Sam Allardyce: England must use the heartache of the Euros to drive them to deliver at the World Cup

SAM ALLARDYCE has told his England players to use the heartache of Euro 2016 humiliation as the inspiration to deliver at the World Cup.

Allardyce is inheriting a young Three Lions squad who were shell-shocked at their dismal exit from the European Championship.

But instead of banishing the memories, the new England manager wants his men to harness the pain of their darkest day and let it become the driving force of his regime in charge of the national side.

Allardyce, who has signed an initial two-year contract with the FA, said: “Let’s gain from the experience of the Euros.

“It’s a very bitter experience we all know, but that inner drive the players should keep, they should hold it and use it as a positive and say ‘I don’t want to experience that again’.

“So we are going to get into the qualifiers, try and qualify for the World Cup and when we go next time we are better prepared mentally to succeed.”

Given the embarrassing nature of England’s exit following the 2-1 last-16 defeat to Iceland, the futures of all the squad involved is up for debate.

But in reality, Allardyce is going to have to work with largely the same group of footballers as he plots the country’s qualifying campaign for Russia 2018.

Young talent like Dele Alli, Harry Kane and Marcus Rashford are likely to play a central role over the coming two years, and making sure they are not scarred by what happened in France is going to be of huge importance for Allardyce.

There is no time for any of the players feeling sorry for themselves, with England facing their first Group F qualifier against Slovakia on September 4.

And with a trip to Slovenia and then the high-pressure clash with Scotland at Wembley to come before the end of the year, Allardyce cannot afford for any of his players to be suffering a hangover from the Euros.

He added: “First and foremost it is about regaining a little bit of confidence they may have lost after the Euros.

“It’s about putting that away and putting that to bed and say we’ve always been very, very good at qualifying for tournaments.

“We went through the whole European Championship campaign without getting beaten so let’s get starting from day one, let’s put that aside and let’s start delivering.”

In his first interview since succeeding Roy Hodgson as manager, the former Sunderland and West Ham boss said his big chance has come at the ideal moment in his career.

And he admitted his was full of nerves in the days after his interview with the FA before discovering he had finally got the job he had always craved.

The England boss said: “For me, with my experience now, I think it is the right time – the right time for me, the right age with the right experience.

“Hopefully I can pass a bit of my experience on to the team, and the staff that works behind the team, to try and get a very happy camp that becomes successful.

“It’s been a whirlwind couple of days, and you are left there thinking and wondering if they are going to choose you this time.

“For me it was a very nervous occasion to wait and see who was successful, and when you finally get the call you are absolutely delighted that you are the way forward for the England team.

“As a youngster, when you start football, and you dream about being a footballer and finally make it, your next dream has to be what is the next level for you?

“You dream about being a manager, you finally make it, you work your way through the ranks and you look at the ultimate goal.

“For me it’s a privileged position to have now got top of the tree, top of the ladder, and this job couldn’t be any bigger.