Football management is a funny game. I would be hard pressed to name a list of managers who have been amazingly succesful at every club they have managed. Success as a manager is more dependent on man management and players, than tactical expertise. I mean...look at Ranieri. He had little success at any club, with only his stint at chelsea showing he was able to create a team with vast resources available. My favourite managers are Lippi, Capello, Wenger and Ferguson...Out of that crowd, only Wenger sticks out as a man for whom tactics and the ability to develop potential into talent...the others, are simply world class managers of PLAYERS, not tactics.
I never once thought Ranieri was prone to making wonderful substitutions, to outwit opponent managers, even when we had players who could make a difference, were they included...such as Giovinco.
Lippi neither, stands out as a tactical genius, but like Capello, he was able to galvanise a team, to enforce cohesion in a team, to get the best out of what he has available...not through wild, never before tried or considered formations, but through his management of the players themselves.
Much of Ferguson's success was down to a very special crop of young players maturing at the same time...Giggs, Scholes, Beckham, Nevilles...with the experience of Bruce and Pallister and Cantona, to guide them.
What I am saying is that experience is not as important as ability to command respect.
Lippi, Capello, Ferguson...they are men who command respect.
Ciro commands respect. And I don't think its accurate to say that he is sympathetic or too kind a chap. He certainly wasn't that way as a defender...he was impeccably uncompromizing, with a spirit which never waned, however a match or season was progressing. He is also Juve through and through...And then there is his knowledge of the youth teams. That should not be underestimated.
Even playing the same formation as Ranieri, with the same players, the difference in output was intense. Why? Not solely because a breath of fresh air was breathed into the club's lungs, but because people wanted to perform for Ciro...The players themselves want him as manager, and I highly doubt that any of them are worried.
The only other available (ish) coach we could have got, who I would have been happy with, is Gasperini...but as long as he gives Criscito back, I am hardly heartbroken by the decision to leave him out of our present plans.
Its true what people are saying. Squad wise, only the two Milan teams can compete or better us. As for the best XIs, we are getting closer to Inter than falling back towards Milan. And while we have not pushed the SWINE as much as I would have liked, this season has seen Momo improve, and more importantly, the emergence of Marchisio as one of the most promising midfielders not just in Serie A but in europe.
Ranieri did not command respect. It showed...Neither was he able to lift the players after their sterling efforts in the champions league.
I adore Ciro...Even my neopolitan brotherly friend, Mario, who has no love whatsoever for Juve, refers to him as Santo Ciro...and that is not just because of his time at Napoli.
The fact that he can motivate the players, makes him an improvement over Ranieri. When you mix that with the love of the players and the fans...and his tutelage under Lippi, the future could look so much darker.
All we need is criscito back in the ranks, d'agostino to sign...and if trez leaves, then salvio or dentinho to come in to the squad...ideally also, a new right back, to compete with zebina...and we have a team capable of challenging on all fronts.
Chiellini and Cannavaro in the middle, Buffon in goal, criscito left back...Marchisio and Momo the muscle, Diego, d'agostino, giovinco sharing the creative duties, and Amauri, Del Piero, Iaquinta and who knows who else...yes, we have the makings of a great team.
Forza Ciro. Forza Juve...