LONDON, April 9- West Ham boss Sam Allardyce has revealed a long-standing “dream” to one day manage 20-time English champions Manchester United.
Allardyce has managed in the Premier League for just under 14 years, having not looked back since winning promotion with Bolton back in the 2000/01 season.
The 60-year-old was a candidate for the England job in 2006 but lost out to Steve McClaren, while he coached Newcastle and Blackburn prior to being handed the reins at Upton Park in 2011.
Allardyce always had a good relationship with former Red Devils manager Sir Alex Ferguson, but didn’t appear to be in the running to replace the Scot when he retired at the end of the 2012/13 campaign.
But he still has a burning ambition to sit in the Old Trafford hotseat before calling time on his own career.
“If I didn’t say West Ham were the dream club to manage then I’d be in trouble with West Ham fans, but there has always been one dream club to manage for me and that would be Man United,” Allardyce said in an interview with BT Sport.
“Playing at Old Trafford myself and then going back there as a manager, I think probably in this country, they are the one.”
However, Big Sam admits the one big setback in his career was being overlooked for the Three Lions post.
“The biggest disappointment for me was not being the England coach when it became touch and go between me and Steve McClaren at the end,” he declared.
“I had done two interviews for the job and Brian Barwick [then FA chairman] called me to say it was between me and Steve. He said, we will let you know. I never got a phone call.”
