By Jonathan Stevenson BBC Sport Online

Adam Crozier was a surprise choice to replace Graham Kelly as the Football Association's chief executive in February 2000.

The 35-year-old had no experience of the business side of football yet was effectively charged with running the English game - to the dismay of some FA officials.

In the two-and-a-half years Crozier was in the job, he tried to revolutionise the way the game was run.

He stepped into the FA and saw an outdated, unfashionable institution that needed to catch up with the modern game.

And he knew he would have to do it quickly and take on much of the responsibility himself if it was going to work.

The former chief executive of Saatchi & Saatchi had no shortage of experience in the world of commerce, and he immediately set about trying to make the FA a more effective and financially-driven company.

However, the radical nature of his task meant he was always going to step on toes.

The men behind football in England were sceptical to change, with some like Chelsea chairman Ken Bates vehemently opposing almost every idea the Scot came up with.

But Crozier never lost sight of his goals, and many of his decisions have changed the shape of English football forever.

He overcame public opinion to appoint Sven-Goran Eriksson as England's first foreign coach, a move that has proved a huge success.

The pair have such a close working relationship that rumours of Crozier's position being under threat were met by Eriksson revealing he would have to carefully consider his own position.

Crozier has also transformed the previously impenetrable inner sanctum of the FA and indeed moved the whole operations from Lancaster Gate to brand new open-plan offices in Soho Square.

The average age of staff at the FA has gone from 55 to 32 since Crozier took over.

And he has made the FA richer than they have ever been before, finally getting it to run like a commercial operation.