“All managers have to try to crack that critical first-impression exercise of working out where on the spectrum between his way and the club’s way he wants to pitch himself early on. It is what Claudio Ranieri did so superbly this season. It is what Pep Guardiola and Antonio Conte will aim to get right this summer.”

 

Amy Lawrence (The Guardian, 22nd May 2016)

 

Buried within her hot-from-the-presses article on Louis van Gaal and submitted as evidence in the case against him for dismissal after winning silverware only a day earlier, Amy Lawrence gets to the nub of this matter remarkably quickly, whilst at the same time inadvertently pinpointing the dilemma now facing another Mata entirely. The Dutchman refused to adapt and was doomed from the start, her storyline goes, and reflecting on an uncompromising insistence on doing things his own way does have a certain undeniable ring of truth about it. King Louis couldn’t hold court any longer, couldn’t hold the attention of fans dozing off at the Old Trafford Fayre, couldn’t even get himself a Champions League place. He had to go and it was an inability to adapt that brought about his downfall, apparently. But which adaptation [expectation] did van Gaal actually default on? Ms Lawrence, if her follow-up summation is anything to go by, thinks he failed on three counts…   

 

“So now, after two clunky goes in the post-Ferguson years United must try again to find a smoother fit. United’s executive vice-chairman, Ed Woodward, obviously wanted van Gaal to succeed. There is pressure to create a template that is more long term, more respectable than the loose hire-and-fire circus the majority of clubs operate in. Everybody knows United want an ambitious, exciting playing style to stir the senses. They also want to have strong values, with long-term trust in their staff if at all possible.”

 

…and so with all this in mind United decide to appoint Jose, the very embodiment of long term respectability, ideally suited to a club seeking to avoid that ‘loose hire-and-fire circus’ under which the vast majority operate. Throw in the Special One’s much vaunted and principled creed, built up over years of non-controversial management, a genuine trust and sensitivity shown towards players and staff, and who can deny he is the right man for the job? Well, pretty much everybody, I’d say - they’re all in denial if they think this is anything other than a tampered-with template, cobbled together simply to satisfy a desire for high-profile leadership matching that of their closest rivals. United desperately needed a knight in shining armour, but it doesn’t stop there, as only a day later The Guardian’s Michael Cox takes up the campaigning cudgel again and moulds it into the shape of things to come with the following reinvention of the masterful-Manchester-bound-Mou… 

 

“Mourinho’s reputation as a purely defensive manager is unjust and based largely upon the questionable notion that attractive football must involve long spells of possession. Even his most defensive sides, the Champions League-winning Porto team of 2003-04 and the Chelsea side who recorded back-to-back Premier League titles in the mid-2000s, were capable of thrillingly direct counterattacking football which produced wonderful goals, not to mention winning plenty of trophies.

 

…generally, Mourinho’s sides play perfectly exciting football throughout the majority of a season, but in big matches - particularly in Europe, and towards the end of a campaign - become more cautious. This does not differ significantly from Sir Alex Ferguson’s approach during the final decade of his tenure at Old Trafford, when United’s purposeful, high-intensity football would give way to reactive, counterattacking displays against elite opposition.”

 

An amazing re-write of history, once seen through jaundiced journo eyes in a totally different light. For years Chelsea and Mourinho were pilloried by these hacks for providing boring pragmatic football and now, suddenly and shamelessly as Jose prepares to take over at United, his sides get the rose-tinted Red Devil treatment and are described as always being thrilling and attacking. What was regarded before as an unspeakable truth, involving an unspeakable man at an unspeakable club, is about to be morphed into Mou-mania by newly-found friends in the print world. So much for cracking that critical first-impression exercise, why not change your own perspective instead? Then again, if you look closely at that ‘spectrum between [a manager’s] way and the club’s way’ it is clear to see why Jose failed at Chelsea. He saw all the colours of our spectrum bar two - respectability and youth development - and it was his colour blindness on both issues that cost him his job.

 

But more to the point, Antonio Conte must now succeed where his predecessor failed, not just on the integration of Academy and loan players into the first team, but also by staying within behavioural boundary lines that are always writ large for Chelsea the club, its managers and players alike [think Roman, Jose, JT and Diego] when compared to all others. Signs are that Conte will have to learn this lesson quickly, or else he will take Jose’s place as the villain of what is sure to become a managerial showpiece next season. The Knights of Premier League [merry-go-round] Table are gathering - Guardiola guaranteed to be Sir Galahad and Klopp an obvious Sir Lancelot the Scouser, but with Mourinho about to be magically morphed into Merlin the Good Old Mind-Gamer, the last thing we need is to have Conte voluntarily auditioning for the Special One’s previous role as Black Knight of the EPL managerial family. 

 

Even Phil Neville understands the rewritten rules of this particular game better than most and has stated that he doesn’t want Mourinho to change. I don’t want Conte to either… just adapt Antonio, just adapt.

.

 

To be fair Cox has always been reasonably consistent in his take on Mourinho: essentially that he is a very flexible coach (albeit one who will create an incredibly well-drilled, disciplined side) who will readily adapt his side's approach to the day's opposition. As a result, Cox argues, he is equally capable of leading very offensively potent sides (Chelsea with Eidur; Real Madrid) as he is dour ones who are almost exclusively reactive (Inter in the 2010 CL run; 'diamond of death'-era Chelsea).

 

Here are a couple of examples of what he has said over the past few years:

 

 

http://www.fourfourtwo.com/features/hows-jose-mourinho-changed-last-managing-chelsea#:mj-92BNlm+5wMA

 

http://www.zonalmarking.net/2013/09/17/new-managers-mourinho-at-chelsea/

 

http://www.zonalmarking.net/2010/03/08/teams-of-the-decade-3-porto-2002-04/

It will be interesting to see how the BBC and The Guardian especially talk about Jose now that he's virtually at Utd.

barnay ronay has already described it as a marriage of convenience and matthew syed certainly hasn't changed his tune at the times.

 

I don't see any evidence whatsoever that any journalist has changed their opinions of jose just because he's going to man united.

 

personally I think this idea that there is a general anti-chelsea bias in the media is a complete myth. every set of supporters seems to think the media are against them- I think it is more likely that people focus on criticism more than praise.

An amazing re-write of history, once seen through jaundiced journo eyes in a totally different light.

 

Is anyone surprised? Reminds me of Mark Hughes being surprised at how often he was getting booked for the same offences he was used to getting away with at United.

 

It's been going on for years. Take a look at this report of the Ovrebo Barcelona match:

 

http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/european/iniestas-rocket-ruins-chelseas-roman-dreams-1680488.html

 

Then compare it to how the same hack covered United's loss to Real Madrid:

 

http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/european/manchester-united-1-real-madrid-2-match-report-treble-dream-destroyed-by-nani-red-card-as-cristiano-8521801.html

 

 

'If Chelsea had wanted to put this game beyond doubt then they should not have relied on a referee'

Well they tried to do it themselves but when the other side arent penalized for using their hands and tripping players up in the box theres not much you can do

I saw Pirlo roaming around in Soho yesterday. Pity I was in my car in the middle of traffic. I wanted to run to him and ask him about Conte :)

I would probably argue that the way the press has treated van Gaal of late has actually been far more unfair than their treatment of José.

I would probably argue that the way the press has treated van Gaal of late has actually been far more unfair than their treatment of José.

Not sure if it is unfair. To me LVG seems a bit zoned out of reality. He presents himself like he doesn't care what people think of him but you can clearly see he cares. He lost his credibility in the eyes of ManU fans and probably football fans in general.

I think the press have played him all the time he's been here.

Jose always did it for himself on purpose. He always drew all the attention to him and made a meal out of it.

Guys like Ancelotti never had any problems with the press.

I think Roberto Di Matteo has been our best managerial exponent to date of the art of the press interview ... smiles .. politeness ... said basically nothing for them to get their hooks into ... I hope Conte is cut from the same fine Italian cloth.

I think Roberto Di Matteo has been our best managerial exponent to date of the art of the press interview ... smiles .. politeness ... said basically nothing for them to get their hooks into ... I hope Conte is cut from the same fine Italian cloth.

 

Doubt it very much from what i have seen of Conte.

Doubt it very much from what i have seen of Conte.

Doesn't matter really if it doesn't affect him. If it does that is a problem.

I think Roberto Di Matteo has been our best managerial exponent to date of the art of the press interview ... smiles .. politeness ... said basically nothing for them to get their hooks into ... I hope Conte is cut from the same fine Italian cloth.

Robbie was fantastic at it. Hiddink was always good with the media, and Carlo was great but for the language barrier. AVB on the other hand 

To be fair Cox has always been reasonably consistent in his take on Mourinho: essentially that he is a very flexible coach (albeit one who will create an incredibly well-drilled, disciplined side) who will readily adapt his side's approach to the day's opposition. As a result, Cox argues, he is equally capable of leading very offensively potent sides (Chelsea with Eidur; Real Madrid) as he is dour ones who are almost exclusively reactive (Inter in the 2010 CL run; 'diamond of death'-era Chelsea).

 

Here are a couple of examples of what he has said over the past few years:

 

 

http://www.fourfourtwo.com/features/hows-jose-mourinho-changed-last-managing-chelsea#:mj-92BNlm+5wMA

 

http://www.zonalmarking.net/2013/09/17/new-managers-mourinho-at-chelsea/

 

http://www.zonalmarking.net/2010/03/08/teams-of-the-decade-3-porto-2002-04/

 

It’s not like you to be quite so retro with your examples PK (I'm unsure as what Jose’s Porto of 2002/04 brings to this particular table) but I can see why you chose to run with Michael Cox’s zonalmarking article on Jose in 2013, which is closer to the tactical Jose of today. However, I would contend that there is a certain amount of damnation with faint praise within it, especially in this conclusion:-

 

“ From a tactical point of view, it’s relatively difficult to get excited about this Chelsea side. Their last two seasons started with grand new projects: Villas-Boas unsuccessfully trying to make Chelsea playing high-tempo football with pressing and a high line, and Di Matteo integrating three rotating playmakers into the same side following a remarkable European Cup win with the most defensive football imaginable. 

 

This seems like more of a template job. Mourinho is bringing old ideas and using them with different players, and with Chelsea’s capacity to sign any player they need (and some they don’t) it’s not about how Mourinho will construct a side around his players, but about how his players will adjust to his system. 

 

Still, Mourinho’s tendency to use vastly different strategies at different times has been fascinating, and that will be the most interesting thing about Chelsea this season - how they play in individual matches, rather than how they play overall.”

 

I suppose it could be argued that Cox had, quite rightly, decided to reserve judgement on a returning Jose’s strategic skills, preferring to describe them vaguely (as ’fascinating’) but after much more detailed analysis in the same piece he went with ‘in all probability, Mourinho’s second Chelsea reign won’t provide a key tactical development.’ and by the end of that season, in another zonalmarking article, his individual match assessment came to the following conclusion on the Stevie G slipper-ama game:- 

 

“Chelsea defended extremely effectively. Liverpool are breaking goalscoring records aplenty this season, yet barely had a clear chance here - the vast majority of their attempts were from long-range. Their attacking play was generally quite poor - and they simply capitalised on a terrible error from Gerrard for the opener, which shaped the remainder of the contest. Liverpool were surprisingly short of ideas against a deep defence. It’s hardly a new concept for Mourinho to park the bus, so why didn’t Liverpool have more of a cohesive strategy against this?”

 

So it is clear, by this point in time and in circumstances denying Liverpool a title, Jose‘s old ‘park the bus’ stratagem was back in vogue for Cox and not, as it is now, transformed into a eulogy to the Special One’s capability to produce ‘thrillingly direct counterattacking football which produced wonderful goals.’ Indeed, the degenerative nature of the journalist’s comments probably reached a peak in his ESPN report six months ago, which included this withering summation:-

 

“ That Chelsea's squad should not be 16th in the Premier League table is somewhat obvious, considering roughly the same group of players finished as champions last season. Mourinho can't seem to work this out and, after Monday's [defeat against Leicester] he questioned in a TV interview whether this squad is under-performing this season, or over-performed last season: "One possibility is that I did an amazing job last season and brought the players to a level that is not their level and now they can't maintain it," he pondered. The language he used is telling and entirely revealing about Mourinho's mindset. He took them to a higher level, but now they can't maintain it. It's the classic Mourinho approach of taking the credit but shifting the blame and exactly why many of his players eventually find him frustrating to work with.

 

…frankly, everyone seems bored of Mourinho, whose antics throughout his managerial career have become more and more ludicrous. 

 

… his current spell at Chelsea feels like a parody of his previous efforts, with a successful second season followed by a disastrous third. More than the previous factors discussed, motivation and commitment can fall away at a moment's notice because of something specific the manager says or does.”

 

So, returning to the Cox appraisal currently under the microscope, you have to wonder why there is no mention of this Mourinho mindset, this classic Mourinho approach, this ‘saying or doing’ managerial failure on the Special One’s part - all recognised by the writer on previous occasions, but not deemed suitable for discussion in the present Mancunian environment. But then again, you don’t really have to wonder at all, because such fair-mindedness would have thrown an uncomfortably large spanner in the reworking exercise going on here.

.

Jose is going to get a lot more love from the press and the FA now that he's at the club of Sir Alex and Sir Bobby.

Jose is going to get a lot more love from the press and the FA now that he's at the club of Sir Alex and Sir Bobby.

Im struggling to think of who will be the 'them' in his us vs. them menatlity now. He'll have no media or pundits to blame. I doubt the officials will be against him either.

Im struggling to think of who will be the 'them' in his us vs. them menatlity now. He'll have no media or pundits to blame. I doubt the officials will be against him either.

 

 

I wish Spitting Image was still around .. I can just imagine the skit of Mourinho taking a piss in the gents, ranting into the mirror at himself :-)

It would be nice to have a manager who engages with the fans again like luca, gullit, robbie, jose 1 and carlo all did.

 

I am bored off boring old farts and moody gits, bring on someone fun.

personally I think this idea that there is a general anti-chelsea bias in the media is a complete myth. every set of supporters seems to think the media are against them- I think it is more likely that people focus on criticism more than praise.

 

 

I know what you mean.  It's hilarious that Liverpool fans think that the media is out to get them ( i completely understand their grievances against the Sun) when so many pundits have links to Liverpool.  Man Utd, I think have Martin Tyler, the commentator,who certainly holds an affinity toward them.  We have Cascarino, Townshend, and Burley out there who have played for us; however, you'd never know it when listening to them.  You also have Tony Gale who seems to commentate a number of our matches but is loathed to praise us, maybe due to the West Ham history there?

 

I think every team is going to feel that a commentator or whatever trying to remain unbiased is in some way a "dis." Or when you see some reports written with obvious leanings to other teams, that is taken as an affront...as in "well, they never say things that nice about us!"

personally I think this idea that there is a general anti-chelsea bias in the media is a complete myth. every set of supporters seems to think the media are against them- I think it is more likely that people focus on criticism more than praise.

 

Yep. Not only is it a complete myth, its also very boring.

 

There are sections of our fanbase that are utterly obsessed with the media and how they portray Chelsea. Almost to the point of being more concerned with it than they are about what happens on the pitch. Ive heard the same boring nonsense spouted ad-nauseam for about 10 years now.

 

Its bewildering, dull, and so, so tiring. Its almost as if these people are being forced to read newspapers, websites blogs, or watch tv or listen to radio phone ins. Or its more likely they are tuning in hoping they hear even the most minor slight against the club so they can then spend the next week moaning about how hard life is a Chelsea fan.

Edited May 24, 20168 yr by bjd

Antonio Conte: Italians who move to MLS must 'pay the consequences'

https://www.theguardian.com/football/2016/may/24/antonio-conte-italians-mls-consequences

 

“We evaluated them technically, we didn’t leave anything to chance. Anyone who thinks otherwise is wrong, we went everywhere to have clear and precise ideas. I picked the 30 who I think will give me the most guarantees.”

Edited May 24, 20168 yr by the special one

Yep. Not only is it a complete myth, its also very boring.

 

There are sections of our fanbase that are utterly obsessed with the media and how they portray Chelsea. Almost to the point of being more concerned with it than they are about what happens on the pitch. Ive heard the same boring nonsense spouted ad-nauseam for about 10 years now.

 

Its bewildering, dull, and so, so tiring. Its almost as if these people are being forced to read newspapers, websites blogs, or watch tv or listen to radio phone ins. Or its more likely they are tuning in hoping they hear even the most minor slight against the club so they can then spend the next week moaning about how hard life is a Chelsea fan.

 

yeah, it's like people calling into 606 and hearing Cundy talk, and they think that everyone in the media is a Chelsea fan and has something against their team

Jose is going to get a lot more love from the press and the FA now that he's at the club of Sir Alex and Sir Bobby.

http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/premier-league/jose-mourinho-is-a-brilliant-manager-who-is-right-for-manchester-united-says-danny-higginbotham-a7044746.html

No suprise there, he will have a at least a seasons honeymoon because he's now at Utd..
Not sure how long he'll last though if he doesn't hit the ground running ? (as in with the press)

Edited May 25, 20168 yr by chelseablueboy

No suprise there, he will have a at least a seasons honeymoon because he's now at Utd..

Not sure how long he'll last though if he doesn't hit the ground running ? (as in with the press)

Yep I agree with that blueboy. He needs to be on his game from the off, as much to keep the fans onside as the media.