Dark-San
4th May 2007, 03:22 AM
Three more matches to go before the English Premier League 2006- 2007 season closes. It has now come down to a two horse race between Manchester United leading 5 more points than their cloest rival Chelsea. However the point of this topic is not on who is going to the win the title but more on the Big 4's managers. For your information, Big 4 is an unofficial name I give to the top four clubs at the moment, they included Manchester United, Chelsea, Liverpool and Arsenal.
Sir Alex Ferugson, the manager of Manchester United FC, is the most experience of these batch of managers. He has been around the longest, knows every dirty trick in the game and probably the most respected out there. His long records of title grabbing trophies says it all and that includes his 1999 Treble. His current squad is set to illuminate the 1999 Red Devil's squad for that success. However disappointingly they fall short and was trashed by AC Milan 3-0 at San Siro. Perhaps it is the time for him to retire or does he still have some fight in him?
Jose Mourinho, the most fortunate of the four managers. He had the cash to buy the best of the footballing world and probably the backing from his board until recently a spat with the Russian billionare chairman, spells trouble for his long term commitment. He had own a squad that is clearly the envy of many managers worldwide and even he had won both the English Premier League back to back on his two years in charge. Many ordinary folks would just brushed it off, indicating that his success comes from the chairman's billions. However this goes beyond simple thinking, how could you control and manage a world-class squad without you being a world-class manager? And he proves all his critics wrong by standing by his players and motivates him when necessary. In fact, his backroom motivation talks in halftimes is the key reason why Chelsea is still in the running for the title even till today.
Rafa Benitez, the master tactician of the European game. In terms of building a squad that revolves around the European arena, he had suceeded in doing this and that earn him two successive European finals within three years. The Red fans must be overjoyed this. However the weakness to Rafa Benitez is that though he had been enjoying European success, he had failed to gain ground on the English Premier League. Last season was a disappointment as many thought that they will take the fight to Chelsea but they failed in that task terribly, the same has go for this season. However the Americian cash pumping in, will they finally gain a stronghold on the title challenge for next season?
Arsene Wenger is the last of the Big 4's manager to touch one. An unearthed gem itself from the J League a couple of years ago, since taking over the role of manager for Arsenal. This witty old manager has build a team revolving around the current youth system. Just look at the squad itself, most of them are in their early twenties with a few just above 25. However as good as he may seem, it is still a fact that the current squad lacks big game experience. A few months ago, they were in all 3 cups competition (English League Cup, FA Cup and European Champion's League) and they crashed out one cup from another within a space of two weeks. Yes we may blame it on their injury list of Henry, Van Perise and others. But it is still a fact that they need experience and that only comes with a blend of youngster and old players. With Arsenal selling their old players instead of retaining them for a few more years, perhaps the only success that they can truely enjoyed would be the dream of gold in a few seasons time.
Well here is my rant on the four managers. Who do you think is the best of the four and who is the worst?
Sir Alex Ferugson, the manager of Manchester United FC, is the most experience of these batch of managers. He has been around the longest, knows every dirty trick in the game and probably the most respected out there. His long records of title grabbing trophies says it all and that includes his 1999 Treble. His current squad is set to illuminate the 1999 Red Devil's squad for that success. However disappointingly they fall short and was trashed by AC Milan 3-0 at San Siro. Perhaps it is the time for him to retire or does he still have some fight in him?
Jose Mourinho, the most fortunate of the four managers. He had the cash to buy the best of the footballing world and probably the backing from his board until recently a spat with the Russian billionare chairman, spells trouble for his long term commitment. He had own a squad that is clearly the envy of many managers worldwide and even he had won both the English Premier League back to back on his two years in charge. Many ordinary folks would just brushed it off, indicating that his success comes from the chairman's billions. However this goes beyond simple thinking, how could you control and manage a world-class squad without you being a world-class manager? And he proves all his critics wrong by standing by his players and motivates him when necessary. In fact, his backroom motivation talks in halftimes is the key reason why Chelsea is still in the running for the title even till today.
Rafa Benitez, the master tactician of the European game. In terms of building a squad that revolves around the European arena, he had suceeded in doing this and that earn him two successive European finals within three years. The Red fans must be overjoyed this. However the weakness to Rafa Benitez is that though he had been enjoying European success, he had failed to gain ground on the English Premier League. Last season was a disappointment as many thought that they will take the fight to Chelsea but they failed in that task terribly, the same has go for this season. However the Americian cash pumping in, will they finally gain a stronghold on the title challenge for next season?
Arsene Wenger is the last of the Big 4's manager to touch one. An unearthed gem itself from the J League a couple of years ago, since taking over the role of manager for Arsenal. This witty old manager has build a team revolving around the current youth system. Just look at the squad itself, most of them are in their early twenties with a few just above 25. However as good as he may seem, it is still a fact that the current squad lacks big game experience. A few months ago, they were in all 3 cups competition (English League Cup, FA Cup and European Champion's League) and they crashed out one cup from another within a space of two weeks. Yes we may blame it on their injury list of Henry, Van Perise and others. But it is still a fact that they need experience and that only comes with a blend of youngster and old players. With Arsenal selling their old players instead of retaining them for a few more years, perhaps the only success that they can truely enjoyed would be the dream of gold in a few seasons time.
Well here is my rant on the four managers. Who do you think is the best of the four and who is the worst?