FA to take time over Wilkinson successor

The Football Association will not be rushed into finding a replacement for technical director Howard Wilkinson as they scour Europe for the right candidate.

Wilkinson left the FA after five years in the post to become manager of Sunderland, with the club now facing a six-figure compensation fee.

The search for a successor will not begin in earnest until after England's Euro 2004 qualifying games against Slovakia on Saturday and Macedonia next Wednesday.

Sven-Goran Eriksson will then be involved in the hunt by FA chief executive Adam Crozier, who will also consult the Professional Footballers' Association and the League Managers' Association.

Indeed, there is a chance that the Swede could be joined by another overseas appointment as Crozier insisted he would simply "go for the best person for the job".

High-profile English figures such as ex-Blackburn boss Roy Hodgson, who is manager of the United Arab Emirates, and Peter Taylor, the former Under-21 coach who worked with Eriksson at senior level, will be in the frame.

However, there are also strong internal candidates, such as Les Reed, the director of technical development, and Stuart Baxter, who has also impressed since arriving at Soho Square.

Crozier made it clear that the role is a specialist position, requiring someone who is prepared to give up directly coaching a team.

"We haven't given it a huge amount of thought yet and I don't think there's any need to dive in and get a quick solution. It's more important to get it right," he stressed.