English Angle: Is Sven-Goran Eriksson The Man To Rescue Portsmouth?
stonejah said
16:30 02/13 2009
Portsmouth's sacking of Tony Adams has been overshadowed by events at Chelsea, but it still leaves a very interesting managerial vacancy open. Adams was never going to have an easy task in succeeding Harry Redknapp and, indeed, the job was beyond him. Pompey crashed out of the FA Cup as holders, failed to survive their UEFA Cup group and have dropped into the Premier League relegation battle.
The FA Cup win last season was a euphoric moment for modern day Portsmouth and one which raised the bar. Once 'Arry jumped ship to Tottenham Hotspur, then, the decision to promote assistant Adams raised eyebrows. As far as failures go, he didn't disappoint. This was seemingly a gamble, not a long-term project, and reports suggest that Avram Grant was always waiting in the wings in case it didn't pay off.
Ex-Chelsea boss Grant, who has already spent time at Fratton Park as technical director, has indeed been mentioned in connection with the post. However, another frontrunner has emerged in the shape of ice-cold, hot-under-the-collar Swedish enigma Sven-Goran Eriksson. Could the former England and Manchester City boss really be the answer to the south coast side's problems?
Selling Club
Supremo Alexandre Gaydamak has, by all accounts, all but washed his hands of the Pompey project. Even after the January sales of Jermain Defoe and Lassana Diarra, what is essentially a small operation remains deep in the red financially. Redknapp brought happy times to the club with his well-known man management skills and charisma, also using every morsel of his patience, underrated tactical nous and transfer market savvy to compliment initial big-spender Gaydamak and help the club to punch well above their weight.
However, Adams brought little of that. The young gaffer has admitted that he's not a people person and it was clear from the outset that he'd have no money to spend in January, which largely proved to be the case. Perhaps Adams was expected to survive on borrowed momentum, but that momentum is now well and truly tapped out - so what can Sven bring to the job?
First, Portsmouth still have a slew of above-average players and even a couple of diamonds who, without the grandstand appointment of a big name like Eriksson, are likely to leave. Niko Kranjcar, Glen Johnson and Peter Crouch, to name a few, won't stay without an ambitious figurehead, and head-in-the-clouds Sven would certainly bring that. The veteran core - Sylvain Distin, Sol Campbell, David James et al. - would also relish working under a more glamorous regime. Looking through the squad, there's a lot for a manager to get excited about, and this is probably the last chance for the club to keep it together before it's stripped for parts.
As England manager, Sven exposed himself as a tactically questionable. He could occasionally facilitate greatness but, more often than not, led the Three Lions to massive disappointment. However, he did reach the quarter-final stage of three elite tournaments and, although his side couldn't come good at the business end, Pompey won't be expecting to either. Mid-table football in the top-flight has to be the target for the next couple of seasons.
Sven then moved onto Manchester City and clawed back must of the respect he'd lost at international level. Under Thaksin Shinawatra, he was allowed to spend big and, at the beginning of the 2007-08 season, he looked like a genius. His side flew high and were tipped for a Champions League place. It all went belly-up, of course, with the controversial Shinawatra making Sven's life a misery from behind the scenes and performance levels dropping rapidly. His last game was an 8-1 defeat at the hands of Middlesbrough - shocking.
Would this happen again under the disillusioned Gaydamak? Best case scenario: Sven brings results quickly, enjoying the 'new manager effect', and keeps the core of the squad together, adding sensibly in the summer once the ship is steadied. Worst case: it doesn't work at all - the placid boss can't get a reaction and Pompey tumble out of the league, wishing they'd appointed a more down-to-earth boss like Bolton Wanderers and Fulham did with Gary Megson and Roy Hodgson previously.
Either way, the wheels are already in motion. Eriksson's former England No.2 Brian Kidd has been brought in to help caretaker Paul Hart in the interim, forming a decent, ready-made backroom. Furthermore, Eriksson's flight-of-fancy with Mexico seems doomed to failure. His appointment was controversial in the first place and by all accounts he hasn't clicked with the players. The country's FA could avoid paying compensation by offloading the Swede and both parties could avoid further embarra**ment like the defeat at the hands of the United States in midweek.
Although Eriksson would have to get his manicured hands dirty, I'd say that he'd be interested in taking a step back up from the unfamiliar CONCACAF scene in order to return to the Premier League and club management. However, his long-term future at Fratton Park would be in doubt from day one and perhaps Pompey should look for someone who can guarantee survival, even if it does mean losing a few more players.
The FA Cup win last season was a euphoric moment for modern day Portsmouth and one which raised the bar. Once 'Arry jumped ship to Tottenham Hotspur, then, the decision to promote assistant Adams raised eyebrows. As far as failures go, he didn't disappoint. This was seemingly a gamble, not a long-term project, and reports suggest that Avram Grant was always waiting in the wings in case it didn't pay off.
Ex-Chelsea boss Grant, who has already spent time at Fratton Park as technical director, has indeed been mentioned in connection with the post. However, another frontrunner has emerged in the shape of ice-cold, hot-under-the-collar Swedish enigma Sven-Goran Eriksson. Could the former England and Manchester City boss really be the answer to the south coast side's problems?
Selling Club
Supremo Alexandre Gaydamak has, by all accounts, all but washed his hands of the Pompey project. Even after the January sales of Jermain Defoe and Lassana Diarra, what is essentially a small operation remains deep in the red financially. Redknapp brought happy times to the club with his well-known man management skills and charisma, also using every morsel of his patience, underrated tactical nous and transfer market savvy to compliment initial big-spender Gaydamak and help the club to punch well above their weight.
However, Adams brought little of that. The young gaffer has admitted that he's not a people person and it was clear from the outset that he'd have no money to spend in January, which largely proved to be the case. Perhaps Adams was expected to survive on borrowed momentum, but that momentum is now well and truly tapped out - so what can Sven bring to the job?
First, Portsmouth still have a slew of above-average players and even a couple of diamonds who, without the grandstand appointment of a big name like Eriksson, are likely to leave. Niko Kranjcar, Glen Johnson and Peter Crouch, to name a few, won't stay without an ambitious figurehead, and head-in-the-clouds Sven would certainly bring that. The veteran core - Sylvain Distin, Sol Campbell, David James et al. - would also relish working under a more glamorous regime. Looking through the squad, there's a lot for a manager to get excited about, and this is probably the last chance for the club to keep it together before it's stripped for parts.
As England manager, Sven exposed himself as a tactically questionable. He could occasionally facilitate greatness but, more often than not, led the Three Lions to massive disappointment. However, he did reach the quarter-final stage of three elite tournaments and, although his side couldn't come good at the business end, Pompey won't be expecting to either. Mid-table football in the top-flight has to be the target for the next couple of seasons.
Sven then moved onto Manchester City and clawed back must of the respect he'd lost at international level. Under Thaksin Shinawatra, he was allowed to spend big and, at the beginning of the 2007-08 season, he looked like a genius. His side flew high and were tipped for a Champions League place. It all went belly-up, of course, with the controversial Shinawatra making Sven's life a misery from behind the scenes and performance levels dropping rapidly. His last game was an 8-1 defeat at the hands of Middlesbrough - shocking.
Would this happen again under the disillusioned Gaydamak? Best case scenario: Sven brings results quickly, enjoying the 'new manager effect', and keeps the core of the squad together, adding sensibly in the summer once the ship is steadied. Worst case: it doesn't work at all - the placid boss can't get a reaction and Pompey tumble out of the league, wishing they'd appointed a more down-to-earth boss like Bolton Wanderers and Fulham did with Gary Megson and Roy Hodgson previously.
Either way, the wheels are already in motion. Eriksson's former England No.2 Brian Kidd has been brought in to help caretaker Paul Hart in the interim, forming a decent, ready-made backroom. Furthermore, Eriksson's flight-of-fancy with Mexico seems doomed to failure. His appointment was controversial in the first place and by all accounts he hasn't clicked with the players. The country's FA could avoid paying compensation by offloading the Swede and both parties could avoid further embarra**ment like the defeat at the hands of the United States in midweek.
Although Eriksson would have to get his manicured hands dirty, I'd say that he'd be interested in taking a step back up from the unfamiliar CONCACAF scene in order to return to the Premier League and club management. However, his long-term future at Fratton Park would be in doubt from day one and perhaps Pompey should look for someone who can guarantee survival, even if it does mean losing a few more players.