Hoddle offered English mgr. post
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This is a digitised version of an article from The Cayman Compass's print archive. Occasionally, the digitisation process introduces transcription errors, or other problems.
See the article in its original context from May 1996.
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Hoddle confirmed he had been offered the England job by the FA and said he was given 48 hours to make a decision.
"Lots of thoughts are on my mind and I have got a lot of decisions to make, but a decision hasn't been made yet," Hoddle said as he left his home in Berkshire.
Hoddle, a former England, Tottenham and Monaco midfielder, is widely expected to accept the offer. No manager has ever turned down a formal offer to become England boss.
Hoddle would replace Terry Venables, who announced in January that he will step down as England. gland coach after the European Championships in June to concentrate on a series of pending court cases.
At 38, Hoddle would become England's youngest ever manager - and least experienced. He has been a club manager for only five years, first with Swindon and then with Chelsea.
Hoddle became the favorite for the England job after Middlesbrough's Bryan Robson, Newcastle's Kevin Keegan, Tottenham's Gerry Francis and other candidates all ruled themselves out of the running.
The England job is the most high-profile management position in British sport, subject to intense media scrutiny. Former manager Graham Taylor was vilified in the tabloids and branded a "turnip" after England failed to qualify for the 1994 World Cup finals. Chelsea directors said they would fight to keep Hoddle at Stamford Bridge. His contract expires at the end of May.
Newspaper reports suggested that Chelsea's Dutch star Ruud Gullit had been offered the job as Hoddle's assistant with the England team. He would be the first foreigner included in England's national team setup. But Bates ruled out Gullit leaving the club.
"He is under exclusive contract to this club until June 1997 and under no circumstances whatsoever, directly or indirectly would we release him from it," he said. "If he plays football or does any coaching at all, it will be for Chelsea Football Club next season."
Reports said Gullit could take over as player-manager at Chelsea if Hoddle accepts the England job.
Bates slammed the FA over its approach to Hoddle. "I'm very disappointed with the FA," he said.
"If they had Glenn on their shortlist, they should have approached him a month or so ago so the matter could have been resolved.
"It's very bad behavior on their part to leave it so late. And I understand they approached him yes"Yesterday before they approached the club, so they are probably technically in breach of some of their own rules. But anarchy rules these days."
Hoddle came to Chelsea from Swindon, where he guided the club to promotion to the Premier League in 1993.
As a player, he made 53 international appearances for England from 1979 to 1988. He won the FA Cup with Tottenham in 1981 and 1982, and the UEFA Cup in 1984.
