Sometimes I look at the trajectory of Martin O’Neill’s career and wonder why he didn’t land another top job after leaving Celtic. He was the hottest property in football while he was in Glasgow, almost joined Leeds United (then a top side), while he was short odds for the Liverpool manager’s job at each annual crisis on Merseyside. At the time Ferguson at Manchester was talking about retiring, had he gone, Martin would have moved to Old Trafford.
In 2003 he met Mourinho in the Uefa Cup final. The Portuguese had some of the finest footballers of that generation at his disposal, unquestionably a better collection of players than Celtic, as their Champions League win 12 months later would prove, but Porto were pinned-in for long spells in the second half and required (literally) every trick in the book to prevail.
Despite losing, O’Neill did better with the resources available to him than Mourinho.
After a few meritocratic years at Aston Villa, where he spent more than the club could afford, but delivered a better team than they would otherwise expect, he left a day before the season kicked off, apparently unhappy Villa’s budget was being curtailed.
Without meaning offence to Sunderland, I was disappointed when he pitched up there. Martin O’Neill was surely a manager who should be competing for league titles and in the Champions League. His early form at Sunderland was transformational but it was a transformation built on fragile foundations.
Those founds’ have now disappeared, Sunderland sit two places above relegation. Their play is recognisable from how Celtic played a decade ago, and how Leicester played in the 90s. Opponents know what they get from Martin’s teams, so they know how to prepare for them.
Martin’s former players talk about his inspirational qualities not his tactical incision. It’s hard, if not impossible, for a manager of a major club to master all the attributes required in the job. The successful ones realise this and delegate.
One of the frustrations we had with Martin when he was at Celtic is his reluctance to indulge the scouts. We signed former Leicester players, players who featured on Match of the Day, or players from other SPL clubs. The Wanyama, Izaguirre, Kayal-recruitment model, players signed with greater trust in the scouts and limited supervision from the man at the top, would never have happened under O’Neill.
The technical side of the game is perhaps even more important than recruitment. Great football systems, clubs and countries develop from one coach doing something sensational. Successful tactical changes are then studied and copied, but how do you study and learn from a system that’s not utilised against you, or on TV, when you are manager of a large club? You can’t, on your own.
Instead you have to deploy the systems you already trust and used to get yourself the big job in the first place. Or you can tinker a little, or use what, for the want of a better term, we’ll call a technical research team. People who can say to the manager, “A club in Romania is doing something really clever, we should try it”, without being frog-marched off the premises.
The lesson of evolution is that it is not the biggest, strongest or healthiest who thrive, it’s those who can adapt to a changing environment. The list of great managers who end their career in humiliating relegation is longer than the list of greats who regularly discard their tried and tested formations and become early-adopters of successful new systems.
‘By any means necessary, Journey with Celtic Bampots’ by Paul Larkin, is now available at Lulu and other outlets. Paul charts the remarkable events the Internet Bampots became embroiled in since 2008.
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Bada –
Can ye get a price on,an each-way, bridge-jumper, yankee, trifecta including Mr Stark, the boul’ Boaby an’ a wee swingin’ double on Billy “Cats Erse” Davies as ‘wingman’ ?
Might be worth a punt……?
one of the quotes from Stuart Cosgroves guest post on TSFM blog.
————-
We now know they drank fine wine and ate succulent lamb in Jersey and the most loyal attended Murray’s 50th birthday party at Gleneagles. One journalist was so proud of his invite he danced round the editorial office mocking those who had not been invited. This was the early height of the Rangers EBT era but it is now clear that difficult questions went unasked by either journalists or by football administrators.
Sorry if this has already been posted. It is an email from the Green Brigade and affects everyone going to the game on Wednesday:
“I’ve been asked to pass this on to any supporters who may be attending the Barcelona game on Wednesday night , please take the time to read it if you haven’t done so already , thanks .
On the 7th of November, 125 years and one day from Celtic’s founding meeting in St Mary’s in the Calton, we take on Barcelona in the Champions League.
With brilliant financial backing from the Celtic support, we have organised a fantastic full-stadium display to mark the occasion and celebrate our incredible history and we need EVERY fan to play their part in making it a success. For that to happen, we need everyone to make a big effort to get in early and to follow these instructions.
Do NOT raise the material at your seat during You’ll Never Walk Alone. Instead, wait for the cue from the Green Brigade corner at section 111 to do so before the teams come out. With your continued support we can, 125 years on from the founding of our club, continue to show the world just what the great Celtic support can do.
Green Brigade”
JJ
Alex Miller.Next manager of Scotland.
It doesn’t make any difference who the FTSFA pick as the next Scotland manager, until the Cronies are displaced football in this country will continue to suffer at national level, Craig Levin’s tenure as the Coco in Charge is ample proof of that.
Disband the SFA and build a new organization..
Tallybhoy
150,000 capacity the mind boggles
Last time we played Inverurie Locos: 17 July 2002 – 7-1 win away! The same again will do NICELY should we get them following the replay with Arbroath.
hankray
Henke became a superstar when he left Celtic, how sad they are.
Campbell Ogilvie on shortbread just now! Canny believe it, I thought he was a figment of everyone’s imagination!!!!!!
googybhoy-Davies 33/1 betvictor,bigger odds than I thought.
on the managers:
MON came with a big reputation and turned celtic into a machine that would win and regain our pride in europe, lucky with some of the players we had, but he changed our fortunes by buying what we needed to go with what we had.
we had henki, sutton became his perfect partner
thompson was outstanding for prefect for sutton and henki
stan became stand the man when he came in and sat NFL beside him and lambert
we had johan (moved to centreback), he got jos and later slav
agate, move the right back and he was magic few got past time, ever!!!!!!!!!!
then we had squad fillers
best player brought in: sutton or thompson
worse player brought in: momo
best young player brought through: mcgready, maloney, kennedy
8/10 – great memories, lots of success, biggest criticism we were left with an aged team
WGS with a remit to cut the budget and continue the success he went about his business good style and done a very good job. on the field we won and done well in europe top table. did not get the credit he deserved. love the fact he got so much out of managing celtic and talks us up as often as possible.
best player brought in: naka
worse player brought in: telfar
best young player brought through: mcmanus
8/10 – great memories, lots of success, biggest criticism is the fact like MON he did not leave us much
NLF – in because of BTM’s ill fated time and has been given time to get it right. his teams attempt to play more free flowing football than either MON/ WGS, is working on a tight budget and has one the league once from two attempts, but with a very young team.
best player brought in: fraser, izzy, efa, victor, kayal, hooper
worse player brought in: telfar
best young player brought through: watt, fraser, twi, forrest
?/10 think we will be able to compare in 5 years time, for now he’s doing alright
!!Bada Bing!!
Billy stark named as caretaker manager, dont know if good or bad
for your bet
All the best to Billy Stark, good guy, you will need a lot of luck in that nest of vipers
Scotland job? VERY poisoned chalice. DON’T GO NEAR IT GORD!!!!!
Hold on – steward’s inquiry!
The Rungrado May Day stadium in Pyongyang, North Korea is not solely used for football.
So the winner is the Salt Lake stadium in Kolkata, India which seats 120,000.
HH!!
googybhoy ♥ Celtic
William hills odds
6/4
Gordon Strachan
8/1
Alex McLeish
10/1
Joe Jordan
10/1
Walter Smith
14/1
Billy Davies
14/1
John Collins
14/1
Mark McGhee
14/1
Owen Coyle
16/1
Harry Redknapp
16/1
Kenny Dalglish
16/1
Steve Kean
20/1
Gary McAlister
20/1
Graeme Souness
20/1
Stuart McCall
25/1
Billy Stark
25/1
Paul Lambert
25/1
Peter Houston
33/1
Ally McCoist
33/1
Bobby Williamson
33/1
Darren Ferguson
33/1
Derek McInnes
33/1
Dick Advocaat
33/1
Jim Jeffries
33/1
Jimmy Calderwood
40/1
David Moyes
40/1
Malky Mackay
40/1
Steve Clarke
50/1
Martin O’Neill
66/1
David Weir
100/1
Alex Ferguson
100/1
Andrew Young
100/1
Andy Roxburgh
100/1
Craig Brown
100/1
John McGlynn
I sincerely hope Big Starkie and WGS give the job as wide a berth as possible………
………..they are both better off out of it.
Doubt anyone with the initials EBT on their C.V. will get the job!
Good thought-provoking article Paul. Re MON/WGS – I would say neither of them could have done the job the other one did.
The scouting system we have now looks to be working really well. I would also like to see more on the youth development side (hopefully this is happening and will bear fruit in the years ahead) – look at what Ajax are doing. Clubs like us and Ajax cannot come close to competing with the big leagues for developed players.
Onwards and upwards…..
For his own sake I really hope WGS is on holiday in Cambodia with no phone or internet access.
……..what about that dick, Campbell?
HT…..
….talkin’ about bettin’
……..hows yer coupon?
;)
thetimrieper-I think he is a lively outsider,they won’t pay big bucks for a big name,he’s already on the pay roll and no compensation to pay.
Davie Weir 66/1? – might be worth a penny or two… Still think it will be Smith or McLeish though.
!!Bada Bing!!
If he wins the two friendlies against luxembourg and estonia
easily, he could get it
…aww Cheeses, forgot aboot Weary Dave………….ticks a big box…..
bankiebhoy1
19:12 on
5 November, 2012
……..what about that dick, Campbell?
or that dick, Advocaat
SFA not paying Levein lump sum,he will continue to be paid til his contract expires,that mob could not run a bath
……aye, it’ll come down to either dick or “Boaby”…….
There is only one credible candidate for the Scotland job. If he doesn’t get it, it will be for one reason only: he is a former Celtic manager.
Bankiebhoy
Strangely it’s all the prettier for taking a thump!! ;-)
The bigot Peatslagging the SFA on Shortbread……..blowtorch anyone?
HT
…..Nice puffa!
:)
HH.
79caps
John Barnes?
!!Bada Bing!!
19:18 on 5 November, 2012
SFA not paying Levein lump sum,he will continue to be paid til his contract expires,that mob could not run a bath
Maybe they could give him an EBT……..
!!Bada Bing!!
19:18 on 5 November, 2012
”SFA not paying Levein lump sum,he will continue to be paid til his contract expires,that mob could not run a bath’
Which is what the Celtic board did with BTM.
BadaB
That’s Billy Stark got no chance then, snyde are putting him in the frame :>)
Bankiebhoy
It’s bloody Ralph Lauren!!!!!!!
;-)