Southend consider Collymore return

Southend have held initial discussions with Stan Collymore over a return to Roots Hall as player-manager.

Collymore, who enjoyed a successful spell with the club from November 1992 to July 1993, has been out of football since leaving the Spanish side Real Oviedo two years ago. The 33-year-old, never far from the spotlight during his career - which included spells at Nottingham Forest, Liverpool and Aston Villa - developed a reputation as a brilliant but notoriously temperamental striker.

Southend have been in the hunt for a new manager following the departure of Steve Wignall. The former Leicester captain, Steve Walsh, has been tipped to be Collymore's assistant if he does join the club.

Tottenham have said that their caretaker manager, David Pleat, had been misquoted in a report appearing in the Australian press which poked fun at the club's former manager, Glenn Hoddle.

Pleat was quoted as saying of the applications to succeed Hoddle: "We've had everyone. Managers, agents, mothers, fathers, dustmen, cleaners, applying. To be fair, none of the above would probably do much worse than Glenn Hoddle."

But Spurs' website said the quote had been fabricated and was "blatantly and totally false".