Well, Owl be damned

The Sun was claiming this morning that Alan Shearer was set to take the vacant manager's position at Sheffield Wednesday, with his former team-mate Gary Speed crossing the Steel City to become his assistant.

Wor Al's response? A brusque refutation - there's "no truth" in the rumours, apparently.

Fair enough, but you do wonder what he's hanging on for, if he really is genuinely keen to get into management. With Chris Hughton having been rewarded for a successful first half of the season with a permanent contract, Shearer's chances of taking charge of his hometown team any time soon look remote, but there are still currently a clutch of moderately attractive positions available in the Championship, and with Burnley soon likely to be looking for a new boss in the Premier League. Perhaps it's a matter of finances - he probably wouldn't want to assume control of a club where the coffers are completely empty, and you can't blame him for that.

Shearer's a man of his word, but were he to perform a U-turn and join Wednesday then he'd find a familiar face waiting for him - Toon old boy Steve Watson is currently assisting caretaker manager Sean McAuley as he tries to steady the ship ahead of a permanent appointment.