Sven-Goran Eriksson admitted he harbours some regret at accepting the England manager’s position and believes his reign ended because of a newspaper sting rather than results.
The Swede, who on Thursday revealed he is suffering from terminal cancer, became England’s first foreign-born boss in January 2001 and oversaw their fortunes until the end of the 2006 World Cup.
Months before his appointment, Eriksson led Lazio to their second – and still most recent – Serie A triumph in 1999-2000, having had other successful tenures at clubs in his native Sweden and Portugal.
But Eriksson lacked the Midas touch with England, unable to win a trophy despite the country’s so-called ‘golden generation’, and the 75-year-old wishes on occasion he had remained in Italy.
In a wide-ranging interview with Swedish Radio P1, where he disclosed his pancreatic cancer diagnosis, Eriksson said: “It was a fantastic life (in Italy). I thoroughly enjoyed it.
“But one day, I got a telephone call from England and I took the decision. It has crossed my mind whether it was the right choice. Maybe I should have stayed in Lazio where I was celebrated as a king?
“The only job I could imagine taking is as the manager of England. Because that’s the biggest there is.
“At some points, it’s hit me that there are a lot fewer games. It is a lot harder to win something when you go to a national side. You can win something every fourth year. That’s a big difference.”
The likes of David Beckham, Michael Owen, Steven Gerrard, Rio Ferdinand and Wayne Rooney thrived at club level in the early-to-mid-2000s but struggled to repeat that form on the international stage.
England exited both the 2002 and 2006 World Cups as well as Euro 2004 at the quarter-final stage, the latter two tournaments knocked out by Portugal on penalties.
However, a few months before the 2006 World Cup, it was announced Eriksson would step down with England following the end of the tournament despite having two more years left on his contract.
This was shortly after a story by the News of the World, where an undercover reporter posed as a rich Arab investor and recorded Eriksson suggesting he would be prepared to become Aston Villa boss.
Eriksson added: “It was a shock the first time we started seeing stories on the front page of the newspaper.
“Football’s on the back page in England normally and I was on the back page, but then I was on the front page as well. That was really unnecessary, really.
“The English press was not something you messed around with. They didn’t care if something was true or not. That was the big negative thing about England, that part of the press. The football press was OK.
“I was fired from England because of the fake sheikh, not because of results, and that angered me quite a lot at the time.”
Premier League clubs to vote on scrapping VAR after Wolves proposal
Premier League clubs will be asked to vote on the prospect of scrapping VAR for next season following a proposal from Wolves.
The use of VAR in the Premier League has been a talking point since its introduction at the start of the 2019-20 season, with a number of controversial decisions intensifying the debate surrounding its use this term.
Wolves have been on the wrong end of several contentious decisions this season, starting from their opening game last August, as Professional Game Match Officials Limited (PGMOL) representative Jon Moss apologised for a failure to award them a penalty during a 1-0 loss to Manchester United.
More recently, Wolves saw a potential stoppage-time equaliser against West Ham disallowed for a subjective offside call against Tawanda Chirewa, with boss Gary O'Neil given a one-match ban for a post-match outburst towards referee Tony Harrington.
Nottingham Forest have also been angered by several decisions in recent weeks, while PGMOL memorably apologised to Liverpool after Luis Diaz saw a goal wrongly disallowed in a 2-1 defeat at Tottenham last September.
Wolves have now tabled a resolution calling for VAR to be abolished, with clubs set to vote on the issue at an annual general meeting on June 6. Premier League rules require 14 of 20 clubs to vote in favour of a proposal for it to pass.
In a widely reported statement, Wolves said VAR had been introduced "in good faith and with the best interests of football and the Premier League at heart" but lamented a number of negative repercussions.
The club say VAR has caused frustration and confusion among match-going fans, negatively impacted the atmosphere at games, diminished accountability of match officials and overreached beyond its original aim to correct "clear and obvious" errors.
Wolves also said persistent errors being made despite the presence of VAR were difficult to accept and had furthered "completely nonsensical" allegations of corruption from supporters.
The club added: "Our position is that the price we are paying for a small increase in accuracy is at odds with the spirit of our game, and as a result we should remove it from the 2024-25 season onwards."
A Premier League spokesperson said: "The Premier League can confirm it will facilitate a discussion on VAR with our clubs at the annual general meeting next month.
"Clubs are entitled to put forward proposals at shareholders' meetings and we acknowledge the concerns and issues around the use of VAR.
"However, the league fully supports the use of VAR and remains committed, alongside PGMOL, to make continued improvements to the system for the benefit of the game and fans."
Sweden recently became the first country to opt against the implementation of VAR at the top level following a fan backlash.
Wolves boss O'Neil has repeatedly spoken out against the use of VAR since saying the award of two controversial penalties to Fulham in a 3-2 loss last November had turned him against the technology.
De Bruyne: Man City know title race 'is not over'
Kevin De Bruyne insists the Manchester City players know the Premier League title race is not over, despite being in the driving seat with just one game left.
The Citizens beat Tottenham 2-0 on Tuesday in their game in hand over leaders Arsenal, leapfrogging them to the top of the table.
City will host West Ham on the final weekend and as long as Pep Guardiola’s side match Arsenal’s result against Everton, they will win an unprecedented fourth consecutive Premier League title.
De Bruyne has played down suggestions that City celebrated like they had already won the title following the victory.
"We were happy, obviously, because it gets in the place that we wanted to be on Sunday," he told Sky Sports. "I didn't feel like there were any extra celebrations.
"Obviously, you're happy to win the game, but we know it's not done yet.
"I know everybody's talking now saying it should be easy, but we're used to playing these couple of games against Brighton and Villa before and it's never easy. There's always the pressure of being in that situation, so I think it's quite normal."
City’s win over Tottenham makes them big favourites to win the title, with the Opta supercomputer giving them an 84.3 per cent chance of lifting the Premier League trophy once more.
During their victory at the Tottenham Hotspur stadium, sections of the crowd cheered Erling Haaland’s opener by doing the Poznan, a celebration often used by the City fans, as the result shifted the title race out of their North London rivals' favour.
Asked if he had ever played in an environment like that before, De Bruyne added: "I think it's strange, but I didn't feel it from a players perspective.
"I have to say I thought Tottenham were really good, I think they played better than they did the weeks before.
"Fans are always a different thing, but I feel it's more feeding from outside, I never thought that from the players' or coaches' perspective, they would not come and give their best. That's the only thing we worry about."
Italy forward Zaniolo to miss Euro 2024 due to foot injury
Italy forward Nicolo Zaniolo will miss Euro 2024 after suffering a foot injury during Aston Villa's Premier League draw with Liverpool on Monday.
Zaniolo – who joined Unai Emery's side on a season-long loan from Galatasaray last August – came on as a second-half substitute as they fought back from 3-1 down to clinch a 3-3 draw at Villa Park.
That result moved Villa closer to securing Champions League qualification, which was confirmed when Tottenham lost 2-0 at home to Manchester City on Tuesday.
Zaniolo only lasted 14 minutes following his 65th-minute introduction before being withdrawn himself, though, and scans have shown he sustained a microfracture to his foot.
The 24-year-old has now confirmed he will be unable to feature in Italy's title defence at the Euros, with their Group B campaign set to begin against Albania on June 15.
In a post to his Instagram account, Zaniolo wrote: "Thank you for your support in these hours, to you Villans and to the many Italian and Turkish fans. I can't wait to get back on the field stronger than before!
"Unfortunately, I will have to give up my dream of representing my country in a major competition. But that day will come, I'm sure, and it will be beautiful! Come on Azzurri!"
Zaniolo also missed Italy's triumphant run at the delayed Euro 2020 three years ago as he was recovering from a ruptured cruciate ligament.
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