Next England manager: Hull City confirm FA have held 'informal discussions' with Steve Bruce over replacing Roy Hodgson

It is believed that Bruce is considered as a contingency option to Sunderland's Sam Allardyce

Hull manager Steve Bruce has won promotion twice with the club (Getty)

Hull City have confirmed Steve Bruce has held “informal” talks with the Football Association about the prospect of replacing Roy Hodgson as the England manager.

The 55-year-old has been linked with the vacant position since Hodgson announced his resignation following the disastrous defeat to Iceland in the second round of Euro 2016 in Nice.

Bruce has made no secret of his ambition to manage England and has openly discussed the saga in the past weeks, saying he was “highly flattered” to be among the suggested replacements.

A statement on Hull’s website said: “The club can confirm that manager Steve Bruce has held informal discussions regarding the England vacancy, although no official approach has been received from the FA.

“We would hope to see the FA conclude their business quickly in order to avoid further speculation regarding Steve ahead of what is a season of huge importance for the club following our return to the Premier League.”

It is believed that Bruce is considered as a contingency option to Sam Allardyce, the bookies’ favourite, as the Sunderland manager closes in on becoming England manager a decade after being spurned by the FA.

Allardyce, the former Bolton and Blackburn boss, applied to replace Sven-Göran Eriksson in 2006 but a failed PowerPoint presentation during his interview and Steve McClaren’s influence at the FA ensured he was overlooked for the post.

With the FA’s recruitment panel of Martin Glenn, the chief executive, Dan Ashworth, the technical director, and David Gill, the vice-chairman, set to make a decision in the coming days, Bruce can only wait and continue his Hull duties in the interim.