There are two groups of people who seem opposed to the prospect of Sam Allardyce as England manager. There is the collective of aesthetes, the purists and the traditionalists, those who believe a national team is somehow representative of the nation and should offer a template of free-flowing, sensuous football. And then there are Sunderland fans, who recognise what a blow losing Allardyce would be.
The job Allardyce did at Sunderland last season was remarkable. He arrived eight games into the season with the club on three points and drifting badly. Summer recruitment had been poor, and there was a clear sense former manager Dick Advocaat regretted going back on his initial decision to retire at the end of the previous season.