• Pearce will meet Premier League managers
• Coach involved in FA letter to England players
Stuart Pearce is increasingly immersing himself in the role of England manager and has stepped up the process of identifying the players he wants to take to Euro 2012 if the Football Association decides to keep him in the job for the summer tournament.
Pearce has taken it upon himself to initiate a series of meetings with Premier League managers to discuss the form and fitness of some of the players he intends to take to Poland and Ukraine now he has been led to believe there is a chance he may get the job.
He has also been prominently involved in the FA sending a letter to all the players who have been involved in England squads for the past 18 months and are still available for selection. The letter tells them they are under consideration and gives them a brief outline of the dates they need to keep clear for the tournament and its buildup.
While Harry Redknapp is still the overwhelming favourite to take the job, Pearce is planning for the role with two possible scenarios in mind. The first is that he gets the job as Fabio Capello's replacement on the back of his work so far, and the second is that he names the squad and another manager, in the words of the FA executive Sir Trevor Brooking, is "parachuted in" shortly before the tournament starts. Either way, he is going about his business on the basis that it will be him who decides which players make the cut.
Pearce, who replaced Capello for the 3-2 friendly defeat against Holland at Wembley last month, has also stepped up his scouting of the players he would involve. Whereas he would usually watch matches specifically to look at players for the England Under-21s, he was at Chelsea's game against Tottenham Hotspur last Saturday and will be at White Hart Lane on Sunday to see Redknapp's team again, this time when they play Swansea City.
It is an unusual set of circumstances, with Pearce effectively keeping tabs on a number of players Redknapp will know far better. However, Pearce feels it necessary in case it is left to him to name the squad. The FA have made it clear they will not make their move for Capello's successor until the tail-end of the season and, until the decision is confirmed, the former England left-back is determined to prepare meticulously.
This has already incorporated changing the warm-up programme Capello had put in place, making recommendations for the operational side and even going as far as arranging a penalty shoot-out in training before the Holland match, so he could begin the process of working out the best men for the job should it be needed this summer.
His preparations will also see him take in Monday's game between Blackburn Rovers and Manchester United, specifically so he can assess the form of the players in Sir Alex Ferguson's squad who are likely to be involved for England.