Palios prepared for tough job

By Andrew Warshaw

When Mark Palios was grinding out a career as a journeyman footballer in England's lower divisions, he could not have dreamt that one day he would take on the most high-profile role in his national association.

Football experience 
The Liverpool-born midfield player, who made over 400 league and cup appearances for Tranmere Rovers FC and Crewe Alexandra FC, always had his eye on the administrative side of the game. Indeed, while his team-mates were playing cards, he would sit at the back of the bus engrossed in study.

Hot seat 
What Palios eventually wanted was a position combining two of his favourite skills: finance and football. Yet now he finds himself in the hottest seat of all as chief executive of the Football Association (FA) in succession to Adam Crozier.

Experience paying off
Palios has been in the job little more than two months but already his experience as an accountant with PricewaterhouseCoopers is paying off. As a former business recovery expert, 50-year-old Palios understands the financial aspects of running a business at a time when the game is suffering from an economic downturn.

Stamping out hooliganism
Top priority is curbing the scourge of English hooliganism. Already he has lent his support to an Italian initiative, to be debated in the autumn, to bar suspected hooligans from attending all matches within the European Union. "If it is feasible legally, I would whole-heartedly endorse it," he said. "I want to go as far as I can in terms of international federations working with each other."

'A cancer'
The FA has already rejected its ticket allocation for the crucial UEFA EURO 2004™ qualifier in Turkey in October and the new man is under no illusions about the dangers of further clashes. "Hooliganism is a cancer that, at best, is in remission and I know I will be in the firing line if there is more trouble," said Palios.

Difficult decision
Eighteen months ago, Palios suffered a double cardiac arrest while playing Sunday league football. He hesitates when asked whether he had doubts about becoming the new public face of the English game.

Crisis management
"Yes and no," he said. "The communications in this job are desperately difficult. We have to respond better to events but my closest colleagues said I would always regret it if I turned the job down. I have been dealing with different crises for the best part of 20 years but we must ensure that relationships across the game improve."

Diplomatic approach
With his strong business background and diplomatic approach, Palios has the skills needed for negotiations with clubs over release of players for the national team or his dealings with relevant government departments. The rebuilding of Wembley Stadium is a priority as is the FA's relationship with UEFA following the failed English bid for the 2006 FIFA World Cup.

'Significant changes'
"I am in no doubt that there will be significant changes and challenges ahead," said Palios. He concedes that the search for the next England coach has already begun just in case Sven-Göran Eriksson should unexpectedly decide to stand down. "Sven is a key employee and you always know that key employees could be head-hunted," said Palios.

Eriksson fan
Make no mistake, Palios is a huge fan of Eriksson, who has still lost only one competitive game as England coach. In fact, he would like to see more overseas experts working in English football. "I have always felt our game would benefit more from foreign coaches than foreign players," Palios said.