Eriksson rules out Old Trafford

Sven-Goran Eriksson has ruled out any chance of him succeeding Sir Alex Ferguson as Manchester United manager.

Sven-Goran Eriksson has ruled out any chance of him succeeding Sir Alex Ferguson as Manchester United manager.

England coach Eriksson had been the bookies favourite to take over from Ferguson, who steps down at Old Trafford at the end of the season.

But Eriksson, who has steered England to next year's World Cup finals and has a five-year contract with the Football Association, has dashed any hopes United had of luring him back into club management.

The Swede told the News of the World: "I have never even thought about going to Manchester United. I will be with England for ages."

READ MORE

Eriksson, speaking after picking up his Coach of the Year Award from Princess Anne at the Cafe Royale, added: "I am with England to the World Cup and beyond. I see myself in this job for a long, long time."

FA chief executive Adam Crozier, reacting to Eriksson's pledge not to turn his back on England, said: "I'm not surprised. I've said before that I never thought he would go.

"We believe we can make history and Sven wants to be a part of that. We have never discussed Manchester United because I knew we didn't need to.

"Our key objective is to win a major tournament by 2006. Clearly, Sven is a huge part of that and that's why we've signed him up for a long term."