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Fulham boss
Roy Hodgson |
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There may well be an option on both sides for Fabio Capello to continue as England manager after next summer's World Cup finals, but you can't help thinking that the Italian will be tempted to move on, all the more so if Sir Alex Ferguson does step down at Manchester United.
Should England somehow become world champions, then the only way is down and Capello would surely quit at the top.
Similarly, should England do reasonably well and reach a semi-final, he might believe he has done the best he could. Anything less, and the nation will probably want him out anyway.
Which brings up the question of his successor.
We can expect Jose Mourinho to be in the frame, probably because his agent will put him there, on the basis that his client clearly believes the Wildean theory that there is only one thing worse than being talked about.
Then again, the job would probably be Arsene Wenger's if he wanted it, despite thus far showing no real stomach for it.
You suspect, though, that the desire will be for a British-born manager to have another go, and on the basis that Stuart Pearce may not quite be ready, the favourite will surely be Martin O'Neill, who has developed a clutch of promising players at Aston Villa.
Let's hear it, though, for a contender for manager of the season. Much was made last weekend of Manchester United losing their way - and their discipline - at Fulham, with Ferguson's selection and tactics coming under rare scrutiny.
Thus was the credit accorded to Roy Hodgson and his team somewhat subdued. It is not surprising, mainly as Hodgson himself is understated and dignified in most things.
They are just two of many attributes that would make him a good choice to manage the national team.
When Hodgson took over at Craven Cottage a year ago, it was seen by some as a strange appointment, one that would confirm Fulham's relegation.
He had not worked in the English game for almost a decade, having initially succeeded at Blackburn, qualifying for the UEFA Cup, before Rovers slumped to the foot of the table and he was sacked prematurely.
Having organised Fulham sufficiently to pull off an unexpected escape, Hodgson has this season developed probably the thinnest squad in the Premier League into outside contenders for Europe when they were expected again to be relegation fodder.
His sale of Jimmy Bullard, knowing the team would not be damaged by losing the talented but injury-beset midfielder, was fine business; his plotting of defeats for Arsenal and United inspired.
All the while, the team have looked better than the sum of their parts,
He has been there before, too, even turning Switzerland into a good side in the mid-Nineties.
Capello has shown that this is a job best suited to a self-assured, wiser, older man who commands respect.
The 61-year-old Hodgson is erudite, articulate and multi-lingual, having worked in eight countries.
They may seem peripheral issues, the more so in this week when the release of The Damned United has prompted debate about the maverick Brian Clough being the best manager England never had.
Clough's appointment would, however, have been fraught with worry; like asking a Tourette Syndrome sufferer to read the lesson in church. Hodgson would probably know the passage off by heart.