FA could have done better background check on Sam Allardyce, says leading agent

The Football Association could have dug deeper for information before appointing Sam Allardyce as England manager, according to a leading agent.

Association of Football Agents founder Mel Stein believes the FA should have asked his colleagues about Allardyce, who left his post last week after just 67 days in charge.

The 61-year-old former Bolton and West Ham boss was filmed by undercover reporters making controversial remarks about a variety of subjects, including side work and explaining how to bypass FA rules on third-party player ownership.

Allardyce believed he was talking to a business representative of an overseas investment firm, willing to pay him £400,000 as a keynote speaker, and apologised after the Daily Telegraph published his comments and he lost his job.

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Stein related the importance of background checks on employees to historic instances of rumours circulating about well-known public figures before the full truth emerged.

Allardyce in 2006 denied allegations regarding illegal payments made in a BBC Panorama programme, and came into the England job with a clean record as a manager.

There is no suggestion Allardyce had a history of breaching rules, but Stein said football agents could have offered more background information about his character.

Speaking at the Leaders Sport Business Summit in London, Stein said: “I’m not suggesting in any shape, form or size that we should be involved in appointing an England manager, but … if anybody had spoken to any of us about their last appointment (Allardyce), we would’ve said, ‘You know what, he’s not Mother Teresa’.”

Stein added: “And I’m not saying he’s guilty of anything, but clearly if you were looking for somebody who was going to not cause you any problem, probably Allardyce was not your man.

“He may well have been the best manager for the job – and that’s a decision to make.”

FA chief executive Martin Glenn said last week it is “realistic” to expect that charges will follow the recent Telegraph investigation for Allardyce, which could lead to a fine or ban from football.

Glenn said that, at the time of making the appointment, the FA knew Allardyce “was a man of the world” and “his leadership credentials were excellent”.