For no reason really, just if you fancy a read...bit epic mind... Sunderland enjoyed a remarkable turnaround under Martin O'Neill in the second half of last season. Can he kick them on next term? The curtains have finally been drawn on the Euros, and, as sure as night follows day, yesterdayâs talk of tiki-taka, Panenkas and King Kong cartoons has quickly been displaced by the tedious rumble of seemingly arbitrary transfer speculation. âTeam GBâ aside (and forgive me for not getting excited about that), the footballing spotlight appears to have returned to domestic matters, and we are quickly reminded of last seasonâs monumental levels of melodrama â dominated, of course, by the narratives of Chelsea and Manchester City. As gripping as the top-end travails of Aguero, Drogba, and the rest were, though, it shouldnât be forgotten that many more of last seasonâs high achievers in fact came to gather around the league tableâs midpoint. Newcomers Swansea and Norwich both simultaneously punched well above their financial weight and kept the aesthetes well onside, and those two clubs have set solid foundations (and incredibly high standards) for their respective new managers to work under. Martin Jol too provided cause for cautious optimism at Craven Cottage, with Fulhamâs late-season performances combining intricate, gung-ho attacking verve with an equally impressive rate of point-accruement And just underneath this gaggle, in 13th, lies another of the termâs success stories, Sunderland â and more specifically, Martin OâNeill. Though their final position does not in itself represent a great success for the Wearsiders, and despite something of a downturn in their close-season form, the radical improvement enjoyed since the Northern Irishmanâs appointment should leave Sunderlandâs fans in wholly buoyant spirits as they gaze towards the 2012/13 season. It seems a while ago now, but on December 4th, 2011, before OâNeill had managed his first match at Sunderland, his new club were only a single point clear of the bottom three, with the departed Steve Bruce having managed an abysmal two wins from 14 league games. Whispers touting the club for relegation were becoming increasingly audible and ever more convincing. 23 games, 34 points, and an FA Cup quarter final later, there can be little doubt that OâNeill piloted a hugely respectable turnaround. Since he took the helm, we have been treated to a comprehensive demonstration of the simple-but-effective school of thought from which OâNeill operates. His primary means of change was the reintroduction of organisational basics and, most palpably, the shot of swashbuckling confidence with which he injected a deflated squad. Sunderlandâs immediate upsurge upon his appointment was plain evidence of OâNeillâs finest managerial quality: his phenomenal ability to motivate . Stan Collymore, the majestic but troubled footballer who found motivation notoriously difficult to come by, has spoken of OâNeill as âthe only manager I played for that would have got me running through brick walls if necessaryâ. Purely in terms of galvanising footballers, OâNeill perhaps stands alongside Alex Ferguson as the divisionâs finest exponent. The comparison with dour Glaswegians, however, may not end there. In a manner that recalls the fatal flaw of his now-former Liverpool counterpart, OâNeill has in the past demonstrated a less-than-admirable habit of rashly throwing money at the acquisitions of English footballers. During his tenure at Aston Villa this tendency was at its most obvious. Indeed, a list of the players brought to Villa Park by OâNeill can at times read like a whoâs who of homegrown footballing mediocrity, and the fees paid, too, do not often suggest sound judgement. The purchases of Zat Knight, Marlon Harewood and Steve Sidwell, for example, totalled £13million. Nigel Reo-Coker, Wayne Routledge and Nicky Shorey cost the same again. Perhaps worst of all, Curtis Davies alone was judged to be worth an outlay of £10million. Just as damagingly, if reports are to be believed, the contracts granted to these players were also far from economical. Placing significance on British personnel is not a negative trait in and of itself. When it comes off, as OâNeill has shown with Ashley Young and James McClean, the plaudits emerge quickly, and so itâs a useful way to get the fans onside and excited. But in OâNeillâs case it has tended too often towards a worrying myopia. As is well-documented, the continental market tends to offer far greater value, and Sunderland need only glance a few miles west, at the likes of Yohan Cabaye and Cheick Tiote (whose combined fee, at £8.5million, matches what OâNeill paid for Reo-Coker) to glimpse the possible benefits of doing more shopping abroad. Though a change of job is unlikely to happen anytime soon, the above could well suggest that OâNeill himself may be best suited to international football, where the ability to manipulate resources and motivate players is isolated from the transfer dealings that has so far exposed his greatest limitation. For now, however, and especially as the summer months roll on, navigating the market remains a crucial facet of his role, and one in which he needs to improve. A presumption of imminent poor spending, though, is perhaps somewhat harsh on OâNeill, who could argue with much justification that his fine work over the last six months deserves the benefit of the doubt. All managers, after all, make mistakes, and the best live and learn. And while Januaryâs loan signing of Wayne Bridge will have done little to dispel any fears of overpaid, under-talented Englishmen cropping up on Wearside, OâNeillâs only summer signing so far â the more astute acquisition of Carlos Cuellar on a Bosman â marks a far cry from the outlays on the likes of Davies and Knight of years previous. Perhaps lessons have indeed been learned. They will need to have been if OâNeill is to build on the heady momentum he has instilled since his appointment. Time will tell.
This is quite interesting but I would like to know where this came from and who wrote it, as it seems quite anti-MON. I don't know how others feel but my understanding is that quoting articles (instead of posting an extract and a link) is a breach of copyright. I realise many people can't access external websites from work so I know why it is done but, if I was a journalist, or any writer, I would not be happy with people using my intellectual property (my words) and not acknowledging me as the author.
from here. http://www.thefootballramble.com/indepth/entry/can-martin-oneill-improve-sunderland-even-further
Cheers! Haven't seen this site before and am always looking for interesting places to read about footy.
A good read mate. But that was then, we will see what the future brings. Although I am more confident than I have been for many years previously.
