Ham into the top flight, Lambert did the same with Norwich, and Pearson is the man replaced by Claudio Ranieri after going up with Leicester City. The new ownershave emphasized that they want promotion, and quickly.
Interim manager Rob Edwards, the former first-team coach, has run the training sessions this week and will select the squad toplay at Blackburn Saturday, but the 33-year-old is deemed too inexperienced to lead a promotion push. Wolves plummeted from the Premier League all the way to League One in back-to back-seasons beforeJackett lifted them back up to the League Championship by winning the League One title of the 2013-14 season. Wolves have finished 7th and 14th in the Championship.
Allardyce may not beready to jump into a new job just yet, especially considering the steep drop from England manager to the Championship. His tenure with England lasted just 67 days and one game, a 1-0 defeat ofSlovakia, yet he can work while the English FA conducts an investigation into his comments — recorded clandestinely by newspaper reporters posing as businessmen — about “getting around”FIFA restrictions regarding third-party ownership of player contracts.
The BBC reported Allardyce would prefer to wait for openings –presumably in the Premier League — that might open up in the New Year. Sooner rather than later, it looks like Big Sam will be back in business.