Sam Allardyce backtracks on top European jobs comments

Allardyce had claimed he could oversee success at clubs like Manchester United

Blackburn boss Sam Allardyce has insisted claims he made about being more suited to managing top European clubs were "tongue in cheek".

Allardyce, 55, said that winning titles for clubs such as Real Madrid, Inter Milan, Manchester United or Chelsea "wouldn't be a problem for me".

But he has now stated that, although ambitious, he was happy at Ewood Park and his remarks were not serious.

"I didn't think it would create quite as big a stir as it has," he commented.

"Somebody asked me if I had found my level and was comfortable as manager at Blackburn Rovers.

"I'm never comfortable as a manager because I am always looking to improve, and my terms of wanting to improve is about having a burning ambition to always get better than I am.

"Obviously, in the end, that would always be to try and get to the very, very top of the industry that I am working in."

Allardyce has enjoyed a varied managerial career, starting at West Bromwich as an assistant coach in 1989 before moving on to Limerick, Blackpool and Notts County.

He then spent eight years at the helm of Bolton Wanderers before resigning surprisingly in April 2007 after guiding the Trotters to fifth spot in the Premier League and the brink of Uefa Cup qualification.

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Moving to perhaps his biggest job to date, Allardyce took over at Newcastle a month later on a three-year contract, but he was in charge for only 24 matches before leaving the club "by mutual agreement". He then had to wait 11 months before resuming his career with Blackburn.

Ahead of last weekend's 1-1 draw with Fulham on Saturday, Allardyce said: "I would be more suited to Inter Milan or Real Madrid. It wouldn't be a problem for me to manage those clubs because I would win the double or the league every time."

He added: "Give me Manchester United or Chelsea and I would do the same, it wouldn't be a problem.

"It's not a problem to take me into the higher reaches of the Champions League or Premier League and would make my job a lot easier in winning it."

Although he backtracked on those comments on Tuesday, Allardyce insisted: "I believe in my own ability, that is the bottom line. At the moment it is with Blackburn, which I am very pleased about."