It will not get better than Sir Alex Ferguson. It just won't.

I had plenty of opportunities before I went to Spain to stay in England, and I had made a decision that I would go and work in Spain.

I would never have left Everton for anybody but an ambitious football club. And I thought Manchester United would have given me that opportunity.

I've always been quite strict when it comes to the appearance of my players. I don't want to see earrings in training, things like that.

The last thing I'd ever want to see is another manager being sacked. I certainly don't like the phrase 'sacking season.'

I watch a lot of football. It was always my hobby. My wife just sits there with a bored face, thinking, 'Is he really watching this?'

I don't think anyone ever turns down their national team opportunity, but I think it has to be at the right time.

I would never have left Everton if it hadn't been Manchester United.

I think retrospective viewing of diving is nearly more important than some of the technology they are on about bringing in. If you do that and players get banned, it wouldn't take long before you'd cut it out.

It's good that we have good managers like Jose Mourinho and Arsene Wenger in this countr,y but I think we should be trying to send out some of our managers to other countries to help not just the development of themselves but the leagues over here. It can enhance their careers.

Alan Shearer was tough, would be hard to play against, a difficult opponent.

I hope that the future is great for West Ham.

I would still consider myself in the elite group of managers. If it was me against someone else, I'd trust myself.

There is no club in Europe that wouldn't want Van Persie at centre-forward.

People often talk about a coach's philosophy, but generally, I think managers look at the players they have and then decide on their style.

I'm going to be direct with the players. If they don't like it, then I'm sorry.

At Everton, we have always tried to do good deals and have always tried to buy at the right age and the right price.

Real Sociedad fans are fantastic; they know that the club is trying to join the other teams who are always in the top part of the table - to get as close to them as possible.

I got Everton competing at the top end of the league with a midtable budget.

You're never going to go through a season with no injuries.

I was very fortunate that I had a great scouting staff at Everton from the academy, because it was those people who got the likes of Ross Barkley and Wayne Rooney when they were young.

I would never speak about players at other football clubs - I think it's wrong. It's not my style.

I was a young manager at Everton and had 11 great years there.

In this game, you're on your own. You either sink or swim.

I'll answer as many questions as I can, but when people have a contract at other football clubs, I think it's wrong to talk about them.

You don't manage more than 900 games, mostly in the top half of the Premier League, if you haven't got something that enables you to cope with pressure.

I've worked for a long time to get myself in a position where maybe I'd be fortunate enough to land one of the big jobs.

I've got huge affection for Everton. It was my life for over a decade.

It's true that players can take time to settle at a new club. I remember people telling me it took Patrice Evra and Nemanja Vidic a while - players who became great players for United.

I worked hard at Preston.

Everyone needs an opportunity in life. I was given an opportunity as a manager, and you try and take it.

I think I'm capable of doing the job at any club in the world, so I'm sure I can do it at West Ham.

If you want to keep your best players, you need top European football because they want to be involved in that.

I've had my down times, as every manager does, but I bounce back pretty quickly.

I don't think I'm any worse for my bad experiences. Actually, they have made me better.

Bryan Gray at Preston gave me a chance, even though Joe Royle and Ian Rush were being linked with the job. He taught me an awful lot about structuring the job and encouraged me to invest in young players.

We had a really good club at Everton who gave me the opportunity to do the job the way I felt it needed to be done.

I think, with more experience, I'm probably wiser, calmer. You hope you'll be able to use your knowledge a bit better.

I'll do everything I can to get West Ham as far up the table as I can.

Do I feel I should have been given more time? Of course I do. To go to a club like Manchester United and follow someone like Sir Alex after the time he had been there, to stay for ten months... It couldn't be a revolution at Manchester United; it had to be evolution. It had to take time.

I took over from Sir Alex, and it was always going to take time, whoever was in charge.

The manager needs to be given the opportunity to get on with his job and be given that time that he needs.

I had a great time at Everton when I was there and came away from that with a lot of high regard.

I'm desperately ambitious, and one of the things I haven't been able to do at Everton is win a trophy.

I think sometimes you need a run and a bit of confidence with getting the goals.

I would like it to be the rules all round the world that that is the case - you manage the country of your birth.

I have a point to prove. Sometimes you have to repair things, and maybe I have a little bit that I need to repair.

I love to see goals and attacking play; I want us to be entertaining. But it's no good if you're shipping goals.

I would have to consider the U.S.A. job if I was approached because it's one of the big nations in world football, with massive growth potential.

I don't think managers have the opportunity to think in terms of a long-term vision for a club.