Internazionale and Manchester United's Champions League first-leg tie may not have been high on excitement - but no one can deny the quality on display.On
e things for sure: the second leg in Manchester will be a more dramatic affair with the clock-ticking down and United's attacking urges to satisfy at Old Trafford. Inter will have to come out and play to quell the onslaught.
e things for sure: the second leg in Manchester will be a more dramatic affair with the clock-ticking down and United's attacking urges to satisfy at Old Trafford. Inter will have to come out and play to quell the onslaught.It's as much a clash on the field between these two clubs as it is in the manager's offices.
Mourinho: the suave Portuguese itinerant: Fergie: the grizzly Scottish empire builder.
And it made me think: bearing in mind the mentalities of the two, if you were a fan of a big club, would you rather have a Mourinho or a Fergie in charge?
There's no doubt that Mourinho's management style would offer few chances for United regulars such as John O'Shea and Darren Fletcher, but they are essential components of the Red Devil's incessant charge through trophy bid after trophy bid.
Even flair players like Wayne Rooney and Ryan Giggs take on a workmanlike demeanour under Fergie.
Of course, there's a work ethic and commitment to gameplan in every Mourinho side; sometimes at the expense of entertainment - but the players that arrive at the Giuseppe Meazza are usually players who've made their names elsewhere.
There'll always be clubs like Inter and for that matter, Real Madrid and Chelsea who are showbiz entities - ready to unveil the multi-million pound signing and replace the manager just for coming second, sometimes twice a season.
There'll always be clubs like Inter and for that matter, Real Madrid and Chelsea who are showbiz entities - ready to unveil the multi-million pound signing and replace the manager just for coming second, sometimes twice a season.
But on the other hand, there's United, AC Milan and Arsenal, who have a five-year plan and remain unwavering in the darkest periods of the barren trophy cabinet.
And I prefer these clubs: I think it's those who'll prosper in the unsure economic times ahead, starting with Fergie to advance at the expense of The Special One in this season's Champions League.
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There’s something horribly artificial about the likes of Chelsea, Real Madrid and Inter.
ReplyDeleteThe chairmen effectively say to their manager, “Here’s a blank cheque, buy whoever you want, but if you don’t win absolutely ever trophy going THIS SEASON, you’ll be out of a job.”
The turn-around of players is enormous, managers aren’t given time to stamp their authority, players aren’t given time to settle in, and the trophies that follow aren’t proportionate to the money they’ve spent. Like all good things in life, real, long lasting success only comes after hard work and persistence.
Compare this to the situation at Old Trafford. Sir Alex was appointed manager based on his success in Scotland, especially at Aberdeen. Chairman Martin Edwards knew this, and realised that maybe a step back was needed to take three or four massive leaps forward. In fact, a huge culture change was needed at Old Trafford, which couldn’t happen overnight. The hard-drinking attitude needed to end, and ultimately, quite a few of the players had to be moved on.
Sir Alex may well have been sacked if he’d lost the FA Cup third round tie to Nottingham Forest in January 1990, but the Chairman’s perseverance, based on his belief in his manager’s ability, paid dividends within a few short years of this match.
In fact, the late and much-missed Anthony H Wilson, himself an avid Man Utd fan, told an interesting story during an episode of “The Sport Exchange”, a brilliant regional sports discussion programme that went out on Granada late on Thursday nights in around 2003.
He said that one evening, in early 1990, he had been doing some filming at Granada and was walking through the car park late at night. He noticed another car parked near his, and inside was shattered, depressed-looking Sir Alex. So he went over to the car and tapped on the window, and asked him what was wrong- why was he looking so upset? Sir Alex told him that he couldn’t take it anymore.
You know, I think he was far closer to being sacked or quitting than many people realise, or choose to remember. (Incidentally, I was greatly impressed with the tribute Sir Alex paid to Anthony following his death- it showed him in a very positive light and I think he greatly valued Anthony’s support during those difficult early years).
Compare that to the situation at Real Madrid. It’s been the same old story for longer than many of us can remember. Take John Toshack’s first spell as manager at the club as an example. He was appointed on merit, following his extraordinary track record at Swansea and Real Sociedad.
His record at home was: played 32, won 28, drawn 4, lost 0. This won Real Madrid the La Liga title. Not good enough. He was fired. This sort of thing is not uncommon. Look at the way Fabio Capello was treated.
Real Madrid field teams packed with world-class individual players, all megastars in their own right. But quite often they fail to gel as a team and under-achieve considering the pedigree of the players they have and the money that’s been spent. Can you imagine any manager saying to a Real Madrid chairman, “Look, we don’t need to spend hundreds and hundreds of millions of euros on big-name players. Give me a fraction of the money and I’ll buy in some good youngsters, and put four or five more experienced players in the team to give a sense of balance. We probably won’t win any trophies this season, and maybe not next, but in five years’ time we will be the greatest team in the world- we will dominate Spanish football and will eventually win the European Cup. I will build you a dynasty that will last a generation and beyond.”
This was effectively what Sir Alex would’ve been planning when he took over at Old Trafford. In these tough economic times, when there aren’t such huge sums available to splash around, the likes of Chelsea would do well to learn this valuable lesson, which would save them an absolute fortune and give them more consistent success in the long run.