A new chapter begins for the Three Lions with the official appointment of Sam Allardyce as new national coach last night.
The 61-year-old takes up one of international football’s most scrutinised positions, made even more difficult as the England side sits in tatters following their disastrous Euro 2016 exit at the hands of Iceland.
It's official. We are delighted to announce that Sam Allardyce is the new manager of the #ThreeLions! pic.twitter.com/7L3y9S62TP
— England (@England) July 22, 2016
Having built a reputation throughout the Premier League as a ‘survival specialist’, the man known as ‘Big Sam’ most recently helped a struggling Sunderland avoid the drop after replacing Dick Advocaat in October of last year. Previously he had spent five years as West Ham manager and also lists and eight-year run with Bolton Wanderers on his CV.
A widely-regarded mastermind of the game, Allardyce could not be happier to finally have reached the position he admittedly had his eye on for some time.
“I can’t stop smiling because I’ve got this job…I’ve been waiting for many, many years,” he said
“It’s going to be a great thrill for me to take the team forward from the nation’s point of view and [to] hopefully make everybody so proud of the England team again.”
Allardyce’s appointment puts the final nail in the coffin of the turbulent Roy Hodgson-era, during which the English failed to make it past the quarter-final stage of a major tournament – culminating with the embarrasing Round of 16 defeat to Iceland in this year’s European championships.
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