Coming to this story a bit late obviously.
O Neill's resignation at Aston Villa this week has frankly been timed very well: the chances of Villa finishing in a top six place are frankly low, and with Randy Lerner seeming to realise that circumstances do not look especially promising for Villa managing to progress again and reach the Champions League, he has probably made the right decision to leave the club now. He won't get as much money to spend as he has had in the past, frankly the team doesn't look as good as it should for the amount of money spent on it, and the fact that Luke Young refused a move to Liverpool on financial grounds suggests that the wage bill at Villa is all over the place.
It's not to say that O Neill hasn't done a good job at Villa Park; three sixth place finishes (if that's what they've had, I forget; were they not fifth in '08-'09) represents a solid achievement. But the overriding sense will be that Villa's real chance to break into the Champions League came and went in the latter half of the 2008-9 season; well placed ahead of Arsenal midway through the season (one in which Arsenal were largely terrible throughout), Villa's lack of squad depth and O Neill's reluctance to rotate selection meant that they tired and fell away. Last season there was another top four place available with the implosion of Benitez' Liverpool; Spurs and City were both better placed to take advantage of this than Villa, who again tired in the last four months of the season. As City spend more and Liverpool look to at least stabilise, and Spurs may benefit from CL experience and more importantly cash, it seems as if the only way is down for Villa.
O Neill basically seems to have reached an interesting point in his career. It would be churlish to downplay his performance at either Leicester or Celtic, given that he established Leicester as a premiership club after a lengthy period in the second tier, and won two League Cups (then, as now, a reasonable achievement). Celtic were at their lowest point for some time when he took over there, and three league titles and the run to the UEFA Cup final was a fine achievement, although O Neill didn't win a title without Henrik Larsson, and Gordon Strachan arguably equalled his achievements with three championships in four years and two visits to the Champions League knock-out stages. His work at Villa has been probably no less than expected, given the outlay of money and O Neill's reputation, but three successive sixth place finishes was a solid achievement, and in all Martin O Neill can comfortably be described as one of the best British managers of the last twenty years.
On the other hand, O Neill is now surely not going to get the big job that his career often seemed to be leading up to. He just seems to have been passed by; when Celtic met Porto in the 2003 UEFA Cup Final, you would probably have said that if one of the managers on show had gone on to be the next manager of Manchester United, it will be O Neill. Prior to 2004, perhaps O Neill would have been the most likely candidate to succeed Ferguson. I was certainly surprised that year that he didn't come close to getting the job at Liverpool after Houllier left. I guess at the end of the day, O Neill is not quite at the level to get one of the big clubs. In the end, I suppose, we will remember O Neill as a collecter of lesser trophies, and a qualifier for the UEFA Cup, not as a top four manager. It seems sad that he will never get a chance to prove that wrong, but there you go.
Apologies for the fact that this piece is shit, by the way.
Thursday 12 August 2010
RIP Markus Liebherr
Sad news last night as Markus Liebherr, the owner of Southampton FC, passed away from an unspecified illness.
Liebherr effectively saved Southampton from extinction in July 2009 when he purchased us after years of financial mismanagement resulted in the club being relegated from the Championship in administration with a threadbare squad, no manager, a ten point defecit for the next season and serious doubts about the club future. Liebherr, a Swiss billionaire, purchased the club and, in a rare, near unprecendented step, paid up all of its debts in full, rather than by the usual repayment method of an agreed percentage of the amount owed. Liebherr paid off debts in full, and invested an amount of money for new players in the form of equity rather than loans that would be paid back.
News reports this morning suggest that Liebherr will have made money available to ensure Southampton's future continues to look as rosey as it did with him at the helm.
It may seem a little trite to attempt to write a piece in hushed respectful tones where the life of a 60 something year old man is eulogized simply because he bought a football club in the last year of his life. I actually don't know anything about Markus Liebherr other than the above. But without him, the future of Southampton Football Club would have looked remarkably different, and for that, I thank him. Rest In Peace.
Liebherr effectively saved Southampton from extinction in July 2009 when he purchased us after years of financial mismanagement resulted in the club being relegated from the Championship in administration with a threadbare squad, no manager, a ten point defecit for the next season and serious doubts about the club future. Liebherr, a Swiss billionaire, purchased the club and, in a rare, near unprecendented step, paid up all of its debts in full, rather than by the usual repayment method of an agreed percentage of the amount owed. Liebherr paid off debts in full, and invested an amount of money for new players in the form of equity rather than loans that would be paid back.
News reports this morning suggest that Liebherr will have made money available to ensure Southampton's future continues to look as rosey as it did with him at the helm.
It may seem a little trite to attempt to write a piece in hushed respectful tones where the life of a 60 something year old man is eulogized simply because he bought a football club in the last year of his life. I actually don't know anything about Markus Liebherr other than the above. But without him, the future of Southampton Football Club would have looked remarkably different, and for that, I thank him. Rest In Peace.
Wednesday 11 August 2010
Premiershit Predictions
See what I did there.
So my predictions for the final placings of all teams is as follows:
1 United, 2 Chelsea, 3 City, 4 Arsenal, 5 Liverpool, 6 Spurs, 7 Everton, 8 Villa, 9 Blackburn, 10 Fulham, 11 Stoke, 12 Bolton, 13 Sunderland, 14 West Ham, 15 Birmingham, 16 Newcastle, 17 Wolves, 18 Wigan, 19 West Brom, 20 Blackpool
I reckon maybe at least five right there.
Feel free to join me in the comments with your predictions.
So my predictions for the final placings of all teams is as follows:
1 United, 2 Chelsea, 3 City, 4 Arsenal, 5 Liverpool, 6 Spurs, 7 Everton, 8 Villa, 9 Blackburn, 10 Fulham, 11 Stoke, 12 Bolton, 13 Sunderland, 14 West Ham, 15 Birmingham, 16 Newcastle, 17 Wolves, 18 Wigan, 19 West Brom, 20 Blackpool
I reckon maybe at least five right there.
Feel free to join me in the comments with your predictions.
England vs Hungary preview
1) I'm not going to watch this game obviously; however I have watched the build-up with a detatched amusement.
2) Capello has made a valiant attempt to bring in some fresh blood to the squad and freshen it up. However, the selection is quite strange. Exactly how did Peter Crouch and Jermaine Defoe play themselves out of the squad? Defoe scored one goal in two starts at the World Cup. Crouch didn't get a sniff. What has Carlton Cole done to come back into the set-up at Crouch's expense? Likewise Bent and Defoe?
The real selection area that I would question is in central midfield. 4-2-3-1 was THE formation at the World Cup, with almost every team setting up approximately like this. England's formation was supposed to be 4-2-3-1, but they switched to something more approximate to a diamond against Slovenia and Germany. Watching Barry get overrun by Ozil, Muller, Schweinsteiger and Khedira surely shows that the defensive midfield area is the one that England need to develop. Yet the squad is completely devoid of players capable of playing in the "double pivot", excluding Barry.
3) Capello's comment to the press that he doesn't know how he is going to motivate the players after the WC debacle was bizarre. Surely this is the man's job? Part of the reason England were so feted in the first place was Capello's ability to rebuild the confidence of players that had been shattered by their failures under McClaren. Now he himself admits he is unable to motivate them?
4) England will win of course. I imagine that Rooney will score. Wiltshire may even make a sparkling cameo (although has there ever been a more transparent attempt to look progressive? Wiltshire has done absolutely nothing to earn his place in the squad; surely Matthew Taylor or Fabrice Muamba are more deserving based on evidence). But there is a real sense that the England team at this stage is made up of fantastic club players who have not cut it internationally, and now never will due to the mental scars of repeated failure, journeymen who will never quite reach the top level, and callow youth who have done very little to back up the claims made on their behalf. Basically, England stink.
2) Capello has made a valiant attempt to bring in some fresh blood to the squad and freshen it up. However, the selection is quite strange. Exactly how did Peter Crouch and Jermaine Defoe play themselves out of the squad? Defoe scored one goal in two starts at the World Cup. Crouch didn't get a sniff. What has Carlton Cole done to come back into the set-up at Crouch's expense? Likewise Bent and Defoe?
The real selection area that I would question is in central midfield. 4-2-3-1 was THE formation at the World Cup, with almost every team setting up approximately like this. England's formation was supposed to be 4-2-3-1, but they switched to something more approximate to a diamond against Slovenia and Germany. Watching Barry get overrun by Ozil, Muller, Schweinsteiger and Khedira surely shows that the defensive midfield area is the one that England need to develop. Yet the squad is completely devoid of players capable of playing in the "double pivot", excluding Barry.
3) Capello's comment to the press that he doesn't know how he is going to motivate the players after the WC debacle was bizarre. Surely this is the man's job? Part of the reason England were so feted in the first place was Capello's ability to rebuild the confidence of players that had been shattered by their failures under McClaren. Now he himself admits he is unable to motivate them?
4) England will win of course. I imagine that Rooney will score. Wiltshire may even make a sparkling cameo (although has there ever been a more transparent attempt to look progressive? Wiltshire has done absolutely nothing to earn his place in the squad; surely Matthew Taylor or Fabrice Muamba are more deserving based on evidence). But there is a real sense that the England team at this stage is made up of fantastic club players who have not cut it internationally, and now never will due to the mental scars of repeated failure, journeymen who will never quite reach the top level, and callow youth who have done very little to back up the claims made on their behalf. Basically, England stink.
Tuesday 10 August 2010
A New Season
Bowing to much (read two people) pressure, I am going to be continuing my blog throughout the English league season.
The immediate issue that arises here is that I'm technically not going to actually watch very much football: I don't have Sky, and am boycotting ITV football until Chiles, Townsend, Tyldsley, Drury and Beglin are gone. But I'm sure I'll still find ways to write a whole bunch of bullshit.
If anyone can help me make my picture of David Busst bigger, please let me know.
The immediate issue that arises here is that I'm technically not going to actually watch very much football: I don't have Sky, and am boycotting ITV football until Chiles, Townsend, Tyldsley, Drury and Beglin are gone. But I'm sure I'll still find ways to write a whole bunch of bullshit.
If anyone can help me make my picture of David Busst bigger, please let me know.
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