Michael Appleton: "I have not spoken to any one."

Current Portsmouth manager hasn't even managed the south coast side for a year but he is being widely mentioned in numerous reports. Those reports link him to both the Bolton Wanderers and Blackburn Rovers jobs.

Appleton has had a tough time of it at Portsmouth in his short managerial stint so far as Pompey were relegated from the Championship to League One under him but if any manager could claim extenuating circumstances, it's Appleton. Not long after the former West Brom and Manchester United man took over, Portsmouth were once again put into administration and lost 10 points, putting them right into the drop zone. Going into this season, Portsmouth did not have a single player on their books and have been forced to go with youth and trialists during the current season.

Speaking to the Portsmouth News, Appleton spelled out why he's being linked to sides up north and his feelings on the matter, going so far as to say that he has personally not heard from any of the clubs chasing him yet:

"I suppose with me being from up north people are going to put two and two together and make their own ideas up on what I am or am not going to do.

"To be honest, my kids live up north. But football is one of those games that if you play, manage or coach, anyone who is part of my family realises I might be there one minute, the next minute I might not.

"Now, at the minute, I am settled down here. I have been down here nearly 12 months. It's a little bit warmer than it is up north and I have got a lot of friends here now.

"It's a difficult one really in terms of I have not spoken to any one of those two football clubs. And until they contact this club it is a question I cannot really answer. If there is no truth in it, what can I do?"

Portsmouth are currently 12th in the League One table, on 15 points from 12 games.