Lippi to Chelsea, Liverpool, Tottenham or Newcastle?
There’s been some talk since the World Cup about Marcello Lippi coming to the Premiership to manage a top club.
Thing is, the jobs of the top four seem relatively secure (even that of Rafa Benitez), so if Lippi was going to come in the 2007/2008 season, he could just as well come to a second-tier club.
Chelsea
The media would like nothing better than Mourinho to be ’sacked’ by Chelsea and Lippi or Capello to replace him. That’s not going to happen though, and there’s more chance of Lippi going to Real Madrid to replace Capello.
Chances: Unlikely.
Manchester United
Ferguson’s here for another year. End of story.
Chances: Not happening.
Arsenal
Same with Wenger.
Chances: Not happening.
Liverpool
Here’s where things get interesting. Benitez will probably be given another year or so to prove his worth to Pool’s new owners. Results between now and the end of the season could very well determine his fate, but with Barcelona waiting in the second round failure in the CL can be excused and Liverpool are good enough to come 4th, at least, this season.
Rafa being replaced by Lippi? No real reason to this year, unless the new owners think Rafa’s never going to get the annoyingly slow start out of Liverpool’s system.
Chances: Possible.
Tottenham
Tottenham have the talent to attract a top manager (they don’t need to be taken over just yet), so the real question comes down to two things: Will Lippi be willing to come to Tottenham, and who would be stupid enough to say Jol if Lippi was available?
Depends really on what Lippi is looking for - a real challenge like Tottenham, or regular CL football and the big prizes and the limelight?
Chances: Not likely.
Newcastle United
Liverpool’s takeover means that the top-4 monopoly has now turned into a stranglehold. For any team to break it, they’d have to already have a nucleus of quality players (Tottenham), a top manager and funds to considerably strengthen the squad.
For Newcastle to stand any chance, they’d need to be bought - and while it’s possible I don’t see them bringing on Lippi with the current squad. Tottenham have a better chance because they still have money and already have the players, but Newcastle lack the latter and they don’t have enough money to buy the players they really need.
Chances: Not happening.
What do you guys think? Lippi could just as well head to Spain to replace Capello, or Milan. If he is to come to the Premiership though, Liverpool look like the best option.
All the latest football headlines.
You have to be joking. Benitez is going nowhere. He has just bought a 4m house on the wirral. If the new owners got rid of Rafa they would be immediately put the backs up of all the fans.
Your credibility is in questionn if you think Lippi has a chance of going to Liverpool but no chance of going to spurs or newcastle.
Rafa will be given until the end of next season before he’s even evaluated. A Champion’s League trophy and a consistent winning side goes a long way.
Madrid,they’ll chop and change faster before any high profile manger can grind result,
so Lippi’s in for Capello…
Premiership wise,have to agree,Pools looks under scrutiny as Hicks’s a major player who wants result fast…
So Rafa will have to have his work cut out this time…
But as we know it,shiite happens,Chelsea could fire Jose,SAF might have a cardiac arrest & Wengers nose be dropping off…
So the ball be rounder then…
How do Tottenham have a better squad than Newcastle? I agree Lippi would never go to them but Newcastle have better players and more money. Hence why they have finished above Spurs in the league for 5 years in the last 7 and are currently above them.
What I would love to happen will never happen.
Lippi to Chelsea, Mourinho to ManU as understudy to SAF for about a season.
Pooch
Tottenham and Newcastle don’t offer the Champions League OR the money OR the squad quality of Liverpool.
Lippi is, after all, a World Cup winning coach. You’d think he’d keep those things in mind.
Tottenham vs Newcastle - I’ve got a couple of articles slated for Monday and Tuesday that will answer that for ya, so hang on and check back then.
>>Chelsea
>>Chances: Unlikely
???
have you missed what’s been going on at Stamford bridge?
I reckon Mourinho’s off - he’ll want to move on and try something else and Abramovich wants attractive football and a few more stars.
I think Chelsea would be mad to lose him.
ahmed,
are you smokin somethin you shouldn’t be?
given, solano, dyer, butt, parker, owen, martins.
i’d say that was a nucleus of top drawer players wouldn’t you?
you want mere ‘quality’ players then how about emre, milner, n’zogbia, harper?
we even have a couple of youngsters who, on early impression, look destined for greatness in tim kruul & david edgar.
our problem isn’t a lack of quality players, it’s a lack of quality defenders, combined with the fact that our best players have all spent lengthy times on the treatment table (martins being the exception with only a couple of weeks out injured).
newcastle ALWAYS have money. don’t be fooled by the national press sayin we’re skint, if the right player comes along, then we always come up with the cash & we always will
souness spent over £35m last summer, more than double the funds we had available for players at the time, but owen became available & he was interested so we found it.
we’re also 1 of the few clubs who can afford to pay £100k a week wages so skint we aren’t.
as for spurs? their defence is as fragile as ours but we’ve better keepers, much better midfield & 2 forwards that keane &co. aren’t fit to lace the boots of. kind of makes your comments look foolish if you ask me.
of all their players only aaron lennon would definitely make our 1st 11.
but you are right, there is zero chance of lippi bein at the toon next year.
i look forward to monday or tuesdays article.
lets hope it isn’t as ill-conceived as this one.
Sean,
Blinded, aren’t we?
With Owen’s pace, I’d pick Keane or Berbatov as the second striker, not Martins.
Parker and Jenas in midfield, with Dyer out left and Lennon out right.
Back 4? Solano at left-back, but the other three are all from Tottenham.
Keeper? Given over Robinson.
That’s 5 to Newcastle and 6 to Tottenham.
But only because you asked
Emre is a good player, but Dyer is better.
Butt is good, but Parker is better.
Martins would make the bench, at best, for any top-4 side.
It’s all about goals up front and Martins has more than Keane and Bernatov combined. Berbatov may run him close but Keane isn’t in the same league.
In midfield Jenas wouldn’t get a look in and neither would Lennon. Dyer wouls start on the right and Duff on the left with Parker and Emre in the middle.
In goal even Harper would make it in front of Robinson never mind Given.
Defence is certainly where Spurs would have more chance although neither clubs have a left back good enough for the premiership. Carr is to Spurs what Jenas is to Newcastle I don’t think either side could believe their luck in getting rid so I would say Chumbonda would make right back. In the middle I would have to go for King and Taylor. Too early to say for Onyewu so I would have to go with Dawson and Moore as backup.
First 11 then: Given, Chumbonda, Taylor, King, New signing at LB, Dyer, Parker, Emre, Duff, Owen, Martins
SUBS: Harper, Dawson, Berbatov , (Solano or Butt), (Milner or Lennon)
Newcastle are the 13th richest club in Europe so I don’t think it’s reasonable to say they have no money to spend. They own their own ground too, do debt is not a big problem and with Sir John Hall trying to offload his shares they are ripe for a takeover and the investment that would bring.
Spurs live in the shadow of their more illustrious neighbours a bit like Man City to Man Utd or Everton to Liverpool and so they are never going to have the same appeal to investors the media or fans across the globe. Newcastle is a one team city and I mean one!
Idiot me, putting Solano at left-back and forgetting Duff.
No lb to choose between the two then, and Duff on the left instead of Dyer.
As far as the midfield is concerned, Parker, Jenas, Emre and Dyer all deserve spots. Parker and Dyer, or Parker and Jenas.
Up front, still the same - you can’t pair two out-n-out fast men, you need a technical-minded player beside em. RK gives the team a LOT more than just goals, or have you not seen Spurs play?
I would like to see Lippi wait for another 10 years and learn English and replace SAF when SAF hangs up his boots [:)]
Lippi should be at Real Madrid…to clear all the mess that Capello created…and win trophies if he fails.
Heh, Ahmed, I have just seen Spurs play. Just seen them out fought and outclassed by Sheffield United. On the strength of that Dawson definitely dropped from the bench, I no longer think Berbatov is close to Martins (I didn’t really anyway, I mean 6 goals in 22 premiership games as opposed to Martin’s 10) and Keane looked the same old Keane running around like a chicken with it’s head cut off. Exactly what does Keane do for the team apart from his 2 goals!
The fact is that Spurs players arn’t as good because they don’t score as many goals as Newcastle and the don’t win as many matches and hence, Newcastle are 3 points ahead in the league and have just beaten Liverpool while Spurs lost to Sheffield Utd. Also Newcastle just recently beat Spurs in the league twice in the space of 3 weeks.
How much more evidence do you need?
When we inquired about Sean Wright Phillips Chelsea said they wanted Martins in exchange so he must be good enough for them. He is better than Keane because he scores more goals, end of. You can’t say Keane provides more for others because I have seen Martins lay them on for Dyer so many times this season. He is also better than Berbatov for the same reason and you certainly can’t say he is a great provider of goals.
Finally, while everyone goes on about our defence which, I’ll admit, is not good at all, Spurs defence is very similar, almost spookily so. Chimbonda makes just as many mistakes as Titus Bramble has recently and I’d pick Taylor over Dawson although it is a close run thing. And the proof that their defence is as bad as ours is that they have conceded 38 league goals to our 37.
I’m not saying we’re amazing or as good as the top 4 or anything like that but we are better than spurs for damn sure.