PUBLISHED ON 13 JUNE, 2012
Whilst Sir Alex Ferguson and Arsene Wenger remain untouchable at Manchester United and Arsenal respectively and Roberto Mancini continues to turn Manchester City into a genuine English superpower, other clubs have felt the pressure to chop and change. And Harry Redknapp is the latest departure.
Come August, there will plenty of new faces in the various dugouts of the 20 Premier League clubs.
Speculation mounts over Harry’s future - then suddenly he's gone
Harry Redknapp did an incredible job at Tottenham after taking over from Juande Ramos in October 2008. He had uneasy questions to deal with about his future for much of the calendar year - before it was confirmed on Tuesday evening that he had left White Hart Lane.
He was cleared of tax evasion charges during a stressful trial, then his name was mentioned in connection with the England job following Fabio Capello’s resignation. He was the media choice before the job went to fellow Englishman Roy Hodgson.
He launched a firm rebuff to rumours that spread on Twitter on Tuesday about an impending resignation.
He told ESPN: “No, I haven’t resigned and I have no idea why it’s being suggested I have. This is an outrage – an absolute liberty for people to be putting around this kind of rumour on the internet.”
The next day, he was gone.
Redknapp had one more year left on his current deal and is thought to have been unable to agree a new contract with Spurs chairman Daniel Levy.
Next up: Expect intense speculation linking a host of replacements with the job.
New starts for Rodgers and Lambert
Two of the best Premier League managers last year will start life in August with new clubs, far bigger in reputations than the sides they’ve departed from.
The highly impressive Brendan Rodgers has been chosen as the man to lead Liverpool out of the shadows.
Rodgers leaves Swansea after guiding them to the Premier League, becoming the first Welsh side to achieve this feat and an excellent 11th placed finish in the Swans first season.
He replaces Kop legend Kenny Dalglish, who was sacked despite winning the Carling Cup last season. It is unlikely that Dalglish will end up in another job, certainly in England, due to his close associations with Anfield.
Paul Lambert’s departure from Norwich turned into a messy affair, a shame for the Scot who had done so much in reviving the fortunes of the Canaries.
Lambert has taken over the vacancy at Aston Villa, after Alex McLeish was sacked following a woeful campaign which saw a nervy fight against relegation.
Whilst McLeish turned the Villains into a negative, one-dimensional style of football, Lambert preferred the attacking methodology at Norwich which brought so much success to Carrow Road.
It is a new start for both managers but deserved promotions into more established positions.
Swans and Canaries need to move on
In football, sentimental value is something that doesn’t help anyone so both Swansea and Norwich need to move on from the departures of these hot properties.
Norwich acted swiftly and appointed the former Newcastle manager, Chris Hughton.
Hughton was sacked unfairly by Newcastle in December 2010 but has an excellent record, having guided the Magpies to the Championship title after their Premier League relegation in 2008/09.
He also did a superb job on limited resources at Birmingham City last season, guiding them to the Championship play-offs before defeat to Blackpool in the semi-finals.
This is a shrewd appointment and Hughton deserves a proper crack at life in top flight management.
Meanwhile in Wales, chairman Huw Jenkins is keen to keep the attacking philosophy that Rodgers had in his time at the Liberty Stadium.
Former Real Mallorca boss Michael Laudrup is the favourite for the Swansea job. The Danish legend has spoken before about a desire to manage in the Premier League and discussions are understood to be ongoing.
Should Swansea stay domestic, Blackpool manager Ian Holloway or the Brighton boss Gus Poyet would be ideally suited to the requirements that Jenkins is looking for.
Steve Clarke makes the step up
Former Scottish centre back Steve Clarke has made the step up into management. The 47-year old has succeeded Roy Hodgson to become West Brom’s new head coach on a two-year deal.
Clarke has plenty of experience as an assistant manager, having worked successfully with Jose Mourinho at Chelsea and fellow Stamford Bridge icon Gianfranco Zola at West Ham.
He was Liverpool’s assistant manager until Dalglish was dismissed in the middle of May.
The move by Albion is a brave decision but the Baggies seem to heading to a positive future and after a lengthy coaching apprenticeship which started at Newcastle in 1998, Clarke deserves his chance of being a successful manager.
One manager staying put is Roberto Martinez. The Spaniard, who is currently working with ITV at the European Championships, was a strong contender for both the Liverpool and Aston Villa positions.
He has decided to stay at the DW Stadium for another season, which shows his strong loyalty to the Latics and their chairman Dave Whelan.
Chelsea haven’t named their manager yet for next season but sources from within the club expect Roberto di Matteo to be named as Andre Villas-Boas’s permanent successor.
After his double delight with winning the FA Cup and Champions League at the back end of last season, Roman Abramovich will look pretty foolish should he decide to dispense with the Italian.
Time is required
Last season saw four managers in the Premier League lose their jobs.
Sunderland made the difficult but right decision to dismiss Steve Bruce in late November after a shaky start to the season.
Martin O’Neill guided the Black Cats to a winter revival and comfortable survival. Bruce has since been appointed the new boss at Championship side Hull City.
In January, Neil Warnock was sacked by QPR and replaced by Mark Hughes. It was another questionable decision but ultimately, Hughes kept QPR in the Premier League and with the squad he has, will surely have a more comfortable time in the coming months.
Warnock has gone onto Leeds United and is struggling to change the fortunes of the inconsistent Elland Road side.
Mick McCarthy’s lengthy spell at Wolves came to an end in February following the 5-1 humiliation at home to local rivals West Brom.
The board’s baffling decision to appoint Terry Connor was one of the biggest mistakes of the season and the club were promptly cut adrift and relegated from the Premier League.
The final manager to lose his job in the top flight was Andre Villas-Boas in March and the rest we say in Chelsea’s terms, is history.
Today’s breeds of chairman get impatient far too easily, as can the hardcore football supporter. As Ferguson and Wenger have proven, being allowed time is the goal to achieving sustained success.
All the best to the managers in the new positions as once that first whistle blows on Saturday, August 18, the pressure begins.
Comments
Post a Comment