Canada boss John Herdman has been attracting admiring glances from English clubs, including Burnley, Blackburn and QPR.
Herdman, 46, is a great story because he was born in Consett, County Durham, was at Sunderland’s academy before moving to New Zealand 20 years ago.
He took over the women’s team, led them to the Olympics and then got a job in Canada where he led them to two consecutive bronze medals and eventually became the national men’s coach in 2018.
Herdman has led Canada to their first World Cup in 36 years and, while he has a contract until 2026, his coaching style, his success on the international stage has put him on the radar of clubs.
The fact he was born in England and has not hidden his desire to return one day in the future has meant clubs have been looking.
Burnley sacked Sean Dyche and have got Michael Jackson in charge but want to go English in the future while Blackburn are also looking for a new boss as Tony Mowbray departs.
QPR’s Mark Warburton is also on his way out and they are looking at MK Dons coach Liam Manning but have also been casting the net in the past few weeks.
Newcastle fan Herdman has been blessed with players such as Alphonso Davies and Jonathan David but is defying the odds and his inspirational style has alerted English clubs with several now checking on his potential availability.
Canada were 94th when Herdman took over but have now risen to 33rd in the world and he admits that his dream has been to set up a friendly with England at Wembley.
Herdman’s record abroad is now getting noticed here but, along with Gareth Southgate, he is the other English manager set to go to the World Cup this year.
