What on earth was Daniel Levy thinking when the name of Italian hardman Gennaro Gattuso was mentioned as a possible replacement for Jose Mourinho. Gattuso has never played or managed in the Premier League and achieved only moderate success managing Milan and Napoli.
The Italian’s impulsive nature would undoubtedly have caused friction between himself and Levy at some point and possibly caused trouble for Spurs.
- Parents of abducted Tegina pupils barred from media interviews
- Abductors of Kaduna Poly students demand N22.5m
Gattuso agreed to coach Fiorentina in Italy and walked out of the door after only 23 days which explains a lot about his desire to take orders from no one.
He has also made comments such as no place for women in football and has been criticised for racist comments. Spurs search is a mess and potential managers have fallen by the wayside including Julian Nagelsmann who left RB Leipzig for Bayern Munich, Brendan Rodgers who preferred to stay with Leicester, Erik ten Hag improved his contract with Ajax and there were failed attempts to secure the services of former manager Mauricio Pochettino and ex-Chelsea and Inter Milan coach Antonio Conte. Paulo Fonseca is the latest in the long line of failures although he is still talking to Spurs from a distance.
Former Spurs idol Jurgen Klinsmann has entered the arena and stated that he would like a crack at the job. Levy promised to contact Jurgen and then ignored him. The new season is getting closer and Tottenham’s managerial mess is no nearer to being resolved.
Ancelotti wants to keep Verane at Real
New Real Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti is fighting to keep star full-back Raphael Verane at the club now that captain and long-standing servant Sergio Ramos has left. After a distinguished career at Real, Ramos left on poor terms with club President Florentine Perez who Ramos claimed offered him a one-year deal and then failed to honour the arrangement. With a hole in his central defence, Ancelotti is thinking that he cannot let Verane go and is planning to play him alongside new signing David Alaba. Disappointed Manchester United tell me they are closely monitoring the situation.
Giroud to join AC Milan
Despite denials at Chelsea, I have received three phone calls from Italy claiming that the Blue’s striker Olivier Giroud will join AC Milan this summer after the Euros. Speculation has been strong for three seasons that Olivier would be leaving however Chelsea recently activated a clause in his contract which extended the 34-year-old’s stay for a further year. Chelsea did this so that the Frenchman did not leave without a fee on a free this summer. However, the news from Italy seems that a deal has been done and he has agreed to go to AC Milan for £3million a year for two years. Chelsea manager Thomas Tuchel is still searching for a new striker to strengthen his attacking options for next season which is what probably forced Giroud to consider a move to Italy. He is currently away with France for the Euros and couldn’t be reached for a comment.
French players told where to sit at mealtime
I was amused to see that French manager Didier Deschamps has devised a seating plan for players during meals so that possible arguments do not break out between rivals. Kylian Mbappe for instance has been separated from Olivier Giroud to prevent a flare-up and close friends Paul Pogba and Raphael Verane are seated between them.
Lingard’s agents to hold talks with United
The agents of revitalised West Ham loanee Jesse Lingard’s have arranged for him to hold talks with Manchester United regarding his future at the club. The 28-year-old has one year left on his Old Trafford contract and has done brilliantly during a four-month loan period with West Ham where he scored nine goals in 16 matches. The Hammers want to sign Jesse who made only three appearances for United last season and did not play before the mid-season. He made the matchday squad in only nine of 33 matches. Jesse is alarmed that Jadon Sancho’s possible arrival at United will further limit his first-team appearances. There is a genuine delight at United as they monitored Jesse’s success at West Ham and he and Ole Gunner Solskjaer have remained on very friendly terms. Ashley back at Aston Villa 39 cap England international Ashley Young has rejoined Aston Villa on a free transfer after playing last season at Inter Milan in Italy. Ashley scored 38 goals in 190 appearances for Villa between 2007 and 2011 before he joined Manchester United and played for them during a nine-year period. He won the Italian Serie A title under manager Antonio Conte at Inter. He visited the Villa training ground this week and spoke to us saying, “I am delighted to be back and it is amazing. It feels like I never left. I’m just delighted seeing some old faces back at the training ground I know so well and seeing how the facilities have grown.”
Fans reaction to Benitez worries owner
Everton owner Farhad Moshiri has been shocked to discover several banners outside Goodison Park stadium which make clear that managerial favourite Rafa Benitez is not wanted at the club. His history as Liverpool manager has poisoned the fans against Benitez. However, one of the club’s main sponsors Alisher Usmanov has given his support to Benitez which has provided Moshiri with confidence to continue negotiations. Benitez’s agents negotiating his deal with the club are convinced he will be named the new manager and there have been four rounds of talks so far. Glazers take fortune as United revenue goes down. Whilst Manchester United revenue dropped by 4% during the first four months of 2021 and the club’s debt rose to £443.5million, a semi-annual dividend payment of £8million has been collected by the Glazer brothers who own 75% of the club shares.
Watford land a gem in Danny Rose
I am delighted that former Spurs wing-back Danny Rose has been given a contract at newly-promoted Watford. Danny was treated very unfairly by Jose Mourinho at Spurs and then sent out on loan. For an ex-England international and a committed and hardworking player, it was an insult. I can tell you from experience that Danny brings responsibility, loyalty and team motivation to any club he plays for and Watford will reap many benefits from signing him. The Hornets are also looking closely at Arsenal midfielder Ainsley Maitland-Niles who could leave the Gunners this summer after falling out of favour with Mikel Arteta. The 23-year-old has two years left on his contract but Arsenal need to raise funds for their own transfer plans. The Gunners offered of £40million for Brighton’s Ben White has been turned down but they are also chasing Leicester star ames Maddison and Sheffield United goalkeeper Aaron Ramsdale.
United stars face burnout
Data from the CIES Football Observatory show that two Manchester United players face burnout because of playing too much football. Bruno Fernandes and Harry Maguire have both played more than any other players in the Euros. This could explain Fernandes’ poor showing in the championships. He has played 6,472 minutes over 81 matches for club and country and which is five games more than Mason Mount who is his nearest rival. Maguire has played 6,449 minutes over 72 matches. Victor Lindelof has notched up 5,708 minutes in 58 matches and Marcus Rashford 5,500 minutes in 73 matches.
