Sam Allardyce could face Football Association charges and even a ban following the controversy that brought his England reign to an abrupt end.
Exiting Euro 2016 at the last-16 stage to Iceland should have been the Three Lions' lowest ebb this year, yet Roy Hodgson's successor managed to add another embarrassing chapter.
Allardyce's dream job came to an end after just 67 days as the Daily Telegraph released secretly-filmed footage of him making controversial remarks about a variety of subjects, including side work and circumventing Football Association regulations.
It was a galling end to the briefest of spells and one which FA chairman Greg Clarke said would be investigated, with chief executive Martin Glenn announcing charges could be brought against Allardyce.
"It is realistic," he said when asked if charges could follow. "I am pleased that the Telegraph are releasing (the full transcripts) to the police first because that is what has to happen.
"Once we get access to that, we have a separate integrity unit. It's very good.
"We've treated Sam as an employee. Sam's role as a participant in the game will then be, potentially, part of this next process, if there is one.
"It's not for me to call but once the evidence is clear, the decision will be based on the merits of the evidence.
"You could guess probably bringing the game into disrepute might be one, but I can't comment on it because we do have a separation of powers within the FA, we have a separate charging unit I can't interfere with."
When asked what potential sanctions Allardyce could face, Glenn said: "It ranges and it depends.
"It could range from a fine to a ban - that's what the history has been on those kind of things. But it will be for a tribunal to decide, an independent tribunal."
The FA has to wait to receive all the Telegraph's transcripts from its wide-ranging investigation into British football, with police being given first access.
Glenn says the sooner the affected parties get the information the better, although he underlined that as football's regulator in England the FA can only work within certain parameters.
The chief executive was unable to confirm whether, as has been reported, Allardyce received a payment upon departing, but was more forthcoming when it came to his emotions surrounding the decision.
"(Do I feel) personally let down? I do," Glenn said. "I have asked myself a lot about this.
"The easy decision was actually to keep him and tough it out. I do feel let down because I genuinely think for football reasons, he was a really good choice and just what we needed after the Euros.
"Yeah, we knew he was a man of the world, we knew there had been a Panorama programme a few years ago."
Allardyce denied the allegations regarding illegal payments in that BBC programme, which was screened 10 years ago.
"He was a guy who had a senior position on the League Managers Association, known in the game, we referenced him widely," Glenn said.
"He's Sam, he's loud, he's brash but he is in the middle of the fairway in terms of behaviour, so I think that the reason I felt let down was I guess the surprise factor of it."
Glenn confirmed Allardyce "wanted to stay" but the decision was unavoidable following senior-level group meetings before and after seeing him.
It was decided that a parting of ways was "in the best interests of the FA", with his exit and Gareth Southgate's interim appointment confirmed on Tuesday evening.
Glenn admits he would still hire Allardyce if the facts were the same as in June, but the "colossal mistake" put paid to his time in charge.
"I think it is important in a crisis to keep a cool head," Glenn said. "But I did have a reaction on the Monday, thinking 'I really want to keep Sam'.
"We've hired him, we think he is the right guy for the job. His football credentials were good, his leadership credentials were excellent.
"My instinct on Monday was to say, 'Let's look at it but let's see if we can find a way of making it work'.
"But as the events unfolded and in the cold light of day, (we) judge that it was going to be a compromise to the FA."
Glenn highlighted the importance of the FA being a role model and influencer, along with how keeping Allardyce would be thrown back at them regularly when it came to enforcement and sanctions. He felt t he implication that an FA employee would help circumvent their third-party rules was the "pivotal thing".
"I remember specifically saying to him just after he was hired, 'Look, we've both got to work together. I've been at the FA 18 months, you've not done an England job, here's what I've learnt'," Glenn added.
"Everything you say is going to be under a lot of scrutiny, your decision-making is like doing it in a goldfish bowl and crucially, anything you say to anybody, just feel comfortable that it might be printed the next day."
Source: PA
