Taylor: Mclaren will be off

Graham Taylor has insisted that Steve Mclaren will be out of work shortly after England fail to book their Euro 2008 qualification. England slumped to a 2-1 defeat against Russia in Moscow on Wednesday, and the last time they failed to qualify for a major tournament was 1994 when - ironically - Graham Taylor was at the helm.

"Steve will be feeling very, very low," Taylor told BBC Radio Five. "He will know what his responsibilities are and at the end of the day the non-qualification, if it does turn out that way for Steve as looks very likely, will be the same with myself.

"Professionally we will be the only ones responsible. There has to be a part responsibility for the players but somebody has to carry the can and it is basically the manager.

"You just have to carry that with you and go on and step forward into the next part of your life.

"Steve will be the sixth England manager to go in the last 17 years compared with four in the previous 28 years," Taylor said.

"Our three most successful managers have been those who have served the longest period of time.

"Bobby Robson, in his first year, failed to qualify for the European Championships in 1984. And Bobby was supported, but the times have changed now. Changing the manager is not necessarily the answer.

"What we have to look at is our record in international football, both world and European, over so many years, it is poor."