The question isn't whether Man Utd will go for David Moyes, it has to be will he wait for them?

Apr 26 2009 Gordon Waddell

There's definitely something about him. Call it charisma. Call it presence. An aura, even. Whatever "it" is, Davie Moyes has it.

If you ever get the chance to look into those cobalt blue eyes, hewn deep into that face of granite, you'll get it instantly.

Maybe not as much of it as his chairman Bill Kenwright.

Maybe not to the point where you worship him or call him the greatest boss in the world.

But enough of it to know he's heading in the general vicinity. The only thing he's missing now is the one quality which will truly set him apart, set him up for greatness.

WINNER.

If he does that, you get the feeling the only thing standing in the way of him becoming the next Sir Alex Ferguson is the current Sir Alex Ferguson.

And his retirement date. Because let's face it, that's where he's going.

He's already taken Everton into the Champions League against all the odds. Earned them respect they'd lost.

Stabilised them when the wheels were coming off. Built a team through the years that reflects his own personality.

Dogged, fiery, intelligent, laced with the almost impossible-to-blend cocktail of working class ethics and Premiership self-belief.

I remember sitting down with him seven years ago, just when he was about to set out on his first full season as a Premiership boss.

In the opposite dugouts, he was up against six former England managers, two knights of the realm and a raft of European Cup winners and international legends.

He was full of respect for all of them. In awe of none of them. A guy who started his coaching badges at 22 and finished them in Scotland, then did them again in England so no one could cast aspersions that the Jocko ones weren't good enough, he felt he had earned the right to keep their company with the job he did at Preston.

Watching them this week, living with Man U and beating them on penalties at Wembley, living with Chelsea at Stamford Bridge, who'd argue now? The better they get, the less chance of keeping him.

And if he holds that FA Cup aloft on May 30? They can kiss him once and wave goodbye.

Maybe not instantly. But soon.

Funny, isn't it, that no matter how good a manager you're perceived to be, the show-us-your-medals mentality never disappears completely.

A bit like Craig Levein up here. In my opinion, the best in the SPL and cut from very similar cloth to Moyes.

Imposing, intelligent, articulate - and a legitimate candidate if Gordon Strachan Strachan or Walter Smith leave.

Yet the fans will say: "What's he ever won?" Which is what makes it the last piece of the jigsaw for Moyes.

When Sir Fergie does eventually retire, Man U may well be tempted to go all sexy - they may look at a Hiddink, a Capello, a Lippi.

But if they're smart and they stick to what they know, they'll look to a solid British operator in the mould of their current boss.

Which pretty much narrows it down to two. Moyes and Martin O'Neill.

The latter won the Conference with Wycombe Wanderers and two League Cups with Leicester, went through the card at Celtic and took them to a UEFA Cup Final and is now building Villa into a credible force.

Moyes won the Second Division with Preston.

The one thing that sets him apart though, is that Sir Fergie has serious respect for him. A tiny part of it may be the Scottish thing, the fact Moyes' old man had a relationship with Fergie through Drumchapel Amateurs.

The bottom line is Fergie thinks he can do the job. Why else would he have offered him the Old Trafford No 2 job when he was still at Deepdale?

The fact Moyes knocked it back, determined to carve his own path first, would only have added to the admiration.

If Ferguson has any say in his successor - and he will - then you know Moyes will be at or near the top of his list.

The only question is, how long does he wait? We all know how quickly heroes become zeroes in this game. This time last year, Roy Keane was being measured for the Old Trafford dugout. Now he's in darkest Suffolk.

So when Moyes' stock is this high, Man U won't be the only club seeing it. If someone else comes along, will he wait?