"To be an international boss, I think you have to be a top manager first and foremost. It's important you do the right coaching and the right tactics and the players believe in you. As a player I do believe in him," said the England vice-captain.
"I feel as if he's done the right things since he took over. The criticism he has had is slightly unfair because at the end of the day it's us as players who have gone out there and not achieved the results we should have done.
"Small details decide games and, when individuals make mistakes or miss chances, it's not the manager who misses them, it's the players.
"Unfortunately in this game, it's always the manager who takes it in the neck if things go wrong. It happens all over football at every level.
"You get judged on results and the manager gets the blame at the end of the day which I feel is unfair. It's important that you are not changing managers every six months or every year.
"As a player you want to get used to a manager and sometimes it does take time. I feel as though Steve McClaren has got this team moving in the right direction even though there is a big chance that we might not be in next summer's finals."
