SIR TREVOR BROOKING claims Sam Allardyce’s organisational and man-management skills make him the ideal candidate to lead England.

Allardyce’s future should become clearer this week, with the Football Association set to speed up the process of appointing Roy Hodgson’s successor.

The Sunderland boss remains the strong favourite to be named as the next England boss, although the FA still intend to hold another two or three interviews, with Eddie Howe, Steve Bruce and Jurgen Klinsmann all still under consideration.

There have been suggestions that Howe could be appointed as Allardyce’s assistant, with the Bournemouth manager potentially able to continue in his current club role while gaining experience on the international stage with a view to him taking over in the future.

Sources close to Allardyce claim he would be happy to work in whatever framework the FA propose, and having issued a statement criticising the time it is taking to complete the recruitment process last week, Sunderland owner Ellis Short and chief executive Martin Bain will continue to pressurise the governing body into making a decision as quickly as possible.

Allardyce is due to take charge of his first pre-season friendly when Sunderland travel to Hartlepool on Wednesday, and Brooking has become the latest high-profile figure to champion the 61-year-old’s cause when it comes to taking over England.

Brooking is a former director of football development at the FA, and was part of the selection panel that bypassed Allardyce in 2006 when they appointed Steve McClaren.

“These (England) players are very talented technically – we even saw that in France,” said Brooking. “But they were found wanting in terms of mental toughness.

“In the Iceland game, I saw players moving into positions where they could hide. It’s easy to blame the man in possession – often Wayne Rooney – but there wasn’t passing options for him to knock the ball into.

“There’s an overhead camera, and I think it would be pretty damning for that game. That was the most disappointing thing for me to see.

“That’s the thing about Sam – he’s always made the best use of the players available. He got West Ham back into the top-flight, and made Sunderland stronger mentally and defensively.

“Combine that with the technical ability of these England players, and I think you have a decent mix. The next manager has to be English, and Sam is very experienced and organised.”

The ongoing uncertainty about Allardyce’s future is hampering Sunderland’s attempts to sign players, but one piece of transfer business was completed at the weekend as Emanuele Giaccherini completed his move to Napoli.

The Northern Echo:

Napoli have paid around £2m for the 31-year-old winger, who has signed a three-year deal with the Serie A side.

“I’ve come at an important time to a prestigious club, and I am delighted to wear this shirt,” said Giaccherini, who scored five goals in 43 senior appearances for the Black Cats. “I cannot wait to start my adventure with Napoli – playing at the Stadio San Paolo will be fantastic.”