Mourinho in the frame

It had been suggested Mourinho had come to the UK for an interview after the FA admitted to contacting his agent but other reports claim he is in Portugal - and does not have any plans to leave.

The FA will shortly conclude their wide-ranging consultation process.

Although Martin O'Neill's name continues to be mentioned, unless the Ulsterman reverses his stance on not leaving Aston Villa, it appears any short-list drawn up by Brian Barwick and Trevor Brooking will be exclusively 'foreign'.

O'Neill also told The Times he thinks Mourinho would be "an excellent choice, simple as that".

Certainly the Portuguese would be the easiest choice given his working knowledge of the English game and senior figures within his camp have spent the last week urging the FA to get in touch, which it appears they have done, even if it is not to the extent of booking him a flight.

In his own private conversation with the FA, Sir Alex Ferguson is sure to have repeated his public stance that if a younger man - and Mourinho fits into that category - proved to be a success as an international manager, he would immediately crave a club job, as witnessed by Alex McLeish and his surprise move from Scotland to Birmingham.

Fabio Capello, who made his interest known almost as soon as McClaren was sacked, is without question a live contender, with FA officials making it clear that his inability to speak English would not prevent him getting the job.

The same criteria would also apply to fellow Italian and World Cup-winning coach Marcello Lippi who has one major positive going for him in that he has an outstanding relationship with Ferguson, from whom he will require a large degree of co-operation.

Jurgen Klinsmann has been backed by Germany legend Franz Beckenbauer, although having not had a job since guiding his country to the semi-finals of the last World Cup, the former Tottenham player is regarded as an outside bet.