Former England boss Steve McClaren is confident of a managerial return in 2008.

"I think I can go into the level I was before," he told The Times. "I've worked with England, Manchester United. I've won a trophy and had European football with Middlesbrough. I've been working with top players, at Premiership level, for many years."

McClaren will soon head to a coaches' seminar in Baltimore in the United States, work with children in South Africa and travel around Europe watching players while he waits for the phone to ring.

"What I want to be is ready for the next challenge," he said. "That is something that Sven [Goran Eriksson] did very well in his year out of the game. He identified the players he would want when he got another job.

"I take massive heart from Sven and the way he's bounced back [at Manchester City]. I had great success previously and I know that I am not a bad manager. I got the England job because of my qualities. Those qualities, I believe, have been enhanced.

"Will it haunt me? It will always be there. But everybody's failings are always there. There are a lot of very successful people who have had a million failures before they succeeded. They've had to rebuild. I know how to manage, I've been successful and I know I can do it again."