Friday: World Cup draw worries ..

England will not be in the top seeds for Sunday's 2010 World Cup draw in Durban, as the BBC reports.

Looks like Steve McClaren still thinks he has something to offer English football, as The Telegraph reports his offer of assistance in taking the game forward. Strange, as many would think it's down to him that we have progressively edged backwards.

Elsewhere, Alan Shearer says he is stunned to be linked with the vacant England manager's role.

Not as stunned as the public would be if he got the job.

Don't get me wrong, Shearer is a Newcastle United legend, but one step at a time Barwick.

Bizarrely, it seems that Shearer has more chance of getting the job that Sam Allardyce, who came so close 15 months ago. NUFC Blog gets under the skin of Big Sam's quotes yesterday and draws some interesting conclusions ..