Tuesday 11 May 2010

Does Zola have Hoddle Syndrome

Gianfranco Zola has been fired by West Ham, I remember all the fuss when he first came into the job, at about the same time as Iceland were only messing up our banks not our Holidays.

Since then he has had no money to spend and precious few players who had the fight to stay in the premiership, But I guess that is the lot of a football manager, you can’t sack the players so the manager is the first neck on the block. If Memory serves correctly I seem to remember that Zola had a run in with Gold and Sullivan after a loss to Wolves back in January, I felt that was unfair then as obviously it was the players who were a disgrace not the manager.

It does raise an interesting point about Hoddle Syndrome however; Hoddle Syndrome named after First Class Player and Economy Class Manager Glenn Hoddle states that the better a player is the worse he is as a manager. Hoddle himself never seemed to understand that the people he managed were not as naturally gifted as he was himself. You could see him on the sidelines of St Mary’s or White Hart Lane and he seemed to be thinking. “Just run past them and score” without realising that the players he was now working with were not Hoddles.

To Back this up look at this list of Great Managers who were less than great Players

Alex Fergusson, Arsene Wenger, Harry Redknapp and most sparkling example Jose Mourinho who never managed to play professionally

As Opposed to

Glenn Hoddle, Ossie Ardiles, Paul Ince and Coco Basile (The Rock of 60’s Argentinean Football who took Argentina from a world class side to a year without a victory.)

Although I do have to temper my own argument by saying Klinsmann

Anyway I wish Zola well and hope that he gets the chance to manage at a club where the expectations better fit the budget.

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