Defoe: Allardyce ready for England

Jermain Defoe has backed Sunderland manager Sam Allardyce for the now-vacant England manager role.

Roy Hodgson resigned from the position after England’s 2-1 round-of-16 loss to Iceland.

The former England international, who plays under Allardyce at Sunderland, said he has found a new appreciation for the former Bolton, Newcastle United and West Ham manager.

Allardyce arrived at Sunderland with the club entrenched in the relegation zone but masterminded a great escape as he rallied the dressing room and produced improved results on the field, and Defoe says that is exactly the sort of manager England need.

“He should be [among the contenders for the job],” Defoe told BBC.

“Sam has always said to us, ‘you know what? I don’t care how we play, as long as we win, that’s the most important thing.’

“Sometimes you can’t make it pretty and play good football … football is about results. It doesn’t matter how you play.”

While Defoe would rather Allardyce stay with Sunderland, he feels the manager would instantly transform the England dressing room and make them hard to beat.

“I’ve always known about Sam, but it’s not until you play for a manager that you realise what they bring to the team and the dressing room,” he said.

“And I remember when I was really young at West Ham and going to play his Bolton teams and pulling up to the stadium and always thinking, ‘it’s going to be a tough one,’ because they’re so direct and we used to say it’s a horrible way of playing but it’s so effective.

“But he doesn’t complicate anything. On a Thursday, we do the team selection and he tells us, ‘this is what I want and this is how we’re going to win on Saturday,’ and it is always different depending on the opposition.

“He could transfer that to the international stage. If you look at the young players we have and the legs and the energy they have, 100 per cent he could do it.”