Saturday, May 26, 2007

A Case Of Not If But Sven?

Speculation is heightening about the next City manager.

First it was Ranieri and Co Adriaanse; next it was Eriksson distancing himself; yesterday it was Sevilla's Juande Ramos and most conspicuously Gerard Houllier following his suspiciously timed departure from Lyon, although he says he just needs a rest from football - Eastlands would be perfect for him then ;-)

In what seems to be a U-turn of New Labour proportions, it now appears that Sven would fancy taking over at City after all if the newspaper headlines are to be believed.

At the moment though, links with any big-name manager are just fanciful speculation until such time as any take-over of the club has been resolved one way or another. No manager of the calibre of those mentioned above are not going to come to the club under the existing regime and they'll only stake their respective reputations if they have a sizeable budget to spend.

Personally, of all those mentioned, I think Sven is the best fit. Granted, he underachieved as England boss, although his record was still pretty good compared with other England managers. However, his credentials as a club manager are exceptional.

1979: Swedish cup, IFK Gothenburg
1981: Swedish championship, IFK Gothenburg
1982: Swedish cup, IFK Gothenburg
1982: UEFA Cup,IFK Gothenburg
1983: Portuguese championship, Benfica
1983: Portuguese cup, Benfica
1984: Portuguese championship, Benfica
1986: Italian cup, AS Roma
1991: Portuguese championship, Benfica
1994: Italian cup, Sampdoria
1998: Italian cup, Lazio
1999: European Cup Winners Cup, Lazio
2000: Italian championship, Lazio
2000: Italian cup, Lazio

I'd like to see the new owners move quickly for Sven and give him a chance to start building a side in time for the start of next season. Having Eriksson at the helm would attract quality players who previously would never have considered coming to City.

Furthermore, being a cool and cautious Swede, I don't think Sven would waste big money on risky signings in the same way as Pearce and Keegan did.

As I said, everything depends on the takeover, which according to reports should be concluded in the next 2 -3 weeks. However, having been here so many times before, I'll believe it when it actually happens. I wonder what the odds are on Wardle still being Chairman and Warnock as manager for the start of the season ???

10 comments:

Anonymous said...

For once I agree with you. Sven would be a great choice. Sign him up quick

Anonymous said...

agreed, sven could do a top job for us. i recently read ashley cole's autobiography and, despite the media barracking he recieved while in the england job, cole said throughout his time in that job he was held in the upmost respect by all the players and cole personally believed him to be up with any of the best managers he's ever worked for

Bluesology said...

anonymous, the beauty of football is that it is a game of opinions and life would be dull if we all thought the same. Having said that, glad you agree. Let's start a campaign to get him appointed ;-)

Anonymous said...

Your last sentence hardly bears thinking about.

That said I agree Sven has an outstanding record at club level but I would imagine he would get an incredible amount of stick at every ground in England (Not his fault blame the FA).

Houllier for me would be the ideal choice, knows the Premiership and what is required, also has an impressive club record.

Bluesology said...

Yes, but Houllier's football at Liverpool was so dull and boring. We could do a lot better. Also, he reminds me too much of Peter Sellars

Anonymous said...

Erikksons performances with England didn't set the country alight

The same could be said of Liverpool performances in the Premiership this season.

Anonymous said...

i would like to see sven all said and done his record speaks for itself we need someone proven to build from. plan b what about warnock and rosenior as his number 2

Bluesology said...

Hmmmm... plan B sounds as attractive as the Alan Ball days

blulip said...

How bad are your memories ,Sven is a terrible manager ,if you go to purely man city and enter their archives ,look for ROBBIE WAS RIGHT ABOUT SVEN , it makes for some interesting resding

Bluesology said...

Yeah, I read the article, and to be honest you can make statistics fit any argument. However, fact is he's still got good pedigree and has won honours in three different countries. Whichever way you cut it, that's still a pretty good record