Though shocking the sacking yet it was expected not now but 6
months back the sacking of David Moyes the team manager of Manchester United when
he failed to deliver the goods. To step
into the shoes of gigantic and brainy Alex Ferguson and attain success and that
too in such a short time is not a joke.
For a manager to attain success lot of factors are required and not the
game only that is played on the field. It is always the manager that is made
scapegoat for the defeat of the team when he is not physically playing the game
on the field. He is only guiding the
players how to play but the final action is in the hands of the players who are,
if not more, then at least equally guilty of receiving defeats on the field. In
view of this, along with the manager if not all then at least some players who
play crucial role in the team should be sacked. If 11 playing members of the
team cannot win the game then how one non playing member that is the manager
can do the needful from outside the field?
A few years back, one prominent soccer club in Denmak
replaced half a dozen managers within a dozen months when their team suffered
spate of defeats, one after the other. In the Gulf they don’t keep the managers
longer period if they fail to acquire the victories, they sack them by paying
them their full financial settlement in accordance with the contractual
obligation.
The team manager’s job is the most demanding job because
every team wants victory and no team accepts defeat. Tele Santana the great
manager of the great Brazil dream team of 1982 World Cup repented later on to
accept this position because in Brazil’s defeat in this tournament made him
realize how risky it is to be the team manager when your team suffers the loss.
His woes became worse because in Brazil people are very emotional when soccer is
concerned and for them a defeat for their team means an end to their dream. For
this reason he later on remarked saying “nobody should accept the team manager's
post in Brazil”. In Brazil, the team manager’s job of the national team is
second to the post of the president of Brazil in terms of popularity and
importance.
Tele Santana was such a genius manager that only the second
time in the history of the soccer world that such a team was prepared and appeared
on the soccer field. Some of the players of this team were not only soccer
wizards but soccer magicians, namely Falcao, Zico, Eder, Dr. Socrates and
Serginho. This team had everything in it required to win the World Cup except “LUCK”
which is very imperative to win the Cup. Poor thing Tele Santana was unlucky
not to have this factor called Luck.
Manchester United is one of the richest clubs in the world
and it has a long history of playing excellent soccer by their excellent
footballers of very high caliber recruited from all around the globe. It has
its innumerable fans all around the world who cannot accept the defeat. The top
management of this club spends millions with the expectation of victories not
only at local level but also at national and international level. David Moyes
as Manager has failed to gain the club the expected victories and hence the
sacking which he accepted gracefully.
I wish David Moyes all the best in his next assignment but
caution him to screen carefully the caliber of the players of the next team
because it is the quality of the players that makes the success of the
manager. Mario Zagallo was given the
charge of the great Brazilian squad of 1970 World Cup when Brazil won the coveted Jules Rimet World Cup for the
third time, just 6 months before the start of the tournament in Mexico and he
became successful only because he had in his squad not only good players but
super footballers such as rocky defender and skipper Carlos Alberto, attacking
midfielder Rivelino, midfield maestro Clodoaldo who did super orchestrating
with the ball and all the attacking
genius forwards, namely the great Pele, Jairzinho, Tostao and Gerson. Such
forwards and such a team never appeared on the soccer field till now. And probably even in future will not. Such teams come to this planet only once in
centuries.
Candolim, Goa.
Tel: 7507394349.
