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Is this the WORST January transfer window ever?!
37 Plays9 months ago
End of an Era: From Klopp's planned exit at Liverpool to Xavi's departure from Barcelona, and Ireland’s Carsley dilemma. 💔⚽️ Join us as we dissect the recent seismic shifts in the world of football management. 🎙️
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Transcript
Introduction of Hosts and Podcast
00:00:00
Speaker
I'm not into podcasts.
Drama at Manchester United
00:00:09
Speaker
Hello and welcome to the Not A Pundit podcast. I am Killian Ginesey and I'm delighted to be joined as always by Connor Glennon and Nathan Byrne. Lads, gentlemen, how are we?
00:00:25
Speaker
All good, man. Still keeping hold of Kieran Tripp here, so can't complain for now. Yeah, not too bad. Let's see how the Villa game goes this evening. And if Sir Eddie Howe will still be in charge, but time will tell.
00:00:40
Speaker
Nate? I'm very good. Typical drama this week at Manchester United, but when is there never a drama at Manchester United?
Football Transfer Rumors and Social Media
00:00:50
Speaker
You'd all be out of a job, but if it wasn't for us... I'll tell you about it. The media game wouldn't be the same, so... We're recording this podcast live from Belfast Nightclub. Well, yeah, so not a day, not a day of being a United fan, not now.
00:01:06
Speaker
How are you man? I'm good, thanks very much. I had the heart attack of all heart attacks with the possibility of Amadiello joining Sunderland and then hardly not. Shutting it down personally as well. Yeah well to be honest Tinfoil Hat on I reckon himself and the club have a deal that he will get to leave maybe not to Sunderland but to somewhere else as long as he doesn't publicly ask for it.
00:01:34
Speaker
so that he can come back. I'd say it was kind of like whoever leaks that he did ask was told, no, no, no, no, that's not how we do it anymore. He's becoming an avid user of Twitter, isn't he?
00:01:45
Speaker
Twitter and Instagram, like he's been chatting to some of them and fans. I feel about that. You know, I don't, something irks me about like players hitting back on everything on Twitter. It's better than the kind of preloaded messages of, Oh, we go again. Great, great effort from the group. You know, that shit. Yeah. The only thing about it, I think, especially in context of Man United is look at all the players you've been loaning out.
00:02:16
Speaker
Who is the only one you've been talking about? It's Diallo. Cause like, he's made sure he doesn't remember who he is. Cause he just will be himself.
00:02:25
Speaker
Oh, he's classy, he's unbelievable.
The Quiet January Transfer Window
00:02:28
Speaker
But speaking of transfers, it's been a very quiet January transfer. Like when you have Fabrizio Romano talking about Sunderland rumours and Sunderland buying a left back from Leeds, like it's not exactly a box office. You know you're in trouble. Yeah, Fabrizio doesn't, he needs feeding so he does. The man's actually getting sleep for once. He's scraping the barrel here.
00:02:52
Speaker
I have my theory though of why. I reckon Everton in particular has scared off all
Financial Fair Play and Club Finances
00:02:58
Speaker
the clubs. Like I think if that hadn't have happened, you'd see the likes of Newcastle kind of going, ah, we'll give it a try. What are the rules you speak on? Like, ah, yeah, we can, we'll amortize this. But now the fact that like. Farrist too. I think Farrist also gave the, gave the heebie jeebies out. I don't think so. I think they were kind of.
00:03:19
Speaker
I don't think they're going to be the reason why clubs would stop. I think it's the points deduction on potential points deduction. Yeah, double hit. I think that's the part that's kind of scared people kind of going, oh, these are serious, serious. This isn't just like a Man City charge. These are actually trying now. But that's actually an interesting point because if you think about it, no clubs are spending really anything. So have other clubs already overstepped the match?
00:03:48
Speaker
But Arsenal came out today and said, Arteta came out and was like, we're not financially in a place that we can bring players in. And then he threw a couple of bombs at the club going, we have one of the thinnest squads in the league, but what can you do? And it's like, oh, OK, that was a little bomb drop. But if Arsenal are in trouble,
00:04:05
Speaker
like you know up north in new castle where we have to sell to buy villa are in the same position having just sold greta for a hundred million so how that makes sense i do not know so like i do think financial fair play needs to be adjusted.
00:04:22
Speaker
And I'm not just saying that because I want Newcastle to get bigger players, but like, I mean, look, man, if the top four can't even buy players, what are we doing? Yeah, but that's because their own like mishandling of phones, like the only reason the United can't buy engines was look at our dealings. Like we sort of, if anything, deserve not to be able to buy stuff because we've acted so badly in the transfer of America.
00:04:44
Speaker
Man United approves why financial fair pay works. It's because it's all based on your total finances and what money you can organically bring in, not just people. But I think that's unfair. Not from a Newcastle point of view. Look, we have our own shell companies that are sorting us out. But if you're Villa, you're not getting the sunglass partnerships
Challenges for Middle-Pack Clubs
00:05:08
Speaker
that United are getting. You're not getting bloody shampoo partners or any
00:05:14
Speaker
Every sponsor you can think of for every product you can think of it does favor and i throw new castle in this too it does favor the kind of larger clubs like if if you're in town your your sponsorship opportunities are much lower.
00:05:29
Speaker
But I think there's two reasons why Financial Fair Play was brought in. One was because of terrible owners. Like, let's not forget, was it Portsmouth that had like four administrations in four years or something like that? The two other one owner. And they ended up in league two and they're still down there, owned by the former head of Disney.
00:05:49
Speaker
Bob Eisner. We've got Bob Eisner on them, really? Eisner. The one with the big forehead. He's now since kind of given control to his son, but yeah, Eisner is the one that owns
Newcastle's Champions League Qualification
00:06:02
Speaker
them, bought them from the Sporters Trust. But the second part of it is development of the club themselves. So it's like all these clubs are whinging. Oh, we have a thin squad. Oh, really, Arteta? Do you not have a full academy?
00:06:17
Speaker
What's the point of them? What's the point of having that? Like when you have Chelsea going and buying that likes to call Palmer because it's actually cheaper for them than keeping on to their own academy players. That's a system that's broken. So financial fair play does work in the sense of when you don't have somebody spending a billion and trying to do everything to get around it, this should be an opportunity for young players to come through.
00:06:45
Speaker
I do agree but I do think one part where FFP possibly overlooks some teams is the middle of the pack. Not only do like say relegation teams and teams that are hopping through the leagues or whatever, they get the parachute payments. So that's instantly a huge relief off FFP and same again for Champions League and stuff like that. So I do think like your Brantford's, your probably Villa's to a certain extent, they're probably the ones that are doing the best out of it because
00:07:15
Speaker
they're having to play with less money in the tanks sort of thing. I think like say in Nottingham Forest, I think one of the big things they probably got caught out with was that once they come up, they get instantly 100 million in. Do you know what I mean? So they're instantly getting that after. So they can cash injection on steroids. Yeah, they can then play with 100 million.
00:07:38
Speaker
And so I do think middle of the pack needs to be looked at a bit because I think just stops the middle teams progressing that little bit more. I also think we're going back to Newcastle with the black and white lenses on where it can you can get into trouble is we no one expected us to get Champions League. Now, we didn't even go far in the thing, but it's extra games, extra players, extra injuries. So it's kind of like it almost happened too soon for us, you know,
Youth Academies and Financial Fair Play
00:08:09
Speaker
Yeah but I just think that's like you know it had that last season as well where we played every three days and it was the same team every three days and it's like if you're doing that well and you're that successful you're gonna have to go through that like it's to catch 22 of it but as Killian pointed out earlier it's like the academies are there like. Yeah and don't forget that like FFP was brought in to stop Newcastle from happening.
00:08:36
Speaker
Yeah, literally. You have to change laws and have the government intervene because they're selling military things. Yeah, because the whole point is to stop these kind of billionaire guys coming in. I know what you're saying about the middle of the pack, but if Brighton can do it,
00:08:56
Speaker
Yeah, but these kind of things where it's like necessity is the mother of all invention. Like you're not going to play clever until you have to play clever. Yeah. Well, but can brighten do it if they miss one crop of youngsters commentary. Do you know what I mean? Like it's like.
00:09:12
Speaker
Or is that just a fine line of elite sport? If you're going to spend all that money in academies, they've got to produce every time, sort of thing. But I do think it's interesting. If you think back to your Karl Palmer's, like, Smitrow to a further extent, Saka, stuff like that, Maynoon out, United, it's like, these youngsters are good enough to play. It's just give them the chances. And it's like,
00:09:38
Speaker
It's not like we're asking these youngsters to be thrown in and, oh, we're going to field 11 players just straight out of the academy. Just put them in one on one into the first team. And I think that's something that I'd like to see more football is you can follow these kids through the academy and be excited about what they're eventually going to become as a footballer. But it's like,
00:09:58
Speaker
Most time you never even see the end product in order is so you know what a thrived in FFP Yeah, I Don't know Fergie spent money he spent money, but it was got it wrong. It wasn't usually that expensive You know what I mean like on Sebastian for on
00:10:18
Speaker
Okay, I'll give you that. Bebe's up there too. Cleberson, Anderson, Nanny to an extent. You are looking at a 26 year period. That's what I'm saying. You know what I mean? I think one of the things, Fergie probably, now he does get enough credit for it and probably not so much in another extent is like, he did bring through a lot of youngsters in that 26 years. So like, that's what I think I want to see more of in football nowadays is like,
00:10:47
Speaker
Well, people are going to be forced to, you know? Yeah, maybe even rules where like, you need to play a certain amount of Academy players every year. That'll be class, I would love that. Well, there is that. Well, is it you have to have them or you have to play them? Well, you have to have a certain amount in your 25 squad. Yeah, I know that. There is a payout for the amount of youth minutes you get. Oh.
00:11:11
Speaker
Yeah. I think we have not had a youth prospect in our starting match day squad and like ridiculous amount of years. Can you game the system there though? Like say you just stick out the academy for a cup run? No, no. I think specifically in the Premier League and expect the number of minutes over the season.
00:11:41
Speaker
Okay.
Sir Alex Ferguson's Legacy
00:11:42
Speaker
So it's not yet. Okay. So you could kind of game it, but you'd be playing a load of youth players the last 10 minutes of the game. What about a rule where it's like two youth promotions a season need to happen from where they go? Like say they come from the youth prospect into the first team squad and they have to have a number of matches in the first team squad. Like having to have say like eight games a year or something.
00:12:04
Speaker
Not saying that they'll play, but just at least give them the chance to get that match they experienced. That's so big for development.
00:12:12
Speaker
Well, we have seen, I'm not sure how much it translates to real life, but let's say like football rounder, we've all done careers where you go to a league and it says you literally have to have one at least either nation or club developed player in your starting 11 or you look at say like the Chinese league for all of its faults and they only allow Chinese goalkeepers because they wanted to develop that. Yeah, yeah.
00:12:36
Speaker
you weren't allowed to sign a foreign import goalkeeper. So that's why there was none of the big goalkeepers going over at that time. So I remember Wang Delai, who ended up being the national team goalkeeper in football manager, would always be the go-to. He was a decent
00:12:52
Speaker
That's a pretty handy gig if you get it. You're not getting kicked out. No, but like he was like a lower Premier League player, maybe even middle championship player. But like in football manager, you can never sign them because like for the clubs, he was just too valuable because they couldn't get anybody better. So like there is them kind of possibilities, but just what we were saying about Ferguson, just for full kind of like, let's not
00:13:19
Speaker
I think he gets a little bit too much credit too sometimes. Oh, that's very different. There could be a whole pod on that. You want to go there? No, we're not going there. Quickly, some players. Manutio, Diego Forlan, Gabriel Overton, Eric Gemba de Gemba, Cleberson, Bebe, Neil Whitworth, William Prunier. We're going to William Prunier. Come on. Phil Jones. You could do this for any manager like. Asimota Ibi, Owen Hargreaves.
00:13:48
Speaker
own hargree slap i don't care what anyone says that man had it was a great man was paid to sit on the couch oh i like i know i'm the big iron every very good player terrible sign his free kick against arsenal from an united is one of the best you'll see
00:14:04
Speaker
actually lads, the more I think about this, like youth players having to play a certain amount of games, we've just been stuck with fucking Scott McTominay the whole time. I actually take it back. But like to see this, this is what I mean. Like this shouldn't be what ends up happening. Like you go from
00:14:24
Speaker
like Man United I think as Roy Keane has kind of touched on numerous times as a fault of Ferguson was that he would always kind of feather his own nest and like especially towards the end of his time he stopped bringing true players when he wasn't going to get the benefit of them or putting in the same amount of time for them really.
Managerial Speculations
00:14:44
Speaker
So then you don't end up with the same level of academy prospects like I don't think that
00:14:52
Speaker
there's been too many successful ones coming true for you, and is that going to be the same now for Arsenal? Arsenal is having a golden spell at the minute, but I mean in terms of Fosu, Mense, Accel 2 and Zabi, you've had these reasonable players, but I don't know.
00:15:12
Speaker
class of 90, whatever they were. I think to defend Fergie though, like if you look, you know, say across to Liverpool, when Benitez was at Liverpool, it was, I think it was 60 players. Um, he brought in in six years. You know what I mean? Like, so for the volume of Clanger players that we're talking about, and let's face it, Gemba Gemba's and your clever sins are complete Clangers. I mean, you're talking probably in 20 years, 20 Clangers.
00:15:42
Speaker
No, my big thing with Ferguson is more just kind of going, he has gone like often, it's actually nearly more to the point when he does spend money, there's much more of a chance that it was going to flop. So I don't think he would have done quite as well in the current FFP era than he's been getting the credit for because like there was that time up until kind of really the Berbertoff and Van Persie signings that like anytime you saw them
00:16:08
Speaker
open up the checkbook it was kind of like oh god whereas if you saw them in that middle area of spending that's where it was like okay. I think at that point our team was so good that any player we were boiling up here was a gamble. Do you know what I mean? Just throw all the dice on a player.
00:16:29
Speaker
This line could have the time and he could not, but we're going to try, you know what I mean? But you also had the team at that point that if he was a Clanger, they could survive in that team because there was an awful good people around, you know?
00:16:41
Speaker
But I just think it just says a lot about this transfer and the fact that not only are we discussing previous transfers, but we're also only really discussing managers. And the biggest news of the window being manager leavings. We had Mourinho earlier this week. We had Klopp. We had Shavi. We have managers not joining teams. And they're the only bits of news that we can really talk about.
Klopp's Departure from Liverpool
00:17:06
Speaker
Which for the first time in a long time. Yeah, it's absolutely wild.
00:17:12
Speaker
It is, in this instance, it is worth talking about properly because Klopp is an end of an era, not just for Liverpool, but it kind of seems like the Premier League. He kind of seemed to be that kind of straddle of pre-PEP and post-PEP. May I start at this point? This is why Sir Alex Ferguson is the greatest manager of all time.
00:17:36
Speaker
I sat down and watched that video and as much as I don't like club I could relate Yeah, I go later with that video a lot but to see how actually tired he did look once he opened up it's like It opened my eyes to how crazy everyone that was for sir Alex to the point 26 years I think I do think though
00:17:59
Speaker
I agree with you. To survive at the top flight for that long 26 years is unbelievable. I do think the game and the media part of the game has moved on to the point that the landscape that Klopp was operating in for the last nine years, I'd argue
00:18:20
Speaker
was like double that of what, like, you know, there was a lot of time there where Fergie wasn't having six press conferences a week, all the charitable side of things. He wouldn't do press conferences for it anyway. He wouldn't get away with that anymore. Yeah, but the one big thing I did take from that video was he did look exhausted. Like once you sat down and went, OK, he did look checked out.
00:18:46
Speaker
I was shocked. I was saying to Killian during the week, I was, I think we all were shocked. I think we all got that BBC ding where it was kind of like, Oh my God. He did suggest a couple of years back that he was never going to be there for like, you know, 15 years, but I don't think it's one of those, like, you knew it would end at some point, but you didn't think it'd end now. And Killian, I know you were saying the biggest thing for you was middle of the season was the big surprise.
00:19:16
Speaker
yeah like it always seemed that to be honest i thought because he i think he'd always said it was a five or six years that's what i thought it was like i thought he said like five so i always thought once the one the champions league or the premier league that he was gonna walk away and when he didn't i was kind of going okay he's gonna be here for another while then
00:19:36
Speaker
kind of like when we all kind of assumed that Pep was going to leave before the Champions League win, just because that's just how long he does. So once he didn't leave, I was telling him, okay, it'll probably be after another big competition won or after an international tournament. But to announce it in January, Nathan, it's kind of
00:19:59
Speaker
I don't know. I don't know if it's bad or is it something to do with a sale. I think it's great. I think it's a kick up the ass to the players to go win one more trophy for him. I think it could work out really well for if the players and him can keep their emotions in check in the last. That's the big thing because it's going to be every game. Like I don't know if you saw the game over the weekend, but like clock was on the.
00:20:26
Speaker
Brinketeers, feeling the love from the crowd. If they've done it every week, that's not easy.
00:20:31
Speaker
True, but I also think it's motivations to go like where the doggone's dressing room sit around and shouldn't go, let's go win one more for him. For him, yeah. And I won't be surprised that they do end up winning one or two trophies this season. I think it is a team with sports where like Galvanizing together can create a big, big thing. So I do get a genius from them.
00:20:56
Speaker
I do wonder, though, I think I think it's a stroke of genius as well. I think like that it will put a fire under their eyes. The only thing that I would hate to see for Klopp is if they do win nothing and he dips out like that. You know what I mean? It's like I know he did what, three Champions League finals, one, one, got the Premier League back like his his legacy is solidified there, but it would just be a bit sad to see him dip out on nothing, you know.
00:21:22
Speaker
I don't think it will. I think you'll get to send an offer. Do you remember the Dortmund one? I don't believe they won't end in that season, but they'll send an offer. I think it's a bit genius.
00:21:37
Speaker
Yeah, I don't know. I think Liverpool could be in trouble though. Well, they don't know how much they're losing. So they're not only losing club, they're losing his two assistants. They're also losing a sporting director. You're losing a very upper part of your spine. Well, you're also potentially losing players. Van Dyke came out, I don't know if it was yesterday or today, and he was like, look, I've 18 months left in my contract. We'll see who they bring in. It's going to be a new club. From the outside looking in, it will be a new club.
00:22:07
Speaker
There was rumors today that Michael Edwards turned down a roller and he got offered to come back. He was like, no.
Liverpool's Rebuilding Challenges
00:22:15
Speaker
So I think like on a much lesser scale, what Ajax has gone through the last couple of couple of months. That's how tricky it is to chance when you're taking such a huge part of the club and just just getting rid of it. But they're also losing a recruitment tool in Klopp. You know, like if you're a
00:22:35
Speaker
I don't know, name a player and you're getting tapped around by City or Liverpool or Barcelona or whatever. You buy into what Klopp's doing. He's a pretty likeable guy and he's been able to do that. I think since Edwards left though, they were too dependent on that. It was less so of the smart recruitment that got them the likes of Salah, Firmino and Mane, where other people weren't considering them in that light to go on
00:23:05
Speaker
Well, who do you want? Who do you want? And then go out and get them and convince them. Yeah, just go be all smiley and have new teeth. I do. Yeah, I do have to give it to Liverpool, though. Like, look, I will make no bones about it. I truly hate Liverpool. But I love their history and all that, but just as a Newcastle fan, that's my divine right. Right there with you, buddy. But I have to give it to them. I think the way they handle
00:23:31
Speaker
the releasing of that information was absolutely perfect. They didn't give an exclusive to a paper. It didn't get leaked out. We all knew about it. And they got put in a corner. Everyone was shook. They controlled it by recording it themselves, putting it out in their own socials, and he talked directly to the fans. I don't think I've ever seen that handled better. And the fact that the club knew since November
00:23:56
Speaker
I don't know how that's been leaked. This is today's world, like anything leaks. A player moves from like one city to the other, he's not even on the move, but for Britio now it's the next minute. It's like, this is unheard of. What I also heard was the players only got told the morning he was doing the video. Really? Oh yeah. So that was locked down to hell. So like it seems like, and I think Hilly and you might have more info on this, you think it's somewhat sale related.
00:24:22
Speaker
Yeah, I guarantee it. Considering how potential of an issue this could be, it could take them two or three more years to get this
Competing for Top Football Operators
00:24:34
Speaker
right. Don't forget, they seem to have a bit of stability with Rogers and then that all went apart and it was all not good and then clock came in and kind of stabilized things again.
00:24:46
Speaker
For a club that's meant to be up for sale for over a year, losing the kind of the the stalwart that has kind of led your club to newfound levels of glory. It's for an investor, it has to be a little bit kind of.
00:25:04
Speaker
It makes you look elsewhere. Well, I don't need the sale related then because I think if it was sale related and they were anywhere near a sale or a negotiation or talks, this information would have been held back 100%. What can they do that though? They're now in a position where they're kind of going, we're in proper conversation with somebody.
00:25:24
Speaker
I don't know. Seeing how quickly they went straight back to Edwards there, it seems like... They're scrambling. When I read that today, I thought, oh, Jesus, they're panicking here. Yeah. But don't forget what Edwards' company is now. Yeah, but... It's a director of football for hire, so... But they went specifically to him where he turned it down. So I think they started panicking. Once it went down, they were like, okay, we can start talking to people. Whatever they're talking to, the fact they came out that he turned it down, that's embarrassing.
00:25:54
Speaker
Yeah, but I do think it's interesting now because we're going to see United versus Liverpool for the top operators in football. So it would be like, who gets them? Do you know what I mean? Well, I wonder now, like you say actually, who is it going to be? Because I look, both are a rebuild. Yeah, but one semi new ownership or they're
00:26:18
Speaker
Yeah. It's an interesting one.
Potential Candidates for Liverpool's Manager
00:26:22
Speaker
To be honest, I will be surprised if United go the, let's get more city people way. That makes sense. The only thing I have to say on that before, we'll come back to Klopp in a second, but as a United fan, what was your reaction to that? Happy? Or is it kind of like, I don't want one of them, one of those city fellas coming in?
00:26:44
Speaker
I was actually delighted because I felt like it was the first good decision management-wise we've done in a long time. I was like, if you're doing business and there's something you like and you like how it's done, you go get the people that do it. And I think reading up, I didn't know this guy when I got announced, I didn't have a clue, but reading up on it and listening to people talk about it, this guy knows what he's talking about. He's a legit operator from what the president said. A head decision, not a heart decision for the first time in a long time. Yeah.
00:27:12
Speaker
Like he was a city group for like going on these seven years. It's like you don't keep progressing in that group unless you're talking about what you do. And I think the way Pep talked about him after just showed like he's a respected guy there. And I think I wouldn't be surprised if we keep pinching our city now to try and rob a few more before the big Premier League hearings come in.
00:27:38
Speaker
on decisions that are, you know, head versus heart, who we think in clock replacement.
00:27:45
Speaker
So the bookies favourite at the minute is Shabby Alonzo, who I think is too intelligent to take. I think he doesn't want to be the David Moyes, the Ferguson. I think he wants to round your G job. I think he's not going to answer that Ian, looking at the ticking time bomb there and going, I want that job.
00:28:10
Speaker
like just looking at the kind of the odds here, pasta Collew's up there. I don't get that. I don't understand that. Billy Lagsman. To be honest, I don't think there's actually any benefit to Zerbe going there. I think he's actually in a nicer position where he is. Be the big fish in the small ponds. What's funny though is, you know, had Clark not dropped this bomb,
00:28:30
Speaker
If someone had said, who do you think would be a great next Liverpool manager, he would have been in my consideration. But now that it's happened, I'm like, I don't know. This is to be like Steve Bruce. I knew this was coming. I knew it. This is to me. I shouldn't be saying this out loud because I'm a United fan, but like, treble on the cards if he does, you know what I mean?
00:28:52
Speaker
Okay, in the zone of reality though, Zidane is 20 to 1. And I think... Greg Potter is 25 to 1. I could see Zidane as the digital manager. I don't think he'd do it. A very interesting one at 20 to 1 as well is Unai Emery.
00:29:15
Speaker
I think the big gamble for Liverpool, they need a, not that Emery's not a big name, but they need, and Ancelotti, Zidane, like Dzerby would give them, Dzerby would fall into their whole new move towards mathematical, formulaic football. And I think that would work in the FSG model. They need an object manager.
00:29:39
Speaker
Yeah, you see you're going to expect to be there for six or seven years. I think that's what the expectation with fans is going to be now. None of those names though I see there for six years. I think I know who it's going to be. If you say Steve Bruce or I'm going to twerk. I've got two names, okay? Right. Thomas Tuchow or Julian Nagelsman.
00:30:00
Speaker
Nigel's been too young, I think. He doesn't need it. I put the house on it, it's going to be what I'm doing. The only thing I want to go to is, Tookill came out in the press conference the other day talking about the Barcelona job and threw out some weird comments that he'd love to go to another country.
00:30:18
Speaker
So I don't know if he's tremendously happy in this job, but I don't know if I see him back in England after he exited England. There's gone at the end of the end of the season. I put money on it. I put it to the virus is more likely than Liverpool. I think there's three managers. I think are interesting. One of them being shabby, which is we will come on to.
00:30:44
Speaker
considering he's announced that he's going to be leaving Barcelona. I don't think it'll happen, but I think it'd be interesting. I think you get the conversation. Another one would be Luis Enrique, who I think could be a decent shout for them. And I think Liverpool will be one of the only clubs that this manager would potentially leave his club for, which is Diego Simeone. Yeah. Big game. Big project manager.
00:31:12
Speaker
big money, but he's not going to leave at Let's Go Madrid unless it's for a new challenge at a very high level and knowing that he's going to get the time to build whatever he wants to build. And I think that's the key, Killian. And you've, that's a big shout because he is a lad who likes a project. He likes being in it for the long haul. He knows how to play the political game. That's the community. He can handle the media. Oh, that's a big one.
00:31:40
Speaker
Lads, I'm not buying this Simeone hyper, right? This color will be in the vision tier of the Spanish league if you didn't have such a good relationship with a letter girl.
00:31:49
Speaker
I do not rate him. I really don't. I really did not rate this guy. I think he lives all of that relationship with the fans so badly. He plays horrible football. Yeah. If he was at all at Trafford, like I generally question my ties with the club. I think we've touched on the curve and Haggis is great.
00:32:15
Speaker
No, it's better than Simeone's players aren't in nightclubs at the moment, you know? But what I think as a neutral,
Mourinho and Newcastle's Project
00:32:32
Speaker
What I would love about Simeone is the fact that he would bring a new style of football into the Premier League again and just disrupt that top end of the league. It'd be absolutely entertaining. I will say all of this chat
00:32:49
Speaker
We know it's going to be Alonzo. Like it just will be, they'll find a way to do it. I don't think it will. I don't think it will. I don't want it to be. When it is then, can we come back to this? Yeah. And just like get it on record that I said it. Because I am 99% sure it's going to be one of them too. Okay. It's a big show. I've no information. I'm literally going off a hunch, but I am nine times the percentage it's going to be one of them too.
00:33:17
Speaker
Oh, I don't know. I'm not convinced. Speaking of calls that was made that could prove to be true, Connor, we were actually, you mentioned this at the beginning, you're not convinced that how has a long life, which is something that I called not too long ago, saying that the ownership won't accept mediocrity. And you think it's all down to one of the other managerial roundabout moves in the last few weeks.
00:33:43
Speaker
had this whole managerial move not happened, I wouldn't have seen it. Because I think how, for me, I don't want to see him go. I think he's done an amazing job. He's exactly what the project needs. And I think he should have enough cash in the bank for getting us to where we are now to see out the season, no matter where we finish. But I got a text this morning from a mate of mine, and it made me just go, hmm. And he was saying,
00:34:11
Speaker
I feel like the ownership would be licking their lips at Mourinho. And that made me go, Ooh, okay. So I don't, I don't want to see how go. I absolutely want to have that on record, but I don't know. I think Josie is a serial winner and would be appealing to bring us into the next phase. If you're the leadership at SJP, you know,
00:34:37
Speaker
Listen, I love Jose. I genuinely love that man. But I have a question that goes back to Newcastle. Is Newcastle an interesting project? Or are they, what's the word, held back by FFP and it's not as exciting as the first looked? Yeah, but then I agree with that. But I think the thing that would attract
00:35:04
Speaker
Jose is we're a bit Roma, we're a bit Porto in terms of, you know, he could really make a stamp on things. Um, would be, I think our main selling point. I think that's a really, really good point because FFP is going to be an issue, but that doesn't mean you're not going to be able to spend some money. And he, and let's face it, he can come in and be ruthless because these Al Maran's Joe Linton's they're not his players.
00:35:32
Speaker
And you know, you have connections in the Middle East, which will get good fees as you have done with. And we will keep doing by the looks of things with Miigiyama on. So like there's ways out of this, but I, he's the only one that I think. Yeah. Cause like, look, any, like Alonzo's not coming our way. He said, a hand's not coming our way. Any of the guys were mentioned for the Liverpool job are not coming our way.
00:35:55
Speaker
You know like the only one I really see is a if you sack how the fans are gonna go ape shit unless you bring in someone top tier and The only one that I think that I think people would still be pissed off and I would be But I couldn't help even as much as I'd be pissed off being excited about the prospect of Joe's a bringing us forward But then again going back to the how long would he stay? He never stays long, you know, and what he leaves the place in chaos is
00:36:24
Speaker
What about Dzurby for the Newcastle job? I don't think he'd be interested. I think he could, if he was convinced on the... The project? Yeah, the pipeline. I only had to bash out for Dzurby Newcastle. I'd absolutely love it.
00:36:41
Speaker
One thing I struggle with with Deserby is like, what is his next job? Because I feel like people are like, oh, Brighton does a great job, blah, blah, blah. But it's like, what's the next one for him? Because it all seems too bad for him to take. You know what I mean? Everywhere. One that I think. A lot of people had the same conversation with Thomas Frank a few years ago, and he's still there. What I think with Deserby, though, is with Javi gone out of Barcelona, one of the favorites for that job was Arteta.
00:37:11
Speaker
And if our Teta goes, I think Desirbe at Arsenal.
Barcelona's Managerial Challenges
00:37:14
Speaker
I don't think our Teta is going to go. I'd quicker see Desirbe at Barca. Yeah, I don't think Desirbe has gone anywhere. I think they'd take Desirbe though. I don't think that's a job they'd want. That's what I, I don't think so either. Cause like that, like being the manager of Barcelona is like being prime minister. Like it's, it's more politics than football.
00:37:36
Speaker
And I'm not going to hear that. Like you can't, you can't buy a Freddo without the credit card. Which was the issue. That's shabby names, not specifically the Freddo's, but one can imagine.
00:37:51
Speaker
C4 go to salary. Did he? Yeah. So he's getting paid for this season, but he had a year left on his deal and an option for another year. And he came to an agreement, which the way they described it sound like Don Corleone at a shotgun pointed at him, but he's agreed not to get paid out on the final two years of the contract.
00:38:17
Speaker
These acts of kindness need to be investigated with Barristers. They're happening in a bit too. Tanya, if I was a footballer, I'm not giving you any... Yeah, I'd be going full Jade and Sancho. Yeah, I would want more money.
00:38:31
Speaker
No, I think the Barcelona one is also going to be interesting because it's a poison chalice. Just again, looking at the odds, Rafa Marquez is the second favorite who is obviously the Mexican former center back in defensive midfield. That's Tony Taylor in World Football.
00:38:52
Speaker
Um, he was a classy, classy player, but I think he's Barcelona B manager. So again, that goes back to their pipeline. Um, kind of looking then through this, the last Palmeiras manager, Tiago Mata, former Barca player, Michelle, who was I think at, at Hirona, who, um, is doing very well. Graham Potter is 20 to one. Um, SESC Fabregas, 25 to one, who's currently, um, assistant manager at his, I think he owns or partly owns Como and he's assistant managing there.
00:39:21
Speaker
Patrick Vieira is only 25 to 1. Pep Guardiola is 25 to 1. The one that is very, very, very interesting to me is Marcelo Bielsa, a 33 to 1. Oh, you'd love to see him. Which I think a short term decision would be class. Lads, this is screaming, Barrisa can't afford a top manager. Well, you know, on that, the one I'm thinking, and it's out there and probably you're laughing at me for this, Linders from Liverpool.
00:39:49
Speaker
Oh, I'd love to see him get a job now. I actually rate him. I'd like to see him get... I don't know. I don't think he'd be cheap. I don't think he'd be biased alone, but I'd like to see him get a...
00:39:59
Speaker
a chance somewhere. He's the kind of lad you if Alonzo was to move, you can imagine him go to Liverpool. That would work. It's one of them kind of you can imagine him getting a decent chance. I just don't think there's some massive, massive club is going to say, yeah, want to give you the keys to the castle and all the backing with it. Yeah, it kind of says a lot when Liverpool are willing to let him go in the sense that like, I don't think they're willing to let him go. I think he's like, I'm loyal to Klopp, you know,
00:40:30
Speaker
I'm not sure. Yeah, I don't know. I don't think any big club like that, especially in that position, both Barcelona and Liverpool, can afford to give a lad like that that kind of chance. And because you'd be taking a chance on them and if it didn't pay off, you looked like a bit of an eager. And it's not undone in Liverpool's history. Like it was back to back to back assistance from was a
00:40:59
Speaker
Bill Shankly and Bob Paisley in that whole area, there was like back to back to back to back. And so there's what, 25 or 30 years of a management structure put into place. So it's not, it's not something that they're not. The safe route is give it to Marquez for a year. And if like, let him prove himself, it doesn't work, it doesn't work. And then see where you're at. I can't afford a year anymore. Barcelona. Yeah. Champions League every year. And with how good
00:41:26
Speaker
and the teams in La Liga are playing now and they're being so competitive. You can't afford to take your foot off the pedal anymore. I'm sure it'll be grounded. Super League will be up and running in no
Guardiola's Future at Manchester City
00:41:39
Speaker
time. Well, like if you look at the La Liga table now, it's your Hirona first, Real Madrid, Atletico Madrid, Barca, Dennis Bilbao. Which is wild.
00:41:50
Speaker
Yeah, there's only two points between Bilbao and Barris. So they're already on the edge. So I could see them give it to Rafa, but I don't think they'd give them the year. Like this is kind of like three months. Would Pep go back as like a Parisian gift? I think he's I think would clap out of the way. I think Pep will look at that league and go, I am going to make an even bigger stranglehold on this league with you out of the way.
00:42:20
Speaker
I think we might see the end of Pep soon now because Klopp's got it. Isn't they kind of need each other? No, I just think like now he's gone, okay, I outlast him. If I leave now, he's not going to outdo what I've done. I think he could see that now and just go, oh, I'm just going to call it a day here, sit here, move on. And then like he's not getting anything, he's not losing anything. In the same token as I said about Klopp earlier, I expected Pep to leave after Champions League win.
00:42:49
Speaker
So the fact that he hasn't probably means he has maybe two years left. Yeah. I think you could go at the end of the season maybe. That would be, Jesus, that would really sum up this season if all these kind of managers are on the move.
00:43:02
Speaker
Do you think he wants to be there when all that SSP stuff goes down? That all depends on when that's actually going to happen. That's what I mean. Like I don't see that. Like I know they're saying Premier League are saying they have a date, they have a date, they have a date. But like, even if they have a date, then it'll go Court of Appeals. That thing will be wrapped up in court for years.
Ireland's National Team Manager Search
00:43:23
Speaker
Yeah, it's definitely going to be very interesting. But one thing for us, which is very interesting is the fact that there's still no Ireland manager lads. And apparently, Leed Karthley is going to be it. No, Gus Poyot was a big one. I think that one would have hit Kalian in the heart. Yeah, well, like he's a very good coach. And to be honest, I think it says more about what seems to be a lack of a
00:43:50
Speaker
decision maker in the Ireland camp. I think if somebody said to play at going, I want you, I think he would have jumped.
00:43:57
Speaker
I think the fact that it's an interview process, it's a, oh, well, we'll think about it. Apparently one of the things that's not a deal maker, but it's a preference is somebody willing to base themselves at a Dublin. Which I read that and I'm fully on board with that in a football purist way, but I think in modern football, it's a bit much to expect. Somebody on Twitter was like, it sounds like they're describing Stephen Kenny.
00:44:30
Speaker
Why do they want to base themselves out of Ireland? Being an Ireland manager, you're not more better suited to be based out of the UK. 100%. I think it's pure optics, because after the CEO being based in the UK,
00:44:44
Speaker
They're trying to, I think they're just trying to go, Oh no, we'll have a new mode where we do that. But absolutely like wine gods. We don't have any league of Ireland players really in the, in the team. So like base yourself in the UK where you can watch them all the time.
00:44:57
Speaker
Well, I think what the point about it was is more so that rather than having a manager that I'd only fly in for matches, basically, they want to have something that's going to be there off and on. Um, right. So like, you don't have to live there, but you need to be like, you need to have a time share or something like that. I just, I don't like it's a waste of their time. You know what I mean? And it also, it puts off. Manager is going, Oh, careful to relocate my family. Now you're grand made, you know?
00:45:27
Speaker
Or is it a get out of jail free card so they can go when they appoint Stephen Bradley or whoever it's going to be, that they can go, well, this is one of the things that we wanted because we want to have our own organic football and sure, you know, Gus Poyette wouldn't do that. And sure, you know, Lee Carsey wouldn't do that. So we could only get this guy who happens to be a fan of what we could actually pay anybody else.
00:45:50
Speaker
It sounds like they're talking to anybody and everybody. It does, yeah. It sounds like there's no list there. At least she's gone, like, oh, that's going to go for a public meeting. Who have they spoken to, though? Lee Carr's name. Lee Carr's name. Neil Lennon. Poyet, I do believe. I don't. I think there was something in the background there. That sounds like agent talk, in the sense that the agent was in touch with the FAI rather than they never get an interview. Poyet wouldn't have talked about it if...
00:46:16
Speaker
there hadn't been conversations. And I think he was trying to put them in a corner. Outside of that, Steve Bruce has been incessantly calling Nate to see if there's an offer from the FAI. But the one, to be honest, looking at the list, I know Neil Lennon's the favorite. I think he'll want more money than we have. And I think we're going to get landed with Chris Houghton.
00:46:41
Speaker
Lads, are you taking, are you taking Neil Lennon over Steve Bruce? Have a serious chat with me here. No, no. No. No. Okay. So we, Steve Bruce, they're number one then, lads. Yeah. The smallest that we have in front of us. I will say out of, obviously we would have taken Lee Carusi, number one, Gus Poyot would have been fantastic. Roy Keane isn't happening, but out of Neil Lennon, Chris Houghton and Brucey, Chris Coleman.
00:47:12
Speaker
I take Chris Coleman actually, yeah, in that list. And then Brucey Second. And it's not even just for the comedic value that I do think he could suit international management. But Coleman, I'm, yeah, I think, I mean, it would be a very unsexy manager for the FAI to announce. And there would be grumblings, I think, personally. I have a question. 2016 euros. Yeah. If Keene got the job, could he still do stick to football?
00:47:39
Speaker
No. Yes. Well, he could, but like... It'd be more infrequent though. But I think... Ireland, stay away from them, all right? Can the media survive without Keynote being on stick to football with their weekly articles? I think he absolutely could in the new landscape of world football, but I think his credibility
00:48:10
Speaker
It'd be like, are you doing this for TikTok or are you doing this for like, I love the podcast too. I think it's brilliant. It's one of the best ones out there aside from this one. But yeah, I think you wouldn't be taken seriously. And I think the FAI would have a real issue with it because they'd have, Sky Sports would have access to an international manager at a very high level, you know, in terms of the access they'd have to Keaton. I think it could be dangerous.
00:48:35
Speaker
Well, the FIA, you could do one of them. I'm just looking at the list here of the odds. So Robbie Keane is 25 to 1 after his... I think his recent past was... Yeah, well, no, I think the recent past, the FBI is one thing, I think.
00:48:55
Speaker
Working in ISRA at the moment isn't the best move for the FBI to be getting involved in. Anthony Barry is still 25 to one, but I don't think he's going to give up the question number he's on. I wouldn't either.
00:49:11
Speaker
John O'Shea's 41 don't think that's going to happen. An interesting one would be considering he's under a serious amount of pressure is Roy Hudson. I would have taken him five years ago, but too old. If it was going to be an interim kind of go and listen, we just need somebody steady to ship for the next campaign.
00:49:34
Speaker
I'd take him. Michael O'Neill from Northern Ireland. Yeah. Yeah. But he's only, he's only back at Northern Ireland at 50 to one. Damien Duff, 51, Mick McCarthey, 50 to one. I don't think Mick would take the job. I think we're going way down in the weeds here. I really think it's looking like it's going to be Neil Lennon or Chris Houghton. I think... Or Steve Bruce. Or Steve Bruce. Yeah. I think, I don't even think Coleman would take us.
00:50:00
Speaker
There's a name that keeps popping up that I think would take it. I just don't think they're actually clever enough to offer to him, which is Brian Barry Murphy. I think it's at Rochdale at the minute. I don't know much about him now, I must say.
00:50:16
Speaker
Oh no, he was at Rochdale. So basically he's the head of Man City's EDS, Elite Development Squad. Okay. The only thing with that is I know he's probably working with better players than we'll ever see in a green jersey, but I feel like you'd need another job before that job. But he's there three years. He's 45 and he's from Cork.
00:50:38
Speaker
I think if they were to offer it to him, I think he would take it. Oh, he would take it because he'd look at that as a window to, even if he doesn't do great, he was an international manager and he can go back to club. He was actually doing quite decent at Rochdale, so he quit Rochdale to take the city job and he had a 31% win percentage at Rochdale, which
00:51:01
Speaker
Sounds like Kenny. Like for your first ever managerial job, that was like back in 2019. So he was like 38, 39, maybe 40. What age is Neil Leonard now? Enough to put out the pasture. That's what I'm saying. Like, as in, Hughton's in that level too, you know, it's kind of like... If we get Neil Leonard in his 60s. If we get Neil Leonard like, oh geez, Christ, it's all complete.
00:51:28
Speaker
The only thing I will say, tracksuit manager, can't go wrong. Nah, let's play out to my tracksuit manager. Brucey's our tracksuit manager, please. Genuinely, again, if there were to do an interim thing, I would take Chris Hooten as an interim.
00:51:45
Speaker
I would too. He'd be so uninspiring, but as an intro, I mean, if you're kind of going, okay, well, he's only here to steady the ship. I think he's a very steady coach. I think he has a good track record with youth. Like when you look back at some of his jobs, yeah, he didn't do well at Nottingham, but he did a decent job to kind of put Brighton on the right track. He did a decent job putting Newcastle on the right track, left so Norwich, but they did well after he left. So like,
00:52:11
Speaker
there is merit to some of his abilities. And it's like, if you look at the African combinations, there seems to be so many basket cases in there. You can't judge them off that, yeah. Against them. So like, I would take them like, I mean, I've nothing against Neil Lennon, personally, I just don't see the benefit in hiring them, you know. I think Neil Lennon is just the epitome of everything. Let's go back to Martin O'Neill style football. Yeah.
00:52:41
Speaker
That's what, Ranker Ireland? Yeah. 702. It's restarted feel like it. Like, do you know what it'd be like restarting feeler
Podcast Conclusion
00:52:51
Speaker
age here? Like, were you starting to feel a rank? Jesus. The options aren't there, like. Well.
00:52:59
Speaker
My decision, if we can't get Lee Carsey, we get big Jim McGinnis, we'll come fourth in the World Cup, as predicted by Football Manager. And gentlemen, I think that's going to bring us to a close this evening. We have some very, like, we've talked about a lot and very little of it substantive because we're just waiting to find out what's going to happen next. But I can't wait to find out what happens next with the both of yous next week. My thanks to Conor Glennon. Bye bye, boys.
00:53:29
Speaker
My thanks to Nathan Byrne. It's a pleasure. My thanks to you, the listener, and we'll chat to you next week. I'm not into podcasts. Back of the net.