On The Ball with Mark Wheat: Premier League managers feel the heat
by Mark Wheat
December 23, 2013
On the Ball with Mark Wheat is a new Monday feature on The Current that celebrates the connections between music and soccer, with an eye to the past weekend's results. Listen Mondays at 7 p.m. as Mark plays the music selection of the week.
Last week we focused on goalies, which I have had some experience of being. This week it's managers, which I fantasize would be a dream job, turns into a nightmare oh so quickly for so many in the English Premier League.
American sports fans might be aghast at how rapidly, compared to coaches here, the turnover of managers in European soccer occurs, and it seems to be increasing in velocity this season in England. We're ALMOST halfway through the season, and four out of the bottom five teams have sacked their managers already. I braced myself this morning, worried that a longtime favorite would make it all five! Man Utd sliced West Ham up 3-1, so I feared for the safety of Hammers boss Sam Allardyce. He's a salt-of-the-earth type who always seems to brim with passion for the game in the best and fairest way, and often obtains more than expected from mediocre squads. He also bears a very strong resemblance to my Dad, hence the soft spot!
Today, however, the UK media is brimming with news about the sixth manager of the bottom six: Malky (who couldn't love a guy with a name like that!) Mackay at Cardiff City. He's beloved by the fans there — who are experiencing top-flight football for the first time in 51 years — as witnessed by them singing their support at the end of a game he lost 3-1?!...
And his team are obviously behind him, too. After taking a drumming at the hands of the on-fire team of the moment, Liverpool, to go in at half-time down 3-0, Cardiff City played valiantly to get a goal back and make a game of it in the second half. All this despite the story that the owner of the team, Vincent Tan, sent Malky an email before the game asking him to resign or be fired! Apparently the Chairman of the Board is trying to broker a better understanding between them, and Malky remains today — but for how long!?
You might ask, 'Well, what does firing the manager of the team do to improve a situation?' Just ask Spurs fans. They lost their manager last week and looked lost in the first 20 minutes of their important game away to Southampton on Saturday, going a goal down and struggling to gain possession. Then their caretaker manager Tim Sherwood came running down from his initial seat in the stand to be on the sideline. He made adjustments, presumably, as Spurs immediately rallied and ended winning the game 3-2. And the two-goal hero of the day was Emmanuel Adebayor who was recalled by Sherwood after being totally, in his words "disrespected," and dropped by the outgoing manager.
Some could say that Man United are also a good example of the affect that a change in managers can have. They have their first new one in 27 years and have made their worst start to any season in the last 20! Everton, the team who lost their manager to United, have gone the other way, experiencing their first taste of Top 4 status in many years. They won away at Swansea, never easy, with a perfectly precise free-kick 15 minutes from the end by Dean Barkley (sporting the best hairstyle in the league!) Then their American goalie Tim Howard preserved the victory with two outstanding late saves.
So there was a lot of singing on Merseyside this week, where both Everton and Liverpool reside. Liverpool remain top of the league after today's 0 - 0 result between Chelsea and Arsenal. Louis Suarez scored his 18th and 19th goals of the season, equaling the record number of goals scored before Christmas Day in EPL history. Perhaps justifying the new contract that he reportedly signed last week paying him around $350,000 a week!
One of the most famous associations of football and song exists with Liverpool's theme "You'll Never Walk Alone". Gerry and the Pacemakers, a Merseyside band who almost jumped on The Beatles' bandwagon, had a big hit with the song:
And a recording of the famous Kop Choir at Liverpool's ground Anfield is woven into one of my favorite Pink Floyd songs, "Fearless" from the Meddle album — I was never sure why, though. One explanation might be that the socialist history of the team found sympathy with Roger Waters, even though he has been a longtime Arsenal fan.