Well, bloody hell................

Alardyce is merely bleating and trying to divert blame with this "entrapment" rubbish. The fact that he is well known as being arrogant, keen for the fast buck, and clouded with long term persistent rumours (some true) of dodgy dealing was

a: sufficient for someone to dangle some bait
b: proof of his dubious professional morals.

He was never, ever, suitable material to represent this country in an honest light, especially in this Sep Blatter fallout period.


We all know the national press are predatory beasts from the sewer and stink accordingly, Alardyce knows this more than most having had previous dealings, and this episode also merely reinforces his naivety and stupidity. 

Yup statistics say he is also the only England manager to have a perfect defensive record. No goals conceded. 

...apart from the rather spectacular "own" one..........

Going by what one reads Allardyce is no stranger to misbehavior. However, what is less clear is whether he breaks the rules or he recklessly avoids them. Neither makes him a particularly nice person, but only one makes him a criminal.

I know ways around stuff as well. Sometimes I am paid to help people avoid stuff. So does a tax advisor, so does a surveyor, in fact so does pretty much everybody. Avoiding is what we do be that speeding fines, parking tickets, tax bills, trips to the shops with your wife, etc. etc.

So I really can't get excited about Allardyce bragging he could get around regulations.

He negotiated a large fee for a speaking engagement. So what? So do I, so does anybody who can. Being asked to do such a thing is always a response to one's role, position and/or knowledge. Otherwise why would they want you? So I'm not very excited about that either.

He was rude about Hodgson and Neville. Well, that's pretty uncool but not against the law. And anyway those two are a pair of pillocks. So again, Allardyce doesn't come across as very nice, but so what?

Allardyce appears to me to be not very nice, not very clever, not very astute and, at best, clumsy. None of which is very remarkable or dismissable.

I can see how the FA might worry about him bringing them into disrepute, not supporting the party line, etc, etc. So I can see how the FA would want him to go away and have grounds for asking him to do so. Not that I think they are a great bunch of people either, but I suspect that they feared the potential baying media.

But the hypocritical sanctimony of the media and the public is beyond belief. If the police had done what the media did there would have been outrage. That goes beyond entrapment into incitement. The media in general, and The Telegraph in particular, have outdone themselves in their spectacular scum-iness.

I don't really see what the public has got to be upset about. The Hodgson jokes have been going around for months if not years, everybody [and I mean everybody] avoids every rule that they can, and all anybody really wants is a good manager, and he might have been one.

Its all rather pathetic.

As a Telegraph I too am disappointed by their behaviour. Allerdyce is no angel, but let one who is without sin ........(as you Christians say ).

Big Sam was having a private conversation, so he thought. I speak my mind in private about all sorts of things and people. If I thought it would go further, I wouldn't say it, but one makes assumptions and occasionally lets rip. So what. Hodgson was a muppet in France and Neville not much better. Why did Sam get the job? Because Hodgson failed....bady. If he failed, then why not criticise him?