IT DIDN’T take long for José Mourinho to find himself a new job, in fact, if we didn’t know. Better, you’d think this was plan all along. Most likely, AS Roma’s owners felt that if they didn’t act quickly, they … Continue reading Awaiting Mourinho: AS Roma and the quest for credibility
JOSÉ Mourinho is out of work again, but he’s still smiling, quite philosophical and seems to be anticipating a period of normal life for a while. He may well be on “gardening leave”, hence any lack of urgency in finding … Continue reading José Mourinho and his next job: His most vital since 2004
FOOTBALL films invariably disappoint, but the documentary about three legends, Matt Busby, Bill Shankly and Jock Stein, is a chapter from the rich history of the game that reminds us it has not always been about corporatisation and hubris. Three … Continue reading Busby, Shankly and Stein – the three kings bearing gifts and wisdom
THERE ARE some managers who get praised on a weekly basis by pundits, fans and the media, such as the hipsters’ favourite Marcelo Bielsa, gritty Sean Dyche and the monastic Nuno Espirito Santo. And there are others, such as pantomime … Continue reading Guardiola is the best – and here’s why
A LOT of Chelsea fans were upset about the sacking of Frank Lampard, somehow assuming his status in the history books would make him immune to usual practice at one of the most ruthless clubs in Europe. Those that consider the … Continue reading Chelsea’s Tuchel and the obstacle of being different
THERE WILL be no shortage of sympathy for Frank Lampard as he goes the same way as a dozen or so other Chelsea managers. Eighteen months might not seem like a long time, even by Chelsea’s standards, but this was … Continue reading Lampard, the predictable end of experiment Frank
THE PANDEMIC may be having an unexpected impact on the football management sector in that fewer managers have been sacked so far in 2020-21. With the Premier League at the halfway stage, only one manager, West Bromwich Albion’s Slaven Bilic, … Continue reading The virus has slowed the management treadmill
OLE GUNNAR SOLSKJÆR’s job at Manchester United is under constant surveillance: by the media, by the fans and by the club’s owners and board. If you believe all you read, then OGS is just one more big defeat away from … Continue reading Solskjær will become a victim of the barometer approach
HOW do you sack managers like Pep Guardiola, or replace parts of the furniture like Frank Lampard? There’s an assumption that clubs will not fire people who are football luminaries or club “legends”. But it would be wrong to believe … Continue reading Lampard and Guardiola are not immune to criticism or even the sack
