5 things you need to know about England's new manager Sam Allardyce

Sam Allardyce
New England manager Sam Allardyce

Sunderland boss Sam Allardyce has been named as the new England manager after Roy Hodgson resigned following England’s shock exit from UEFA Euro 2016. Big Sam impressed the FA panel with his plans for the England national team which included psychologically revamping the dressing room with a sense of pride and commitment.

Allardyce has immense experience as a manager who has worked with clubs like Newcastle United and West Ham United previously. He dramatically kept Sunderland up in the Premier League last season after they looked all done and dusted and looked destined to be relegated.

The 61-year-old had previously interviewed for the post of England manager, 10 years ago where he was snubbed in favour of Steve McClaren who eventually became one of the worst appointments as England manager in recent times. Big Sam spent nine years as Bolton Wanderers manager where he had also previously played as a central defender.

The appointment of Allardyce has been backed by managers like Jose Mourinho and Sven-Goran Eriksson and the FA will hope that he brings the needful change in the England national team who have had disappointing international tournaments in the recent past.


#1 He once made his players race whilst sitting on toilets

Sam Allardyce Adam Johnson

Sam Allardyce is known for his innovative training methods to build team spirit in the dressing room. While in charge of Bolton Wanderers, Big Sam often took his players to day trips for several activities. He once made his players race against each other whilst sitting on toilet seats to see who could run around the field the quickest. At other times, he took them to the horse races. These fun activities often had a great impact in developing a collective bond in the team.

In order to boost team spirit, Allardyce used to take bets from his players. He told his players that if they could manage to win by three or more goals, the staff would lose and would have to do a dare, otherwise, the players would have to. When Bolton registered a 5-0 win over Leicester City in their first Premier League game in the 2001-2002 season, the staff had to go out and have meals of sheep testicles and hot curry and other foul foods.

#2 His father was a policeman

Sam Allardyce

Big Sam has often said that his father, who was a police sergeant, taught him the importance of discipline and hard work. “My old man always said you only get what you graft for,” he said. “It doesn’t matter how intelligent you are, how much education you’ve got, you’ll only get there on work-rate.

“My dad was a policeman for 25 years, a sergeant, and he taught me discipline. Any problems on our estate were always sorted out by Bob Allardyce. So discipline was everything.”

Allardyce’s family was not well off with the former Sunderland manager admitting that they could not afford a fridge or central heating. However, it did not get into Sam’s way who was born around factories but developed into a no-nonsense defender in his playing days. The England fans will have something to cheer about as discipline and hard work are two things England have lacked in the past and Big Sam would offer both as the England manager.

#3 No nonsense both in his playing and managerial career

Sam Allardyce

Sam Allardyce plied his trade as a defender in his playing days. He signed for Bolton Wanderers from Dudley town in 1969. He was described as a centre back who was never afraid of going into tackles and was especially adept at getting up quickly while the tackled opponent lay flat on the floor.

Big Sam’s managerial career is also based on the no non-sense principle. He is a student of the game who uses technology and statistics as a major preparatory ground ahead of games. Allardyce’s main strength lies in the preparation before the game which enables him to impart organisation and defensive stability in his side.

He has often been criticised for his long-ball tactics most notably in his time as West Ham manager with Jose Mourinho describing his style belonging to the 19th century. He has, however, dismissed such criticism by saying it is “totally and utterly wrong.” Allardyce is right up with the big guns in terms of his playing style, opting to study his opponents and organise his teams accordingly.

#4 He was dyslexic as a child and was diagnosed with a blocked artery in 2009

Sam Allardyce

Sam Allardyce was dyslexic as a child and struggled at school. He recalls: “The best day of my life was when I left,” he said.

“Nowadays, I would have had lots of help, but then you were regarded as a bit thick.”

He came to know about his condition only later in his life, but he did not give up at school after seeing others performing better than him.

“Once I got beyond ‘the cat sat on the mat’, I was stuck,” he said. “But I was good at covering up, I just copied what my less-challenged mates were doing.”

In 2009, a pain in his chest was diagnosed as blocked artery. Doctors told him that it was a result of his lifestyle and the stress that came with the game he was involved in. Since then, Big Sam got a new perspective on life. He said: “From that day forward, I never regarded losing football matches as such a catastrophe. Life and living were what mattered and there was always another game around the corner.”

#5 He has had other ventures apart from playing football throughout his career.

Sam Allardyce

Allardyce was from a family who was not well off. Pay from football back in his playing career was nowhere close to what it is now and Sam Allardyce had to diversify his income to sustain himself.

In his days as a player, Big Sam used to buy modest properties in Bolton and modernised them before selling it off. As told to The Daily Telegraph, Allardyce said: “We modernised terraced houses. Buy the place for £6,000. It didn’t have a damp-proof course and needed rewiring, so you’d do a rip-out job, revamp it and sell them for £10,000 to £12,000. I did a lot of the mortgages during the season and in the summer, I’d be in there with a sledgehammer, knocking down walls,”

Allardyce also has run several other ventures such as a motor spares firm, a social club, a pub, a piano bar and a fast-food restaurant.

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Edited by Staff Editor