Next England Manager: Three overseas candidates to be considered

Ralf Rangnick @ 10/3
Much as last time, a German is second favourite, but Rangnick is a far more rounded and interesting candidate than Jurgen Klinsmann. Despite winning promotions with multiple clubs and reaching a Champions League semi-final at Schalke, his style rather than his success earned him a reputation, being credited with introducing the popular pressing style of the day to the Bundesliga and altering perceptions of the league. The demands for Glenn Hoddle show the value in which England fans hold possessing a discernible tactical ideology, and the RB Leipzig director certainly provides that.

Laurent Blanc @ 33/1
The ease with which Blanc won at Paris St-Germain gets used as a knock on him, even though he fared better than feted predecessor Carlo Ancelotti and Unai Emery has so far shown that the job isn't as simple as his performance implied. He topped Ligue 1 and reached a Champions League semi-final in three years at Bordeaux, and finished first three times and got to three quarter-finals in three in Paris, winning six other major trophies across those stints. The 50-year-old has international pedigree too, steering France to the Euro 2012 quarters after their Euro 2008 and World Cup 2010 group-stage flops.

Louis van Gaal @ 33/1

Obviously things didn't work out quite as well as they should have at Manchester United, yet Van Gaal is just over two years removed from an excellent international run in charge of the Netherlands, placing third at World Cup 2014 and beating Spain, Chile and Brazil en route. They didn't even qualify for a 24-team European Championship without him. His legacy at Old Trafford may not be an FA Cup triumph and fourth and fifth-place finishes - arguably par for the period and squad he was given - but plucking Marcus Rashford from obscurity and turning him into a starter at the age of 18.

Eintracht Frankfurt v Borussia Dortmund: Eagles to build a wall in Berlin

Eintracht Frankfurt v Borussia Dortmund Saturday 27 May, 19:00 Live on BT Sport ESPN Eintracht Frankfurt This time last season, Eintracht Frankfurt were fighting for survival in a Bundesliga playoff against second-tier side Nurnberg. Fast forward a year, and they are preparing for their first major cup final since 2006, having finished well clear of relegation trouble this term. Having steered the Eagles through that playoff against Nurnberg, coach Niko Kovac set about galvanising not just the squad, but the entire club. Working with sporting director Bruno Hubner and former Germany striker Fredi Bobic, Kovac has injected new life into an organisation that was drifting. Youngsters like defender Jesus Vallejo and forward Ante Rebic have been brought in on loan to good effect, and astute pickups like holding midfielder Omar Mascarell and forward Branimir Hrgota have become effective cogs in the machine. Although Frankfurt have twice...

Goals in Confederations Cup : Spain vs Uruguay 2-1

Tottenham’s Dele Alli eyes Premier League debut at Manchester United

It was quite the opening statement. Dele Alli, 24 minutes into his first start in a Tottenham Hotspur shirt, suckered in Luka Modric of Real Madrid, nutmegged him and accelerated away. The 70,000 sell-out crowd at Bayern Munich’s Allianz Arena roared at the 19-year-old’s sheer impudence. "We had a laugh about it in the tunnel afterwards; he was very good about it,” Alli said. "He shook my hand and said to me: ‘You little bugger’ – or something like that. I didn’t shout ‘nuts’ when I did it. I used to do that when I was young and get told off for it." As Alli spoke at the Allianz after Tuesday’s 2-0 Audi Cup victory, some of Real’s galácticos filed past. This time last year the midfielder was preparing for MK Dons’ League One season opener against Gillingham. His previous competitive game was for MK against Yeovil in May. Alli says “unreal” and “surreal” on a number of occasions and it is little wonder. This is a young player of conviction. If the nutmeg on one of...

SOCCER FOOTBALL 24H

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