Toby Carvery wrote:
BristolDon wrote:
dons50 wrote:
All I can say is that he was manager of the best team I ever saw (Barca) and he has similar things twice more (Bayern and now City). The guy is a genius.
True, but how much of that is down to him and how much of it is down to (1) Barcelona having Xavi and Iniesta in their prime and a young Lionel Messi coming through, (2) Bayern Munich being Bayern Munich who really should be one of the best teams in Europe with their ability to hover up all talented German / Eastern European players, and (3) City being able to spend money on whatever players they want without batting an eyelid.
Would he have been good enough to keep Sunderland up last season? I have no idea. Because he never takes risks with a job that isn't absolutely nailed on to make him look good.
But why would he take a job that is beneath him just to prove a point? Do you expect Lionel Messi to sign for a League 2 side to 'prove he can cut it'?
I don't think anyone says Lionel Messi needs to prove a point (although I would love to see how he fairs in the PL), so that's a ridiculous straw man comparison. There's a difference between a player who has won the Ballon D'Or 5 times signing for Morecombe than for a manager who's only managed three teams signing for a mid-table top division side somewhere. Which, imo, isn't "beneath him". If he does it and succeeds, then fair enough, I wouldn't expect him to do it any more.
To be a top player, you need to play at the top level against the best players. To be a top manager, it's not that simple. There are some great managers who have never managed the likes of Barcelona, Man City and Bayern