The OS awards our manager of the last 2 seasons a one (1!) sentence long farewell!!
G&S have no reputation of being soft, but this is a bit too much. It ends the piece with “The club will make no further comment on this matter” – yeah right. Sully is known as the strong silent type isn’t he?
On the note of the sacking itself – I don’t doubt for a second that it was handled lousily as G&S certainly doesn’t share Zola’s suffering when having to tell a player he is not in the team for the next game. But then Zola knew this was coming and I’m sure he will be economically compensated.
“Naïve” is probably the word I will use to describe Zola while with us.
I very much liked the way he wanted us to play and his visions for the future was very tempting – all the things a player and a fan wants to hear. The image of an attacking and technically able squad will stick in the back of my mind as a icon and monument over his reign at Boleyn Ground. Unfortunately he never got us to play fluid football on the floor bar a few precious moments.
... and I very much doubt that he ever would.
One could argue that he never got a chance due to dire times. But as our manager during these hard times I still expected more, like adapting o the situation. His inability to learn from his tactical mistakes was one of my problems with him. I would fully expect a West Ham under Zola to gather in the center of the pitch and play 5 yard passes to covered players or a long ball toward Cole also next season.
My “favourite” hang up, however, was the ever-changing team sheet (even though I respect him for trying not to communicate through one as Curbs allegedly did), making it all but impossible to form a team of the players.
He was obviously liked by most in the squad, as a person, and it will be hard to find one that has not pledged his allegiance to Zola and this is what makes it a bit hard to criticize him. It feels a bit like stabbing your friend in the back. Let's see how the players will handle that.
I will most likely miss him if we, as expected, get a manager that (as main qualification) can forge out decent results from a mediocre squad.
Or rather I will miss what we never had.
Best luck for the future Gianfranco!
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5 comments:
Have to agree with take on things. Although this team clearly respected and liked him, it seemed that their commitment did not carry through to match day.
Brilliant passing move! On this evidence there seems to be no need to sign Xavi or Iniesta.
Goodbye Zola - nice to know ya.
Players said they respected you but they did not do what you wanted as any one at the Wolves game clearly saw.
We all liked you as a player and a man; we wish you well.
I agree with you here Joppe. I had hoped for a solution where Zola would be our head coach, where he could develop the players individually, but left the match management to someone else.
Well, one thing though: the team was not ever-changing, he played Spector in each and every game despite his lack of everything a PL should have. I do not know how many points the American cost us. Daprela played three games - all of the excellent! Will never understand why our young cool Swiss was not used more.
But as the football of today is out of patience (I think Zola will be great one day, and I also think that the way the team were built from the beginning with Nani, Dux and Zola as a formation for the running of the club will be a future thing ) I can of course understand why G&S had to let Zola go. And go now.
But: I will never understand why they had to act the sleazy way they have done.
Good luck to you Gianfranco (best man on the field on the testimonial too!)
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