Not for the first time in recent memory England are going into a major tournament with doubt surrounding future coaching arrangements. Although it looks like Middlesbrough's Steve Maclaren will be confirmed as England Coach in the next 24 hours (¼ on with Bet365), he will always have the tag of being the FA's second choice hanging over him following the Scolari affair.

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Now while this may provide him with some leeway as he begins the job with lowered expectations, the headlines have already been written following an England defeat in the Euro 2008 Qualifiers: "England's Second Choice Comes Off Second Best To..."

The doubts that will surround the next incumbent of what is universally recognised as the second most difficult job in the country go further than being second choice. Either, Maclaren as part of the current England set up will be tarnished by relative failure in Germany or weighed down with expectation should England make significant progress. Both will influence the upcoming Euro 2008 qualifying campaign, alongside Maclaren's involvement in England's inglorious exits from both the last World Cup in Japan and Euro 2004 in Portugal.

The temptation for Maclaren to stamp his own mark on the job in terms ofplayer selection will be great if England fail in Germany, but will exist in eithercase. The degree of change he instils will be a key indication of how far he ishis own man as England boss. He will also have to consider the make up of the backroom contingent. Here it will be interesting to see how far the FA insist that Maclaren begin grooming his successor almost as soon as he begins the job in an attempt to remove the debacle that has ensued since Sven announced he would be going after Germany.

Nonetheless, and regardless of the vagaries of Rooney's recovery, or a referees decision in Germany one thing is for sure. Maclaren will be blessed by a generation of players who have really quality: Gerrard, Rooney, Owen, Terry, Ferdinand, Lampard , Robinson can expect to form the backbone of the team for the next 4-6 years. These players all have experience of major tournaments and than can only bode well for England's long term future.

On a further positive note when England approached major tournaments in both 1990 and 1996 when it was clear that the then England managers were not going to continue in the post after the world cup both Bobby Robson and Terry Venables guided England to the semi-finals. Let us hope Sven is able to follow in their footsteps by applying technical and tactical nous as the tournament unfolds, and most importantly, inspiration for a nation.