Houllier and Eriksson in contention for Newcastle job
The Lyon boss and the former England manager, both 59, have been heavily linked with the post vacated by Glenn Roeder on Sunday evening despite the fact that Allardyce is an overwhelming favourite to be appointed at the second time of asking.
No talks have taken place between the Tyneside club and either the Frenchman or the Swede and their representatives. However, it is understood the Houllier camp have made their interest known, while Eriksson’s agent Athole Still has admitted his client would talk to the Magpies should they consider him an option.
Houllier has just led Lyon to their sixth successive French title, and his second in the two years since he took charge. The club currently enjoy a 19-point lead over second-placed Lens with three games still to play.
Houllier made his mark in England during a six-year stint at Liverpool, where he won the FA, League and UEFA Cups in 2001, and followed that up by lifting the Charity Shield and European Super Cup the following season.
Eriksson is awaiting the right opportunity to return to management after his departure from the England set-up following last summer’s World Cup finals.
Newcastle chairman Freddy Shepherd has been keeping his own counsel since Roeder’s departure in the wake of Saturday’s 2-0 home defeat by Blackburn.
Shepherd is understood to have identified Allardyce, who resigned at Bolton boss late last month, as his number one target, and bookmakers quickly suspended betting on his appointment.
However, the former Sunderland defender was on holiday in Spain when the news broke and the Magpies chairman insisted he had not spoken to him before Roeder’s decision was announced.
With two years remaining on his contract at the Reebok Stadium, Shepherd would be presented with a sizeable bill if he appoints Allardyce, while speculation that he could face further questioning under the Quest investigation could also complicate matters.
In addition, opinion on Tyneside is divided over his recruitment with Eriksson faring well in a poll of fans carried out by local radio station Metro.
But Shepherd has repeatedly dismissed speculation linking his club with the Swede, and is unlikely to pick up the phone this time around.
Whatever the misgivings of some fans, Bob Moncur, the last Newcastle captain to lift a major trophy, the 1969 Fairs Cup, is confident Allardyce could tackle the job which has defeated some of the biggest names in British football in recent years.
Meanwhile, Roeder’s resignation could have ended the Magpies’ hopes of landing out-of-contract Reading midfielder Steve Sidwell this summer amid reports that Chelsea and Everton have joined the race for his signature.
The outgoing manager was convinced he had landed the 24-year-old, but that situation now appears to have changed.
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