Hoddle's glimpse of the future

Glenn Hoddle is beginning to build bridges with the England Under- 21 squad, sharing tea and toast as well as his thoughts with the players.

Dave Sexton remains in charge as coach for the Toulon tournament but Hoddle, who will replace Terry Venables after Euro 96, is in France to monitor the progress of the country's likely lads. He saw England get off to a flying start on Friday with a 1-0 victory over Belgium, courtesy of a goal from Spurs striker, Steve Slade.

Hoddle said: "These are the guys of the future and the quicker I get to see them the better. I have a four-year contract and these kids are going to be around. That's the philosophy behind this trip.

"England were weaker in some respects but stronger in other departments. They showed a lot of confidence in the last 20 minutes compared to the first 20.

"This is a vital period for these players. It's a magic stepping stone with the World Cup coming up. At the moment all the attention is centred around Euro 96 and rightly so but the World Cup is the biggest stage.

"They are learning, they are going to make mistakes. What's important is how they cope at this level. It's the quality of the player that's more important."

Hoddle's assistant, John Gorman, is alongside him in Toulon and getting a little fed up with all the questions about his qualifications for the job as he has Scottish roots.

He said: "I have played a lot of my football in England. I have managed in England. I have got English children, who live in England and I am looking forward to when we can start the job."