To describe the replacement of Martin O’Neill with Paolo Di Canio as a “managerial gamble” really doesn’t do the change at the top at Sunderland justice.
As understatements go it’s up there with “Gordon Strachan’s got his work cut out”.
In pure football terms Sunderland have swapped a man who not that long ago was a frontrunner for the England job and a favourite to succeed Alex Ferguson at Manchester United with a coach untested at English Championship level, never mind the Premier League.
And that’s before you look beyond the wins, draws and defeats at Swindon Town.
Public confrontations with players were regular occurrences at the County Ground. The highlights were an on-field altercation then parting of the ways with striker Leon Clarke, embarrassing his goalkeeper Wes Foderingham by subbing him because he wasn’t playing well, and the whole team being called “stupid donkeys”.
https://youtube.com/watch?v=3MWwQ8eE7jI%3Frel%3D0
https://youtube.com/watch?v=G4xLEAu24Hg%3Frel%3D0
Then, when it all ended with the Italian quitting over his star player being sold against his wishes, he was caught on CCTV breaking into Swindon’s stadium under cover of darkness to claim keepsakes of his time in charge, which involved tearing some of them from the walls. Why he couldn’t have just waited until 9 o’clock in the morning like the rest of us, I’m not sure. Maybe it was a bank holiday weekend.
O’Neill used to be known as a bit of a maverick in his younger days heir to Clough and all that – but by Di Canio’s standards he’s positively middle of the road. Infact, even Clough himself would be seen as safe and sensible in Di Canio’s company.
A Sunderland fan summed it up best when Sky Sports News did one of their vox pop things outside the Stadium of Light as word of his imminent appointment broke on Sunday.
After giving a considered assessment of Di Canio’s managerial track record, he paused for thought and concluded: “and let’s face it, Di Canio’s not dealing from the full deck is he?” (or words to those effect).
But it isn’t Di Canio’s idiosyncrasies, or even his inexperience, that have made his appointment a controversial one (I actually think he’s well suited to the short, sharp shock needed to snap Sunderland out of the lethargy that is sucking them into the drop zone).
It’s been his use of a straight arm salute, praise of Mussolini and description of himself as a fascist that has prompted the resignation of the club’s vice-chairman, David Milliband and infuriated many supporters.
No club is more steeped in socialist tradition than Sunderland the name Stadium of Light isn’t a rip-off of Benfica, it’s a tribute to the davy lamps used by miners on the site of their ground.
The Durham miners have a banner on permanent display there, or rather they did, as they’ve asked for it to be taken down, describing Di Canio’s arrival as “a disgrace and a betrayal of all who fought and died in the fight against fascism”.
The public objection to Di Canio is probably out on its own in terms of the political and social ramifications of an incoming football manager, but new managers arriving to a collective sigh or a protest is nothing new.Here’s a top 10 of appointments that have raised eyebrows and tempers:10 John McLelland. St Johnstone fans aren’t the type to camp themselves outside the front gates Newcastle or Celtic style, but when the man who led them from the Second Division to the Premier League and into three cup semi-finals, Alex Totten, was sacked and replaced by one of his players, the majority of them failed to share in chairman Geoff Brown’s logic.
9 John Brown. A hero (ish) as a player returns to manage the club. Where’s the problem? The problem was he was taking over from another hero (no ish about it). Like McLelland at St Johnstone, a few weeks ago the Dundee fans weren’t directing their anger at Brown’s appointment, more the dismissal of his predecessor (Barry Smith).
8 Roy Hodgson. Decent, hard-working, organised? Check. Inspirational? No. The Kop always give their managers a chance, but most get longer than the now England boss to prove their worth. Deflation soon turned to open opposition and Hodgson’s stay was a short one. The fans wanted Kenny and Kenny they got.
7 Alex McLeish. Now we move to another level. Open hostility. 600 protested outside Villa Park at the news the Scot was making the ill-advised switch across Birmingham from freshly-relegated City. He needed a fast start and got anything but. Only just kept Villa up but got no thanks for it and was out after a season.
6 Joe Kinnear. They like their idols in Newcastle and, as a rule, they don’t like the men who take over from them. Owner Mike Ashley has always been his own man, but nobody would have seen this coming after Kevin Keegan quit for a second time. Kinnear’s best days at Wimbledon were long behind him and he’d been out of work for four years. He fell ill, was replaced by another icon in Alan Shearer and neither have been seen in a dug-out again.
5Ron Greenwood. When you know Brian Clough wants the job, you’re never going to be enthused at getting Ron Greenwood. A very nice man by all accounts, but his appointment in 1977 to the England job redefined the word ‘indifference’. Scotland fans can substitute Greenwood, 1977 and Clough with Andy Roxburgh, 1986 and Jim McLean.
4 Harry Redknapp. Not many move from Portsmouth to Southampton to a hero’s welcome, and no exception was made for Redknapp. Unsurprisingly it didn’t exactly go down well at Pompey either but the “Judas” and “Dirty Harry” banners were tucked away on his return along the south coast to Fratton Park about a year later. For their part, Saints fans were happy to no longer have to worry about their confusing loathing with loyalty.
3 George Graham. You’ll see a theme developing now. Birmingham and Villa, Southampton and Portsmouth and now Arsenal and Spurs. At least Graham had the sense to take a circuitous route (via Leeds) across North London to the enemy. The fact that not only was he Arsenal through and through, but he also built his name on turgid 1-0 wins at Highbury as a manager didn’t help his PR and even a track record of winning things didn’t persuade Spurs supporters it was a good move. Won a League Cup but had an average record in the league and remained unloved when he was moved on.
2 Brian Clough. Clough famously lasted just 44 days at Elland Road. It wasn’t actually the fans who were most outraged by his running down of Leeds in his time at Derby County, their manager Don Revie, and his style of football. Many were actually willing to give him a chance. It was the players who couldn’t forgive and forget. Clough told them: “Gentlemen, the first thing you can do for me is throw your medals and your pots and pans in the dustbin because you’ve never won anything fairly. You’ve done it by cheating.” I’ve heard better motivational speeches, I must admit. From that day on Giles, Bremner et al made it their business to get Clough out. Fan power may not always work, but player power does.
1 Rafa Benitez. None of the other nine have been booed into the dugout on their first match in charge and for that reason alone, Benitez has to be number one. The Spaniard had the temerity to criticise Jose Mourinho’s Chelsea when he was manager at Liverpool (who didn’t?) and for Blues fans that was an unpardonable sin.
Even the likes of Graham, Redknapp and McLeish had pockets of support after crossing a divide that shouldn’t be crossed, but the antipathy towards Benitez seems to run even deeper. The modern day version of Clough at Leeds. For a while it looked like he wouldn’t even last 44 days, but he should make it through to the summer before he departs as loathed as he arrived, with or without an FA Cup win.
Unless “The Translator” Mourinho goes to Barcelona, Gary Neville to Liverpool or Steve Kean returns to Blackburn Rovers, Benitez should be safe at number one for a while yet.