SAM Allardyce is set to be named England boss within the next 24 hours.

The 61-year-old was originally interviewed for the role in 2006, only to be overlooked in favour of Steve McClaren.

Allardyce boasts a managerial career stretching back to 1994 when he took his first full-time appointment at Blackpool. Since then he has built a career on getting the most out of unfancied sides and players who have been largely written-off elsewhere.

He took Bolton into the Premier League and eventually into Europe with a team sprinkled with talents such as Jay-Jay Okocha, Ivan Campo and Youri Djorkaeff - all players considered over-the-hill before playing under Allardyce.

A couple of unsuccessful spells at Newcastle and Blackburn dented his standing somewhat, but he returned to take West Ham from the Championship back into the top flight in his first season, establishing them before being replaced. Troubled Sunderland then came calling and he kept them up with some astute January signings.

As a bruising defender from the West Midlands, he has worked hard to shake that tag, notably in his previous two jobs, but it is something which may worry England fans who want to see the national side play with a swagger.

For all of his detractors, Allardyce has the support of a very influential figure - former Manchester United manager and close friend Sir Alex Ferguson.

He was one of the very first English managers to make use of the ProZone software, statistical analysis programs which played a big part in his early success at Bolton. He has maintained his approach and much of football followed in those footsteps around the turn of the millennium.

He had a long-standing rivalry with Rafael Benitez and has also had run-ins with the likes of Arsene Wenger, Louis van Gaal and Jose Mourinho down the years - although he and the Portuguese are now friends after their work together at SoccerAid.

As well as his aforementioned reputation preceding him, Allardyce has joked in the past he does not have a name fancy enough to be considered for a top-four club.

"I'm not called Allardici, just Allardyce," he said back in 2012. But he does boast a huge amount of self-belief, claiming during his time at Blackburn he was better-suited to Inter Milan, Real Madrid, Manchester United or Chelsea and saying he would win the double with any of those clubs.

Is Big Sam the best choice for England manager?

Is Sam Allardyce the best choice for England manager?
Yes
No