Southend manager Phil Brown has dismissed speculation linking him to a coaching position at Sunderland.
Brown led the Shrimpers to a hard-fought 1-0 win against Port Vale at Roots Hall on Saturday and afterwards insisted he remains focused on his current role, saying he has no plans to team up with his close friend Sam Allardyce at the Stadium of Light.
"We showed today there was nobody stepping away from their jobs, including me," said Brown.
"Yes there will be speculation and it's flattering, especially as Sunderland are my home-town team who I grew up supporting.
"But I'm Southend United manager, end of story."
Brown's side now sit seventh in the League 1 standings and he was delighted by the display which resulted in them securing a fifth win in six games, courtesy of Joe Pigott's strike.
"That's the best clean-sheet performance we've had since I've been here and up until about 70 minutes it was the best performance too," said Brown, who has been in charge since March 2013.
"We played some great stuff in the first half and I always felt as though the first goal would win it.
"But this is the best result we've had since I've been here because it showed we belong at a higher level.
"It was another good finish from Joe to give us the win and he's certainly in a rich vein of form at the moment."