Managerial Discussion

The first four months of the season have seen some interesting developments at different clubs. Some managers have led their teams to unexpected success and therefore strengthened their positions, while some managers have have failed to deliver to the owners satisfactions and have lost their job. Roberto Di Matteo and Mark Hughes are so far the only managers to be sacked but there are many who are struggling to produce results and could be joining Hughes and Di Matteo on the unemployment line.

         Chelsea owner continued his hire and fire policy and chose to sack the only man that has been able to bring him European success. Chelsea had a strong start to the season and are one of the favourites for the league title but struggles in this seasons Champions League have seen Di Matteo lose his job. Just two weeks before Chelsea are to go to the World Club Championships they have opted to take that opportunity away from him and handed control of the team to Rafael Benitez. From Sunday's meeting with Man City it's clear Benitez has not changed his mentality and the question has to be asked: Why choose Benitez when you are obsessed with playing attractive football? Benitez will set out his team not to lose rather than try to win. It will be interesting to watch Benitez lead Chelsea for the remainder of the season. He had some success at Liverpool with a weaker squad and now that he has a strong squad how far can he lead them? My guess is not very far. Let's not forget he couldn't lead Inter Milan to the Italian title when it seemed all but certain.

           QPR have got rid of Mark Hughes after failing to win any of there games to date. Hughes was the hero last season when they survived the drop on the final day of the season in what is now the forgotten outcome of that thrilling game with Man City. In his place comes the experienced Harry Redknapp.This is an appointment I really like and I think will work well for both manager and club. It's unlikely that Rangers will survive but if anyone can lead them to safety, Harry can. I actually fancy QPR to stay up this season, despite the poor start. However, that can only happen if they get very busy in January. Tony Fernandes has the money to spend and Harry Redknapp is a man to invest in. Time and time again he has taken over teams and instantly improved them. If he is able to bring in the players he wants in the transfer market then I think they will be a different side come February. They may be favourites for the drop but my money is on Harry turning it around.

          Now let's talk about managers who are only a few months in the job. Paul Lambert is struggling in charge of Aston Villa and isn't helped by the criticism he is receiving for leaving out Darren Bent but I have some sympathy for him on that one. Christian Benteke and Gabby Agbonlahor have been outstanding this season and I wouldn't drop them either. I think Villa are in real trouble this season but if they stick with the young players they are using then in the next few season this team will develop into a strong unit. The near future may be bleak but I won't be too hard on Lambert, I think he will bring this team to life, eventually.

         Liverpool appointed Brendan Rodgers in the Summer and although it's only been a short time he isn't sending out a message that Liverpool are going to become a threat to the title anytime soon. At times they have played some really nice football and I've been really impressed but overall there is a major, major problem at Anfield: they are over-dependent on Luis Suarez. The Uruguayan has been good this season but what happens when he hits a slump? I don't know where the goals are going to come from. Liverpool need a top class finishing striker to take the pressure away from Suarez and soon. If anything happens him then they may struggle to make the top ten. The fact that Rodgers said 7th would be a good finish isn't a positive remark and I would hope they get busy in January to get themselves back among the elite of the Premier League. 

        Swansea haven't hit the heights of last season yet but they still lie comfortably in the table. Michael Laudrup has done a good job so far but the problem they face is teams are no longer struggling with facing them. Teams are coming prepared for the passing game and they need to provide a second style to their game to make themselves more of a threat. I don't see them going down and if they can rediscover some winning home form they could break the top ten. 

         I like what Andre Villas-Boas has done with Tottenham so far. I think he is a top manager and if Daniel Levy continues to back him with funds then I think he can be a long term success at White Hart Line. They have been patchy at times bu have shown some incredible play in bursts in games. If they can challenge for Champions League places this season then it will be a success for them this season. Next season they will look to challenge for the title.

        An early Manager of the Year candidate comes from an unexpected source. Steve Clarke has been sensational at West Brom this season. They are lying third in the table and have just won four straight games in the top flight for the first time. The thing to admire about the Baggies is that there are no superstars at the club. Everybody is working hard for each other and they are getting results from that. Shane Long and Peter Odemwingie have caused problems for everyone when they play together. Their pace is forcing teams to refrain from playing a high line because they simply can't keep up with these two. Add to that the powerful Romelu Lukaku and they have a formidable attack. Their midfield all put in a good shift and have enough creation to provide for the strikers. Their defence is very steady and aren't leaking goals like many would have expected. How long can they keep this up? It's hard to say but I don't see them hitting as big a slump as Newcastle did mid-season last year. A top seven finish is very possible and would be a huge success.

Manager Trouble at the Bridge

March 4th 2012 Roberto Di Matteo was appointed interim team coach until the end of the 2011-2012 season, following the sacking of André Villas-Boas. At the time, I said that the move was only going to be a short term solution for the club and that in the long run they had made a mistake and I feel justified in making those statements. Di Matteo was nothing but a scapegoat for Roman Abramovic. The truth is the Russian owner never wanted him in charge but the Champions League success meant he had to hire him. Nothing was ever going to be enough to keep him in a job this season. 

          It's not good for football to have owners such as Abramovic, who will just throw money at a manager to spend and demand instant and constant success. For Chelsea to become a permanent top club in Europe they need to have some sort of stability. Everybody at the club has to be on the same page and that cannot be the case at Chelsea because too often there are changes and it disrupts the system. Villas-Boas has the right idea when he came in. He wanted to get rid of the older players and bring in some fresh faces and get the team playing his style. If Abramovic wants to invest money in someone it should have been in AVB. Instead he got rid of him because the results weren't outstanding. Now we have the same situation with Di Matteo, who spent over €100 million last Summer and is now out of the job.

          Chelsea need a manager to come in and apply his personality and hos own style to the team. They need someone to come in for three of four years steady the ship. It will take a season or two to get consistency but with the way Abramovic is going through managers they won't ever get the time to do that. You don't have to look far to find how to run a successful club. In the same league Manchester United have established themselves as a top team in world football and the reason is the manager. Sir Alex Ferguson has got complete control over the club and isn't afraid to get rid of top players who think they're bigger than the club. He didn't come in and make an immediate impact. He took time to establish himself at the club and the owners backed him and that's why they've had 26 years of success. You always get the feeling that there are too many egos at Chelsea and that's stopping them from competing at the highest level year in year out. 

          As for his replacement Rafael Benitez, he now has to inherit the problems Di Matteo had. Chelsea have got a number of creative players but not enough goalscorers. Fernando Torres looks disinterested at the best of times and his frustration is getting stronger and stronger with each passing game. Defensively they need to be more stable and add more pace. Time and time again Shane Long and Peter Odemwingie caused them problems with their pace. However, Benitez is known for having teams be difficult to beat and he will sort out their defence. As for attacking, he has had success with Torres before and if he can't get the Spaniard firing then it may be time to cut their losses and let him go in January and bring in someone who can score regularly. I don't want to speak negatively or positively of Benitez until we see what he does with the side and give him a fair chance to prove himself. If he can immediately impose himself then Chelsea might be able to make a decent push at the title and maybe turn around their European fortunes, whether it be in the Champions League or Europa League. If he can't bring success,how long will Abramovic leave him in charge? Only time will tell.