Eriksson: 'I was good value to England'

[sticky fingers]

Former England boss Sven-Goran Eriksson has hit back at those who have criticised him for continuing to accept money from the Football Association, almost a year after his five-and-a-half-year reign came to an end.

The 59-year-old Swede, who remains out of work, has denied that he is greedy, saying: "I had a contract until 2008. I was sacked. If I had been greedy I would have asked for money until 2008 - it would have been fair. I agreed to have six months fully paid and six months half paid. So I think I was good value for the FA."

The curtain fell on Eriksson's reign after England's World Cup quarter-final exit at the hands of Portugal last summer and despite the criticism he received while in the post he has revealed that he would not rule out managing in the Premier League.

Refusing to be drawn on the identity of the clubs he could manage when quizzed on TV, Eriksson replied: "I can't tell you that. Hopefully you will know it soon because if I'm going to take a job for next season it will happen in two or three weeks' time. Otherwise it is too late."

Eriksson, who pinned his dismissal on the "fake sheikh" scandal, has also revealed that his main regret as England head coach was not taking a "mental coach" to prepare the players for a penalty shoot-out in Germany.

He added: "England in this moment, last year and in the future, have a squad of players who can win the World Cup. We didn't do it, and I'm extremely sorry about that, but we could have done it."