Friday, April 28

Big Phil Scolari, Not Even English

Having argued against the wisdom of appointing an Englishman as the next England manager, and having admitted to not knowing enough about the foreign possibilities to cast judgement, we are hardly in a position to start complaining about the apparent appointment of Luiz Filipe Scolari by our wonderful FA.

We would not be English if we did not react with some scepticism to the arrival of another Johnny Foreigner to take up such a position of responsibility and power, however.

All the signs now are that Scolari will be the man to succeed Sven Goran Eriksson after this summers' World Cup finals. Having set out in the stated quest of finding an Englishman to take on the job the FA's selection panel are believed to have offered the job to a man born in Passo Fundo, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil. You'd need a pretty big envelope to send him a Christmas card, or a big, fat redundancy cheque.

You have to despair at the stupidity of the selection panel which was originally comprised of the FA chief executive Brian Barwick, the international committee chairman Noel White and the Premier League's FA board representative Dave Richards. By coming out at the start and declaring they were looking for an Englishman they made a massive rod for their own backs which they have been trying to slyly rid themselves of ever since.

Of course this has proved impossible.

That pronouncement was almost immediately shot to pieces as it became obvious that Martin O'Neill was one of the panels' favoured options. Among the majority of football fans it was already well known that O'Neill was in fact an Irishman. That is something we can only assume Barwick, White and Richards found out the next day when their morning papers arrived.

The biggest absurdity of all in saying that they were looking for an Englishman was the fact that if they were determined to have one they should have been in a position to make the appointment immediately. Surely they should have known enough already to decide who they felt was best suited for the job. They should have been able to take an extended lunch break down the local pub, have a few quick shandies and stagger back to the office ready to make an announcement.

Instead it began to appear as though the panel was simply waiting to see which of the English managers' involved got the best results between then and the end of the season. Therefore Sam Allardyce looked the best option at first but then slipped away as his Bolton Wanderers side proceded to go on an unprecedented losing streak. I would imagine that the members of the selection panel had no idea that Allardyce's side play with all the grace and finesse of a Sunday morning pub team until they were obliged to watch Match of the Day a couple of times to help them with their decision making.

Likewise Stuart Pearce, never really a likely candidate, and Alan Curbishley also drifted to extreme longshots as Manchester City and Charlton faltered.

In contrast Steve McClaren came right back into contention. Abused and abhorred at Middlesbrough when the selection process was getting underway Eriksson's assistant came back into the reckoning as Boro embarked on two excellent cup campaigns. It was not enough to convince, however, and ironically the apparently decisive meeting with Scolari came only the day before McClaren led his side into a European final.

None of this should have been relevant. As the saying goes, form is temporary, class is permanent. If there was an Englishman out there worthy of the role then a few defeats here and there would not be reason against appointing him. Especially as the men involved manage teams who cannot be expected to win every week in the Premier League.

Brian Clough was in a similar position throughout his career and it is unlikely that he would have been able to command the success he achieved in the 1970's in the modern game at clubs like Derby and Nottingham Forest. If he was around today, however, he would certainly stand out as a man capable of taking on the England job. Just as Allardyce, Curbishley and McClaren stand out as people who are not.

Stuart Pearce offers hope for the future but his time is at least two years away, maybe more.

Therefore the appointment of another foreigner does make sense. Reservations about the cultural differences in the football played in Brazil and England are natural and Scolari will need to show that he can adapt to the English style and mentality. If he can infuse a little Latin panache and confidence on the ball then that is fine. I certainly believe that English football needs to stay true to its roots, however.

We give ourselves too much of a hard time about liking a challenge and coming off the pitch sweaty. Steven Gerrard epitomises everything that is best about English football and he is unmistakbly an English footballer. Nobody can tell me that he is not a world class player and I would imagine there are few players who other players look forward to playing against less.

Doubts about Scolari's pedigree will also need answering. He is a World Cup winner but it is correct to say that with Brazil that is more expected than exceptional. And although he led Portugal to the European Championship final in 2004 he did so as manager of the host nation, always a massive advantage. Managing England seldom throws up any kind of succour.

Scolari might even find the pressure and intrusive attention on himself beyond that he encountered while leading Brazil. It will undoubtedly be the acid test, if he does take it on.

But why exactly was Scolari chosen when the selection panel decided against keeping it at home? The answer, it would appear, actually had nothing to do with the original panel. Apparently the idea came from David Dein, the Arsenal chairman, who joined the decision making panel later on, presumably in order to have someone on the panel capable of making a decision.

Scolari was Dein's choice and the original three musketeers were eventually agreed on one thing, that Dein knew better than them. That's fair enough, everybody thinks D'Artagnan was the best musketeer, even though he wasn't one.

Most fans, if they were not allowed an Englishman, would probably have gone for Mourinho or Wenger. Whether either of these were sounded out we may never know. Dein is certainly too shrewd to throw Wenger's name in as a possibility. Indeed he might have got himself involved specifically to keep the Frenchman out of the running.

As per usual the whole process has been a bit of a shambles with nobody coming out of it with much credit. Barwick, White and Richards have maintained the common perception of the FA as a collection of bumbling, privileged incompetents while the English candidates have struggled to maintain their dignity.

Pearce, as usual, managed this comfortably. Steve McClaren did well to end up looking a whole lot better than when he started although his earlier troubles at the Riverside probably helped him stay apart from the fuss and bother. Alan Curbishley ended up speaking somewhat out of turn, although his comments were completely justified. Sam Allardyce was appalling. Throughout the process he has come across as a bullying, self serving, raving egotist. Whether he has actively sought the support of his several lobbyists we cannot say. It would not be a surprise if he has, however.

The reaction from John Barnwell, some kind of managers' representative, and former English managers such as Graham Taylor and Howard Wilkinson has also been embarrassing. Taylor in particular should keep his mouth shut. We had the misfortune of having him as England manager once upon a time. Oh for a foreigner then.

The comments of these people smack totally of self interest and not of the general good. All that matters is the welfare of the England team and if a foreigner is the best man to get the best out of them then so be it. Let's hope that Eriksson ends on a real high, after all he hasn't done a bad job and still has the chance to make himself a hero, and that Scolari can not only get the best out of the squad he looks like inheriting but brings something new and exciting to it as well.

At least that is a possibility. What exciting things would Sam Allardyce be bringing to the role?