Gone Dutch: Steve McClaren during his England days

As England manager he didn't make much sense.

Now Steve McClaren has gone one, ridiculous step further in his new job as a football coach in Holland.

He has carried on talking utter rubbish in English  -  but this time with a bizarre Dutch accent.

In a television interview that has become a huge hit on YouTube, McClaren appearsh  -  sorry appears  -  to emulate the great Dutch coaches Marco van Basten and Guus Hiddink by trying to sound like them.

Speaking ahead of his new club FC Twente's clash with Arsenal this week, McClaren tells the female interviewer: "Championsh League, Liverpool or Arshenal, I thought one of them we would draw and it is Arshenal I think.

"To experiensh big gamesh, Championsh League... Arshenal... The Emiratesh... will be fantashtic for the playersh, not just for now but for the future ash well. I shay I think we are not just... what you call?... underdogsh but mashive underdogsh."

There will be speculation that McClaren was deliberately speaking with a Dutch accent as a private joke but reports today suggest it was no prank and that is how he speaks English over there.

"It is not a joke," a source close to McClaren has said.

Certainly there has been a long tradition of foreign players coming to this country and speaking English with regional accents; witness the Scouse accent Jan Molby developed at Liverpool. But a native Englishman speaking his own language with a comedy accent appears unprecedented.

McClaren, 47, was dubbed the Wally with the Brolly after sheltering under an umbrella as England crashed to defeat in the pouring rain against Croatia during Euro 2008.

He was sacked after that game but moved to Holland to resurrect his career.

Sadly, while he may sound like a Dutchman, his team is playing less than total football. On Wednesday night, FC Twente lost 2-0 to Arsenal and now face an early  -  if expected  -  exit from the Champions League.

Or as McClaren might say: "Shome you winsh, shome you looshe." Although, of course in his case, he losht gamesh too many, we thinksh.