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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Whither the cash strapped scrofulous hillbillies the nicht?
Re the Scottish cup draw.
I see that Inverurie scored twice in the last 4 minutes to get a 3-3 draw with Arbroath!
Bankiebhoy
Boaby…all the qualities required….thy couldn’t could they ?
Boruc dropped by Southampton …
There are 2 comments on the BBC website from people saying Reagan should go because he appointed Levein. Short memories? History is being rewritten by the BBC. They’ll soon be calling for Gordon Smith to be brought back as CEO.
HT
T K Maxx :-))
Pfayr
Ha ha indeedy but Ralph Lauren nonetheless!!! ;-)
Peat-bog criticizing the SFA.
PF………….
two words
“Grimmond McCrummoch”……….
……………oh yes they could!
pedrocaravanachio67
16:02 on 5 November, 2012
Thanks for posting that.
Agreed with much of what he said.
Mind you,for one who doesn`t feel inclined to jump on the poppy bandwagon,he seems to have no problem jumping on the “vilify Haig” bandwagon.
Great piece from Stuart Cosgrave.
Says it all for me….but not good reading for Sevconians.
http://scottishfootballmonitor.wordpress.com/2012/11/05/why-the-beast-of-armageddon-failed-to-show/
…..so Cro-Magnon man, aka Stoneface is having a go at his former employers…….
……shameless.
macjay
is there a problem with that, do you consider Haig a war hero
Kevin Gallacher saying Levein got the sack for being negative and defensive. Wants the job to go to Walter Smith.
Go figure!!!!!!
“Gie the joab tae Boaby!”
Good evening friends.
2 months ago when the draw for the Champions League was made I felt underwhelmed that we had drawn Barca again. What on earth was I thinking!! Can’t remember ever being this excited 2 days before a group game. Butterflies already. It is going to be a night to remember.
I hate fireworks night
Three dugs..all going mad in their own fashion
The worst being the jack russell ..jinky…wanting to kill everybody every time he hears a bang
The SFA could do worse than follow the example of the Copts, who appointed a new Pope at the weekend when a blind-folded altar boy picked the name of the successful candidate out of a chalice.
Or they could really cheer me up and give the job to wee Flavia Cacace.
It’s fair to say that Flavia’s belly button put in a good shift at the weekend.
Provan said he doesn’t think the Scotland job should be used as stepping stone to a club job so he wants the cardigan to get it (then went on to say some Scotland fans might not want cardigan because he used the job as a stepping stone to the hun job).
You can´t help thinking that but for personal circumstances things could have been different for Martin O´Neil. He raised the bar though and it´s good to see Paul measuring Lenny up against MON , has the wee man got a result in him for the visit of Barcelona. We need to exploit their weak defence, Deportivo came close losing 4-5 a couple of weeks back so we need to go one better.
Don´t want to be stirring up any debate and I have worn a poppy on many occasions, however I shall not be donning one in the foreseeable, with all the politicking which there is around it now and with it justifying all kinds of illegal wars. Sorry but it makes me mad, my grandfather got a bullet in his leg in WW1
Evening Bhoys & Ghirls
The good news for you all without a ticket for Wednesday, is that one of the wristbands which was donated to the WeeOscar4Life campaign and came with a free ticket for the Barca game is now available again, thanks to the buyer letting us down.
So we are going to run a 24 hr auction on this wristband and ticket and this will close at 8pm tomorrow night. We will then arrange to meet the successful bidder prior to the game.
The wristband is of the finest quality and the seat is in the North Stand block 101. Not too shabby a seat at all.
Send your bids off to us at weeoscar4life@gmail.com and we will keep you up to date with the highest bids.
All proceeds go to Wee Oscar and his family.
Good luck.
HH
CRC
WeeOscar4Life campaign team
There are many, many reasons that I couldn’t give a toss about the football team scotland.
One thing that annoys more than most is how they treated Tommy Burns when feck was given the job, they didn’t even have the whatfor to even approach him about the job, that sums them up for me.
I hope their hun team loses all they play.
Tho I can understand those who support them, just.
googybhoy,what odds whitecrook lad living in Sunny Balloch,Walter lives just over the hill in helensburgh,surely that gives me a chance.
If I went into Hampden it would probably be with A FLAME THROWER.
H H
As someone who still wants Scotland to do well, I would like to think that Gordon Strachan and Steven Pressley were given the job. But, tbh, I doubt whether any manager could make a fist of the job. There are few young players coming through in Scotland. Until we start to encourage boys to PLAY football, things won’t begin to change.
Then it has to be lessons on pass and move.
So which Hun will get the Scotland job. Plenty of them out of work at the moment, SFA will be spoilt for choice.
Hi Guys,
my wee cuz has misplaced his Barca ticket. Is it just a matter of getting a replacement at the TO?
Billy Bhoy
If my memory serves me rght, Craig Levein was rushed into the job mainly because Dundee Unt were absolutely flying in the league at the time and they were due to play .
Schhhh… you know who.
Schhhh… you know who at the time were very dodgy but somehow top of the league or thereabouts, but one defeat away from losing it completely.
Details are a bit hazy, but Burley was out and Levien was in situ in jig time: the SFA had never done anything so quickly EVER.
Scotland’s next competitive fame was already known: it was to be NINE monhs later (Lithuania Euro 2012 qualifying). So why the big rush?
Consequence was that a rudderless DUnt were thrashed 7-1 by Schhhh… you know who.
Schhhh… you know who went on to win the league… CL money, etc etc
The ultimate consequence is that the Scotland international team has been manage by the wrong man since 2009.
So, who’s next?
Well, ask the Campbell and Co!
What will suit the Gers, the Teddy Bears, The Raingers?
Not much has changed.
Levein got the job to shut him up, no other reason.
That is what we are dealing with.
The sfa are as bent as nine bob notes, all to facilitate the huns and the hunnish mentality.
There is a chance to save the game, but instead of making any attempt to salvage what little is left, they are still hell bent on saving the huns, and still on the path of allowing thuggish play on the pitch.
Hell mend them.
Billy Bhoy
Yes. Call them.
MWD
Goughy and Souey embdy……..?
Sixtaeseven you are 100 percent correct. The appointment of Levein was I believe designed to benefit RFC. There was no need to get him in so quickly. It ruined uniteds season and the huns were the prime beneficiaries…
I won’t have any negative talk about MON ……….Yo’ll hear me now……he brought us great joy and success, in a period of crass bhun cheating, then we had WGS, who was fantastic, the and now the famous NEIL, a legend in our time……..
….and if the SFA even THINK about bringing duds walturd or eek back as Scotland manager, they will be the laughing stock of all laughing stocks…….
…..decided not buy the Investor Club pack of 3 tickets due possibly missing the games due possible work commitments forcing me to work on the evenings in question……howeva, decided to take the chance and went about trying to get a pack of 2 on Friday ……SUCCESSFULLY …….. WHOOPEE DOOO…….There was no way I was going to miss the GB display …..LOL
WHEREFORE THE SCURRILOUS HILLBILLIES ZOMBIES2 TODAY………….A DAY NEARER LIQUIDATION ……hahahahahahahaha
West Brom go 1 up against Southampton
Craig levein got find by SFA for this ,REFUSED to pay it,
SFA doubled fine, levein refused to pay it says see you and the corrupt rev McCurry in court.
WOULD YOU LIKE THE SCOTLAND JOB CRAIG, BROTHER
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rlFpHriMd8A&feature=related
Fined :((
admit it , hands up, which of you cqners just released successful launch of some chinese lanterns above bishopton, now heading towards erskine while pretending its part of the medieval catholic burning celebrations , but al the while knowing its for something completely different.
hehehhehehehe
MON would be perfect International Manager – key attributes are ability to inspire and motivate..
cultsbhoy loves being 1st forever & ever
20:43 on
5 November, 2012
MON would be perfect International Manager – key attributes are ability to inspire and motivate..
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
Now THAT would be a ‘shock to the system’ for our lovely little Country……LOL