Manchester United legend and England World Cup winner Sir Bobby Charlton says Aston Villa boss Martin O'Neill is the man for the Three Lions job.

In a column for the Independent, Charlton wrote: "O'Neill has a touch of something shared by football men such as Ramsey, Stein, Busby and Shankly. He has an authority, a belief in himself that he seems able to transfer to players.

"It is something that players such as Steven Gerrard and Frank Lampard, who can be so dominant at club level, cried out for as they found themselves incapable of influencing one of the most important games England have ever played.

"They need a tough guy on the touchline and in the dressing room. Someone who can take their doubts away. Make them relax.

"Sven Goran Eriksson is winning now at Manchester City but, for me, this only emphasises the different demands of the club and international game. As an international manager you're not with your players all the time and so you don't get in the hearts and minds of them unless you are strong enough to take some of the responsibilities away from the players. Players like Gerrard and Lampard are OK with their clubs but when it comes to England they look so uneasy, so lacking in real confidence. They talk to the media - too much really - but what they say rarely seems to carry much conviction. Words can be idle if things aren't happening on the pitch.

"All the great managers make it easy for their players. They take away doubts. They say, 'This is the way we will play - just go out and do it.'"