Comment: The case of restless owners

Football has evolved exponentially in the past 15 years but the time given to managers has shortened greatly.

December is a festive season and one is supposed to be in cheerful spirits with happiness said to pervade the atmosphere.

Try telling that to Rafa Benitez or Sam Allardyce. Benitez, previously at Liverpool, was recently sacked by Inter Milan while Allardyce, who once coached Bolton, was given the marching orders a few weeks ago by the new Blackburn Rovers owners.

Avram Grant is barely holding on to his post as West Ham continues to perform abysmally, lying at the bottom of the group. Even Carlo Ancelotti does not seem immune from speculation while his aging Chelsea squad struggles to match the pace at the summit.

Football, as an industry, has evolved exponentially in the past fifteen years but the amount of time given to managers has shortened greatly. The days of Sir Alex Ferguson struggling at United for four or five years before tasting success and being allowed to learn from his mistakes are history.

A reason for these developments lies in the changing face of ownership at top-tier clubs. It is uncommon these days to find the benevolent local tycoon who runs the club out of loyalty to the town or the club itself.

These days, football is a corporate business and owners demand a quick return on their investment.

If the manager is unable to live up to the owners’ ambitions quickly enough, he is summarily dismissed. This is particularly true of clubs where owners provide the manager with a large sum of money and expect him to be able to ‘buy’ the league or the cup.

Mourinho was able to do this at Chelsea for at least a season or two at Chelsea but the lack of a cohesive youth system meant that squad depth was a concern and once Roman Abramovich scaled back his investment, success was hard to come by.

This has not happened just in English football. Real Madrid has ample examples of firing managers even after they attain some success. Fabio Capello was fired after winning La Liga and respectable managers like Manuel Pellegrini and Vicente del Bosque were shown the door without a scruple after decent performances.

This does not mean that the only way to achieve success in the game is by firing managers indiscriminately until you find the right one.

It does not necessarily mean that you have to back your manager over a long period of time regardless of results. The answer lies in establishing sufficient depth within the club, having an effective youth system and a useful cash-flow.

The sacking of Frank Rijkaard at Barcelona did not result in a drastic fall in performances. Pep Guardiola came in and did remarkably well despite his inexperience.

Admittedly, he had a great team available to him but he was not hesitant in moving a below-par Ronaldinho and a fractious Samuel Eto’o while promoting Pedro and Jeffren from the youth team.

We also have the example of Manchester United who have benefitted from a long-standing youth program and a manager who has successfully adapted to the rigours of modern football management.

In addition to a good foundation at the club, a little more patience by owners can help bring the best out of managers and players. After all, it is the season for dreams to come true.

The writer is a freelance sports columnist.

Published in The Express Tribune, December 26^th, 2010.