This has to have been the most interesting season for yonks. Ferguson gone,City beaten and maybe Mancini gone too. Come on AVB and you Spurs,you can do it.
AVB's speech about bale at the football writers awards: By Andre Villas-Boas "Another season has gone by. A few players have stood out, a few players caught the eye and a few have been at another level. Some, though, were simply outstanding. And in that small group is Gareth Bale. As a manager you can only get to know a player fully when you start working with him. You see what makes him tick, get to know his personality and his character intimately and you see what he enjoys to do or not to do on the pitch. Gareth had an impressive impact on me and my staff for the obvious reasons that we all know: his power, his leap and the innate talent that he has. Everybody has seen that during our games this season but itâs away from the public eye in training where Iâve been privileged to witness his brilliance. I was amazed by his ability to stop, turn, accelerate and change direction at incredible speed yet still remain composed enough to slot in that cross, that final pass or the shot which could make the difference on any given matchday. Can Gareth evolve and become better? Like every player and like all of us in our profession, you have to say yes. In the same way as Ajax and Barcelona breed their young players, Garethâs experiences as a left-back, a winger and a striker have allowed him to live and experience different situations in the game to which he has had to adapt. When all of that knowledge becomes instinctive he will be able to further develop his game and we will continue to enjoy watching him play. During pre-season in Baltimore, when I first approached Gareth to play as a lone striker his response was: âI can try, but itâs not my position.â How lucky can a manager be that out of an experiment you discover something that can work! In my opinion, any single individual award that is won in a sport where you are so dependent on your team-mates is not always fair, but I raise a glass to the person who in their biggest moments of glory is able to recognise the importance of the ones that surround them on a daily basis and are able to share that glory with them. Gareth has done exactly that with all of us at Tottenham Hotspur when he joined that elite group of players to have added the Footballer of the Year award to recognition by the PFA. That is down to Garethâs humbleness and transparency as a person and makes him stand out as a great sportsman. Congratulations Gareth it is a pleasure to work with you and an honour to be your manager."
Really well said!! There is a clear bond between them which has come out through many comments and interviews through the season. This can only be to the benefit of the club - and especially if it positively influences Gareth's career decisions at Spurs in the coming months.
Were you watching Levy? Sir Alex, on his retirement, pointed out that 'the first championship is the most difficult, after that things just drop into plce and the football club grows'.
His first championship, in the first season of the Premier League, with Rupert Murdoch owning 9.9% of the club. Almost makes it sound easy when you put it like that...
On Panorama tonight Sol Campbell is presenting it, he announced himself in his first sentence as "ex Arsenal and England centre back"....unbelievable.
Presuming Wigan go down/Martinez leaves and Mancini leaves, by my reckoning AVB will already be the 11th longest-serving current Premier League manager. Mad. Steve Clarke who was appointed about a month before AVB is up in 6th/7th.
Two of the most successful teams of the Premiership era have had the same manager over a lengthy period. Ferguson 26years and Wenger 17 years. You would think that might give some of their would be challengers a hint as to what they've been doing wrong.
