By the first week of May we should finally know who the next England manager will be – but if I were Alan Curbishley I wouldn’t worry too much about having to cancel my family holiday this summer.

The Charlton boss was believed to have been on the FA’s original shortlist but apparently has now been eliminated from the running despite insisting he desperately wants the job.

FA sources suggest that Allardyce, McClaren, Scolari and O’Neil were all called back to Soho Square this week to re-state their claims for the biggest job in English football.

But poor Alan’s phone never rang. Not a peep. Not so much as an SMS.

Officially the FA is claiming they didn’t ask Curbishley back so he could, instead, concentrate on Wednesday’s FA Cup quarter-final. But, unless I am greatly mistaken, didn’t that game also involve McClaren’s team as well? Yet he was still summoned down to London.

Alan himself has said he is in the dark and has not heard a thing since his initial meeting with the FA.

To be honest, of the three English candidates in the running, Curbishley was not my favourite – I would go for Big Sam any day – but I don’t think it was particularly fair to reject him like that.

At least Alan had shown a genuine interest in leading his country, unlike McClaren. The Boro boss is looking increasingly likely to get the job on the back of an excellent run of form for his club. Yet he has never, at least in public, actually said the idea of replacing Sven appeals to him.

I would much prefer a man in charge of the national team who is happy to say, without reservation, that he would drop everything and come running if his country called.

Having said that, even a semi-reluctant Englishman has got to be better than an overpaid Swede…

Sol Campbell

Good to see Sol Campbell back on pitch doing what he does best – getting stuck in where it hurts.

The England defender returned to action on Wednesday night for Arsenal and lasted 89 minutes against Portsmouth but not before receiving treatment for two head injuries and shedding plenty of blood for the cause.

There may be doubts and concerns over his mental state but from what I saw of his performance his on-pitch attitude is right back where it should be.

Ferdinand and Terry may now be first choice centre backs for England but I can’t think of any other player I would rather have as back up than big Sol.

Let’s hope he can keep himself fit both physically and mentally for the next couple of months as I believe he could yet have a big role to play in Germany where shedding blood for the cause could be the difference between success and failure.

New Man United

Glazer family beware… the all new Manchester United are on the march.

The team created by supporters angered by the Americans’ take over of Old Trafford has just won its first promotion less than a year after being formed.

FC United beat Chadderton 4-0 to secure their promotion out of the North West Counties Second Division.

A crowd of nearly 3,000 saw the new United win and that fan base, already huge in comparison to other clubs in the same division, is set to grow as the team makes its way up the league structure.

It’s still a long way for FC United to get into the top flight and would, assuming they gain promotion in consecutive seasons, take well over a decade.

But wouldn’t it be great if somewhere down the line that happened? Maybe not for the Glazers, but certainly for football.

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