It is almost a year since Steve McClaren’s reign as England head coach came to an ignominious end, a 3-2 defeat by Croatia at Wembley halting the country’s hopes of qualifying for Euro 2008. As he looked ahead to a Uefa Cup tie against Manchester City this evening in his new role as coach of Twente, McClaren believes that he is all the better for the experience of managing the national team.

“If I’m not a stronger person and a better manager now I want shooting again,” McClaren said. “I should be with all the lessons I have learnt, and I hope I am. That’s what I’m trying to do — whatever I do I’m trying to be the best I can be.”

McClaren dismissed suggestions that the Netherlands was providing some sort of rehabilitation — “I’m not in rehab,” he said — but he does appear to be reinventing himself with the Dutch club. A 2-0 defeat by Ajax at the weekend prevented Twente from going top of the Eredivisie and a 1-0 victory over Racing Santander ensured a winning start to Uefa Cup group A last month, and Mark Hughes, the City manager, knows his players will have their work cut out.

Twente may have succumbed 6-0 on aggregate to Arsenal in their Champions League third qualifying round tie in August, but the first leg in Arnhem, which Arsène Wenger’s team won 2-0, was tougher than the scoreline suggested. “We should have won that game and we certainly shouldn’t have lost it,” McClaren said. “It gave the club and players great confidence and belief and hopefully we’ll see that against City.”

John Terry launched a scathing attack on his team-mates yesterday for being complacent, arrogant and lacking the stomach for a fight during Chelsea's 3-1 Champions League defeat away to Roma on Tuesday. The Chelsea captain conceded that his team have no chance of returning to the Italian capital for this season's final if they continue to produce such lacklustre performances as that which led to their second defeat in four games and heaviest in almost three years.

Chelsea were stunned by three Roma goals in the space of 24 minutes either side of half-time after previously conceding only four in 15 matches this season, with Terry claiming that the visiting team's poor attitude was to blame for the shock defeat by a side who had lost their previous five matches.

“It was a terrible night for us and we didn't get going,” Terry said. “We've been getting performances and results because we've been working hard for each other and we've been there for each other. We've been getting goals and destroying teams, but we went to Roma thinking we could do it individually - and you simply can't. We need to know that. Hopefully, what happened will prove to be the kick up the backside we need.

Luka Modric, in his first season at White Hart Lane, is hoping to draw inspiration from Glenn Hoddle, the former Tottenham Hotspur and England midfield player who helped the club to lift the Uefa Cup 24 years ago.

Nostalgia can be a diversion from present troubles, but Modric has helped to turn minds to the prospect of better times ahead. The Croatia player, who joined Tottenham for £16.5 million in April, has a chance to restart his team’s Uefa Cup campaign against Dynamo Zagreb, his former club, after defeat against Udinese in their opening group D match. “I will try to play my best game so that in a couple of months or a year, the fans can love me like the other players [such as Hoddle],” Modric, 23, said. “I feel some pressure from all these compliments. But I feel self-confident and have to show on the pitch I’m worthy of all the expectations.”

Harry Redknapp, the Tottenham manager, said that John Bostock, whose move in the summer provoked anger from Crystal Palace, his former club, will be on the substitutes’ bench for the first time this season. The left-footed midfield player, 16, impressed during the pre-season training camp in Spain and has been training with the first team. “He has terrific talent,” Redknapp said. “He is still learning the game and he’s still learning where he will play.”

Tottenham will be without Ledley King, who is rested, and Jermaine Jenas, who has a toe injury. Roman Pavlyuchenko and Vedran Corluka are cup-tied.

Richard Dunne, the Manchester City captain, is doubtful, after suffering fluid on the knee following the defeat by Bolton Wanderers on Sunday.

Mark Hughes, the City manager, has hinted that he may may gamble by resting Robinho and instead turn to experienced forwards Benjani and Darius Vassell who should return from injury.

Michael Ball could also be back in contention after returning from an ankle problem.

McClaren's FC Twente are currently sixth in the Dutch league and despite losing 2-0 to Ajax at the weekend, Hughes refuses to take them lightly. "They are a decent team, well organised and it's going to be a good test," he said.

Manchester City (from): Hart, Schmeichel, Zabaleta, Onuoha, Richards, Dunne, Ben Haim, Garrido, Ball, Wright-Phillips, Ireland, Kompany, Elano, Robinho, Jo, Benjani, Vassell, Fernandes, Hamann, Evans, Sturridge.

Racing Santander v Schalke 04

Juan Ramon Lopez Muniz, the Racing Santander coach, looks set to be without Ezequiel Garay, the highly-rated Argentinian centre-back on loan from Real Madrid. Luis Fernandez is also likely to miss out.

Schalke, dumped out of the Champions League by Athletico Madrid last month, are likely to be without defender Christian Pander who is recovering from a calf injury. Heiko Westermann should return from illness to shore up the Schalke defence.

Almost 12 months after his England team’s hopes of qualifying for the European Championship finals were dashed by a 3-2 defeat by Croatia at Wembley, Steve McClaren watched with a certain sense of irony as Twente went down by the same scoreline to Manchester City last night.

While McClaren failed to extract the best out of a supposed golden generation of English players, however, the former England head coach appears to have got a far more limited group punching above their weight at his new club, and City were thankful to escape with all three points in their opening Uefa Cup group A game.

This may ultimately have proven another fruitless homecoming for McClaren, whose dismay at losing was compounded by the ridicule that he was subjected to from an unforgiving City support, but it was Mark Hughes who was probably left with more to chew over after a performance that embodied all that is good, bad and downright ugly about his team.