Terry Venables was England boss during the never-to-be-forgotten Euro '96 tournament and is now assistant coach to Steve McClaren...so V is for Venables.

El Tel, as he is affectionately known, was in charge for two years which culminated in the European Championship Semi-Final defeat by Germany at Wembley.

As a player, he made two appearances for his country in the 60s, becoming the first to represent England at schoolboy, youth, amateur, under-23 and senior level.

On his appointment in 1994, Venables had the task of building a side capable of challenging at Euro '96 on home soil.

With just a succession of friendlies in the build-up, Venables faced the problem of gauging how his side would shape up in competitive action.

In the opening match of the competition, a 1-1 draw with Switzerland, England struggled. But a 2-0 win over Scotland was followed by an outstanding display in a 4-1 demolition of Holland - a result which saw the nation unit behind Venables and his men.

Venables' tactical nous and motivational skills were evident throughout and a Quarter-Final shoot-out victory over Spain gave the nation genuine hope that England might end their 30 years of hurt.

But an agonising defeat on spot-kicks to old foes Germany put paid to English dreams - despite a magnificent effort by Venables' side, who were inches from the final when Paul Gascoigne just failed to connect with Alan Shearer's centre.

After the tournament, Venables resigned and took up a similar post in Australia. He returned to work with the full England team in 2006 following the appointment of McClaren as Head Coach. The target now is to qualify for Euro 2008 in Austria and Switzerland next summer.