Glenn has admitted he only asked last week to see full details of a year-long investigation into Sampson’s behaviour last week, despite knowing of its existence in October 2015.
His review of the material subsequently led to the dismissal of the England women’s team coach on Wednesday for “clear evidence of inappropriate and unacceptable behaviour by a coach”.
However, Glenn was already in the dock as part of a review of Allardyce’s ill-fated appointment as the England senior men’s team manager last year, with new FA chairman Greg Clarke furious that one of his first tasks in the job was to sack a man whom he personally felt should never have been appointed by Glenn, together with technical director Dan Ashworth and former FA vice-chairman David Gill, in the first place.
The FA yesterday reiterated that Allardyce’s departure 12 months ago was instigated purely as a result of revelations from a sting operation by a national newspaper.
Nevertheless, Clarke has always felt that earlier controversy caused by a 2006 Panorama documentary should have raised question marks over Allardyce’s suitability during the due diligence process overseen by Glenn only months before.
Sources at Wembley admitted that the “rigours over the appointment of an England manager have since been increased”, but this latest fiasco does little to help Glenn as external pressure was also being put onto his position.
Damian Collins MP, chair of the Culture, Media and Sport select committee has called for Glenn to lose his job if he cannot provide satisfactory answers to inquiry on October 18 following claims of bullying, harassment and racism during Sampson’s reign led by England striker Eni Eluko.
Yesterday, the Women in Football campaign group alleged that the FA were aware of concerns over Sampson’s behaviour with regard to inappropriate relationships with players at Bristol Academy even before he was even appointed to the England set-up in 2013 and that the football authorities missed a number of opportunities to question his suitability for the role.
“WiF understands that questions over Sampson’s suitability for the role were flagged to the FA as early as 2013 during the recruitment process,” Women in Football said in a statement. “The safeguarding investigation of 2014, Sampson being sent on an education course in 2015, Eniola Aluko’s complaint in 2016 and Dame Tanni Grey-Thompson’s Duty of Care report published in April 2017 were all missed opportunities for the governing body to more closely examine the issues.
“Indeed it is unfathomable that an England manager could be sent on a course to emphasise the appropriate boundaries between coach and player, as a direct result of a safeguarding investigation, and not be subject to any sort of due diligence.
“WiF routinely receive complaints of discrimination and abuse from women working in football. We rely on the governing body’s ability to properly investigate these issues in a transparent and competent manner.”
Aluko was paid £80,000 to keep quiet about her accusations of bullying in March 2016, as England prepared for this summer’s European Championships. Two investigations initially exonerated him of any wrongdoing before these more historic allegations proved Sampson’s eventual downfall.
“Be it Martin Glenn or whoever, if it’s found that they ignored advice and warnings that were clear then I think their position does become untenable,” Collins added.
Senior FA staff at the time insist they were unaware of any allegations surrounding Sampson until the investigation was ordered in March 2014. The report was delivered exactly a year later, two months before Glenn formally took office, a detail which could yet save his job.
However, Collins sees this latest fiasco as symptomatic of recent FA mismanagement.
“Many people will see this alongside other issues, child abuse in football, the appointment of Sam Allardyce and say they don’t seem to learn,” he said. “They don’t seem to have proper systems in place that allows good governance. Time and time again the FA fall short of the standards we would expect.”