TheCable

Sam Allardyce, Sunderland manager, will be confirmed as England manager in the next 24 hours.

According to Skysports, Allardyce will be ratified as Roy Hodgson’s replacement at Thursday’s FA board meeting.

Sunderland were informed of the news Wednesday afternoon, and their search for a replacement is already underway.

Allardyce and Hull manager Steve Bruce emerged as the two main candidates to take over from Hodgson, with both having spoken to the Football Association in the last week.

FA chief executive Martin Glenn confirmed earlier on Wednesday that the 12-man FA board would be updated with details of the manager search at Thursday’s meeting.

Glenn, vice chairman David Gill and technical director Dan Ashworth, were given the job of recommending a new manager in the wake of Hodgson’s departure at the end of England’s Euro 2016 campaign.

Hodgson stood down after the 2-1 defeat by supposed minnows Iceland in the last-16 in France.

“It’s been three weeks since the hunt started and we’re making good progress,” said Glenn. “We’re clear about what we’re looking for and we’ve interviewed a handful of people.

“We’re after the best man for the job and we’ve got to get that right. We’ve got to have covered all of the alternatives before we make our decision.

“Everyone we have spoken to about the job has been massively enthusiastic. We don’t want a short-term solution for a couple of years, we want someone to work alongside the development teams in terms of giving them a ladder.”