THE FA have already made two of the biggest mistakes in the history of football. They cannot be allowed to make another now.

They should have appointed Brian Clough as England manager, when he was in his pomp.

My old gaffer would have worked wonders. He was the right man for the job.

He was overlooked.

And, before Fabio Capello was appointed, the bigwigs in blazers dismissed Martin O'Neill, who was also the best man at that time, as a potential candidate.

Now they have to learn from those mistakes.

They absolutely, positively have to appoint Harry Redknapp as the next England manager.

There just isn't another possible candidate for the role.

Yes, in an ideal world, I'd still like my old pal O'Neill to be given an opportunity.

But the fact is that he does not want it. That particular boat has sailed a long time ago.

And even Martin can see that the only man for the job now is Harry.

I feel some sympathy for Capello, because he was badly undermined by some poor decision-making from England's football hierarchy.

I don't have an issue with John Terry having the England captaincy taken off him, while we await the result of his trial over allegations of racism.

But the way the whole thing was handled bordered on comedy.

If that was the step they wanted to take, it should have been done immediately, as soon as it became clear he faced criminal charges, not months down the line.

And Capello should have been involved in those discussions. The decision should not have been made behind his back.

Having said all of that, I am also glad to see him leave, because I don't believe his heart was in the job.

I would not be shocked if he was actually secretly pleased to have escaped the role.

Because I am not convinced he believed England had any chance of achieving anything at the European Championships this summer.

Under his guidance, I am not sure we did.

We are talking about a man who was still struggling with the English language, he never seemed to be fully committed to fully learning the language, which was surely a basic requirement.

He certainly didn't seem to ever grasp the peculiar passions and nuances of the English game. He never quite came to terms with the media or how to properly handle them.

Neither are things that will faze Harry. Heck, the fact that he is favourite for the job now is partly because he is the press favourite.

He knows how to deal with them; how to get his message across.

And that, crucially, is a talent he possesses with the players as well.

He is a motivator, an inspiration. Players like and respect him.

He is not a complex character, he is old school. But to me that is also important. Because it means he has old-fashioned values.

People who regularly read this column will know how much I value that.

There are too many players in the modern era who are more concerned about how many Rolex watches and Aston Martins they have than how many England caps.

They need a manager who will remind them exactly how special it should be every time they wear the three lions on their chests.

Harry has already stated that being England manager would be the very pinnacle of his profession.

I am sure he will instil the same level of appreciation among his players.

The only difficult decision that has to be made before the tournament kicks off in the summer is over who should be captain.

Obviously Terry is out of contention. Rio Ferdinand is a player on the wane.

Frank Lampard's time also looks to have passed, in terms of him being one of the first names on the team sheet – which is a basic requirement of your skipper.

Steven Gerrard's recent injury record leaves some doubt over him . . . so where does that leave us?

I cannot overstate the importance of John McGovern's role as a leader in our Forest side that was fortunate enough to enjoy so much success.

He was a figurehead, a driving force for us, on and off the pitch.

It was the same with the great Liverpool sides during that same era. They had the likes of Phil Thompson and Graeme Souness.

These were hard, inspirational men. People who dragged their sides through anything that came between them and success.

That is what England are missing now. There are no truly inspirational characters in that dressing room.

Which is why it is so critical that they appoint a manager who can provide some of those qualities himself.

And that man is Harry.

Steve Cotterill believes he has added some toughness and steel to his Nottingham Forest side, with the signings he has made over the past week or so.

And I certainly wouldn't relish going toe-to-toe with George Elokobi, because he is a man mountain. A beast.

But what Forest need at the minute is not physical toughness, but mental strength.

Cotterill was right to add depth to his back four ahead of anything else, because Forest were desperately short of numbers.

But, while it will do no harm to have a few hard men in there, what matters most is that they have the mental toughness to get through what is going to be a real battle, between now and the end of the season.

They need to defend bravely and have the confidence to take chances when they come their way. When you are in a relegation fight, no qualities are more important than that.