Steve McClaren will have £30 million to spend should he take the job at Aston Villa.
The Daily Express says Villa owner Randy Lerner is turning to McClaren after being snubbed by former Chelsea boss Carlo Ancelotti.
Lerner would not risk a fall-out with his new manager the moment he arrived and the £20m Villa are hoping to get by selling Ashley Young to Manchester United this week would be made available, plus another £10m, or possibly more, made up from other player sales.
McClaren won the League Cup and got to the UEFA Cup final within five years at Middlesbrough, but his team was dull and a lot of players were given the credit for success over him. Then came a disastrous spell as England manager, where he was out of his depth and was sacked after failing to get to the 2008 European finals.
Winning the Dutch League with FC Twente was his rehabilitation, but then McClaren flopped again in Germany with VfL Wolfsburg. He has not managed an English club for five years.
