The allure of Sven

You are maybe thinking just how does Sven do it?

He departs his previous three jobs with a hefty pay off but he just keeps on bouncing back, landing on his feet in the next highly paid gig.

But when Sven, with his bookish, middle-aged looks and seeming lack of personality has enough of the silver-tongued charmer about him to seduce the likes of Ulrika and Nancy between the sheets, is it any wonder that a succession of Chairman and Chief Executives fall over themselves to appoint him?

And why Notts County, when after managing in Serie A, the Premier League and at international level he could have his pick of countries and club around the world?

This?

Al Fahim buys Portsmouth

Portsmouth have accepted a bid from United Arab Emirates businessman Dr Sulaiman Al Fahim to buy the club.

The move follows negotiations led by Portsmouth executive chairman Peter Storrie on behalf of club owner Alexandre Gaydamak.

Al Fahim was the initial figurehead of the Abu Dhabi United Group when they took control of Manchester City last year, but is now acting for himself.

>>bbc sport.

For those with shorter memories, Dr Fahim was very much at the forefront in the early stages of the takeover with us last summer, being a very high profile and public figure indeed. So much so, that the actual owners he was representing quickly sought to distance themselves from him and some of the more outlandish statements that were made, opting for a more sober and understated approach that we have seen throughout the past season.

Now he finds himself not only at the forefront of a takeover, but this time the owner himself and at the very least it should liven things up at Portsmouth, who were reported to be struggling financially.

An interesting aside to the takeover, is despite the job performed by Paul Hart and Brian Kidd after Harry Redknapp departed for Tottenham, it is suggested Dr Fahim very much has is own man in mind, Sven Goran-Eriksson.

Sven appointed Mexico boss

Sven-Goran Eriksson has been appointed as the new coach of Mexico.

"It's unanimous. Eriksson has been accepted," said Guadalajara president and member of the Mexican federation's executive committee Jorge Vergara.

>>bbc.co.uk

No real surprise here given the reports at the end of last week that there was an offer on the table for Sven, and it was a merely a case of Sven hanging on for the axe to ensure he picked up the full compensation figure that will no doubt come his way.

Sven did say that the year out between the England job and being appointed at City was the longest of his life, so no shock that he has got straight back into management, but a little puzzling that it is back into international football given the way he missed the day to day aspect of club football during his England tenure?

Sven leaves City

Sven-Goran Eriksson and Manchester City Football Club have
parted company by mutual consent, the Club announces today.
Chief Executive,
Alistair Mackintosh said, “The Board of Directors and all at Manchester City
would like to thank Sven for his efforts and contributions throughout the season
and we wish him all the best for the future. Sven remains a friend of the Club.”
Sven Goran Eriksson added, “I have enjoyed my time at Manchester City very
much indeed and in particular, I would like to thank the fans, players and staff
for their amazing support over the season. I wish the Club, and everyone
associated with it, much success in the coming years.”
The Club will make no
further announcement in relation to the managerial position until after a
successor is appointed.

>>mcfc.co.uk

I cannot believe this move would have been made without a replacement being lined up to be announced within the next week, which if true, would surely rule out Scolari given his Euro 2008 commitments.

There were reports in the Sunday papers that Zico’s recent fall out with Fenerbahce has put him in the frame, but smart money appears to be on Mark Hughes, with The Telegraph suggesting an approach has already been made to Blackburn to speak with him.

Expect plenty of speculation one way or the other until an official announcement is made.

UPDATE: The Guardian is reporting that Hughes has been granted permission to speak with us.

And so it continues

Manchester City will decide on Sven-Goran Eriksson's future within three weeks, an adviser to club owner Thaksin Shinawatra has said.

Pairoj Piempongsant, a Thai businessman who helps City recruit players, said the club was still chasing Barcelona's Ronaldinho and would make a decision on both soon. "The negotiations must be complete by June 15, which include the team manager," he said.

>>guardian.co.uk

In some respects it was almost a blessing to actually get some news given the way the sage that plagued the end of season has managed to drag on as we head into June and almost into the Euro 2008 tournament.

Although still effctively in charge at the club, it is surely inconceivable that Sven will be around for next season and reports continue to link him elsewhere, with agent Athole Still not short of a word or two for the press.

The difficulty is who will be replacing him? It may be that Thaksin has dropped the ball as far as Scolari is concerned and may now be scrambling around for another suitable candidate (of which there are not an abundance of) but the danger of course is unless it is resolved on way or the other soon enough, then pre-season will shortly be upon us.

With our qualification to the UEFA Cup, pre-season will have to be dragged forward given the first qualifying round is scheduled to be played July 17th - which may of course involve a trip along the M62 for our 'home' leg.

The date of July 17th must surely be too early to believe any of our Euor 2008 participants or playes involved in World Cup qualifiers will be involved given their summer exertions, leading to very much a fringeand young looking squad taking the field - not a prospect that should be relished too heartily given the way we fared on our end of season trip, despite us being announced as one of the top seeds.

We also have the issue of potential new recruits to the club, and of course the rumour mill is churning 'targets' out at a furious rate. Can we be actively looking for new players given our managerial limbo?

If so, it begs the question who is actively behind this? Thaksin? His 'advisors'? The shadowy Pini Zihavi? There has also been speculation as to exactly what cash we do have, and it is a figure that could be reduced given Lazio's apparant reluctance to meet the initial valuation of Rolando Bianchi.

Whilst it has been nice to break away from the shambles that is occurring at the moment, it is surely of concern that nothing has been announced thus far and one hopes that June 15th is at latest the date where we can at least draw some closure and move on as this will only give the new manager (and players) a month to familiarise with one another and put together a coherent and cohesive unit.

Sven proved last year it can be done but the situation this time round is far, far different.

Bridges burned?

There was a glimmer, albeit slight that countenanced the possibility that Thaksin may yet not to decide to sack Sven at the season end, and that the fans would get their way and Sven would lead the side into next season and beyond.

Even if Thaksin has had a change of heart, it appears that whatever water has passed under the bridge the past few weeks has been enough to either suggest or convince Sven his future does lie elsewhere.

News broke yesterday of a recent meeting held between Benfica officials and Sven to discuss Sven potentially taking over the Portuguese side, and it appears that Benfica are confident of this outcome, with Sven himself not appearing to dismiss the idea.

It has however been reported though that much like Scolari, Sven is playing a waiting game at present, perhaps in the hope that Chelsea will come calling should they dispense with the services of Avram Grant.

Of course, Sven had a very public daliance with Chelsea whilst in charge of England and I'm sure would relish a move to Stamford Bridge. Should this indeed happen, then we would certainly need to brace ourselves for an impending raid on some of our more glittering talents.

Ironic of course isn' it, that after dispensing of Sven's services, he could well wind up being the choice of a side who may well have won a Premier League and Champions League double.

Whilst not the final nail, it seems now certain that Sven is out of the door anytime soon.

Thaksin better hope he can pull the deal for Scolari, or things could messy indeed.

Thaksin approaches Scolari.....or has he?

Thaksin Shinawatra has offered Luiz Felipe Scolari £3.25m a year to manage Manchester City and, in a move which has echoes of the Football Association's approach to the Brazilian ahead of the 2006 World Cup, he wants an answer before Scolari leads Portugal into the European Championship next month.

The approach to Scolari came, via a Brazilian agent, from Srisumrid Jack Taweesuk, City's executive director, whose attempts to lure the Portugal national manager are understood to have included a promise that money will be available to Scolari to buy "the players that he wants".

>>independent.co.uk

The Times claimed that Scolari had been offered £3.2 million per season to become the new boss, but had been gven a deadline to accept prior to the European Championships - a logical expectation given the way the summer tournaments obstruct off season planning, but it may also be that Thaksin could be thwarted as The Guardian reports that Scolari is in no rush to make a decision.

To confuse matters even further, there were also denials that Scolari had even been contacted, yet there seems to be enough out there to lend suggetion to the claims and BBC Sport also led with this story this afternoon, but early evening changed tack with this report that Thaksin has yet to make a decision regarding Sven's future, quoting him as saying "We have made no decision. We will do an evaluation at the end of the season."

Now, given that Thaksin himself had yet to comment regarding the stories circulating regarding Sven's sacking, could there be some truth in the quote attributed to him and that there really has been no decision until the post-season review.

Whilst the past weeks events has proved most things are possible, far too much has gone on to simply suggest that reports of Sven being sacked have been merely trumped up by an over zealous media, but whilst we still wait in limbo for confirmation one way or the other it does give provide an avenue for Thaksin to get a way out of this and save face.

Unlikely though, as despite being very much a populist politician, he is also a hard nosed and hard edged businesman and seemingly unlikely to let anything stand in his way.

I would suggest that the situation is more to do with keeping Sven hanging on as a fall back whilst he attempts to snare his more desired option.

The saga continues

What started out as a report late last night quickly escalated this morning into a huge story covered by all the media outlets out there, and an even led to a request for yours truly to be interviewed on Independent Radio News.

It was a strange morning as there were as many reports about Sven staying as there were about his imminent departure, but most of those gave way to an almost unanimous line with Sven's days being numbered, plenty of 'obituary' pieces being penned and Sven's name being carved alongside those who have previously fallen.

The situation even led to as diverse a pair of backings as from the League Managers Association and Noel Gallagher, who likened it to a 'morbid dream' and as the dust settles on the day, all at the club are trying to preach a 'business as usual' approach ahead of the final two games.

The players have been vociferously backing their manager, with Nedum Onouha the latest to do so and fan protests believed to be being mobilised ahead of the the final two (away) games of the season - conveniently the story has broken following our last home game.

Whilst there was a groundswell of opinion that was against the appointment of Sven, this I believe was (wrongly) based upon his time in charge of England, and I was one of the fans who championed his appointment.

True to this, my view is that his departure from the club would be nothing short of a disaster.

Despite our stutter over the second half of the season - which has led Sven to be a victim of his own success in some respects, he has exceeded those expectations from when he first arrived last summer.

Faced with losing arguably our two best players from last season in Dunne and Distin, he quickly assembled a side on a budget around the amount that Liverpool spent on Fernando Torres alone - with one eye most definitely on the future with the majority of his purchases. Some of the signings have been hit and miss, but overall Sven has got it right and the squad looks in a healthy position as it currently stands.

Whilst the football has been restrictive at times due to the 4-5-1 formation consistently deployed, it has been an upgrade on previous seasons and there have been undoubted highlights in our performances but most crucially for me has been his handling of the Academy.

We all know how blessed we our at present with the quality that has been coming through, but the way that the players have been assimilated into the line-up and the focus and attention they have is testament to his abilities to develop this kind of talent.

It is not surprising therefore that at all levels of the club - apart from those that ultimately count of course, are said to devasted that he looks like leaving, and you do wonder what effect this could have on the futures of those players.

Talk of a three-year plan no appears mute, with Sven having fulfilled the first stage of the requirement and it appeared that this season was a platform on which to build a rosy future and I suspect Sven will be as disappointed as any to leave a squad of players who appear to have so much potential ahead of them.

I did begin to worry that once Thaksin had cleared his return to Thailand, he appeared to look for a more active, 'hands on' role at the club and so it appears to be. Already, there have been Thaksin appointments in key positions and it has been conveyed to me that both Paul Tyrrell and Alastair Mackintosh could be on their way out of the club in the summer.

Is this a case of Thaksin flexing his muscles, and trying to assert his power over the club and sees Sven (and his popularity) as a problem? Possibly, and it certainly fits the traits of a dictator.

Is it too late for Sven? Not quite yet, and the hope is that Thaksin will see the error of dismissing Sven - and a glimmer of hope at this stage is that Thaksin has publicly confirmed nothing stronger than his 'all areas over the club will be reviewed' statement, but Sven's position appears untenable now and I cannot see a situation where Sven would want to carry on when clearly the power that be at the (yes, power not powers) no longer wants him there.

It's not quite as simple as 'I told you so' that the Thaksin-sceptics may well trot out, but the position we are in now, the phrase 'If you dance with the devil' certainly rings true.

Sven 'on the brink' of exit

Sky Sports News are reporting that Sven is 'on the brink' of leaving the club following a 'frank discussion' with Thaksin over the weekend.

The club stated that Sven will be taking training tomorrow, but Sky are leading with the story.

More to come no doubt.

Thaksin needs to heed the virtue of patience

Much has been made this week of Thaksin's comments this week regarding his displeasure of the performances and results over the second half of the season.

Whilst the tone has mellowed slightly in the press - from Sven facing the axe to now 'not being backed' it is all a little worrying.

The second half of the season has of course been largely disappointing in comparison to how we were at the turn of the year, but Thaksin would be wise to step back and consider just what has been achieved this season since Sven came in - namely turning around a relegation threatened side into one challenging for Europe. Sven has now though had a year under his belt to get to the know the club and the league, and with the right additions over the summer we should be in a position to progress and kick on further.

Sven has brushed aside the reports this week, and a key factor could be that leading figures around the club appear to be advising Thaksin (correctly) to continue the path that has been taken and that replacing Sven would be a mistake.

A large part of this (and some of the things we have seen previously) is perhaps down to Thaksin's naivety in the world of football, and whilst it is a business, it is a very unique one and you simply cannot turn round the fortunes of something overnight.

Dismissing Sven at this stage would be catastrophic given our current position, and a move that would set us back almost to last summer before Thaksin and Sven arrived. It is also a move I don't expect to happen, but Thaksin appears to be priming himself for a more hands on and active role in the day to day running of the club.

Something that will keep all concerned firmly on their toes.

Sven sticking to sound principles

Despite a recent downturn in results, Sven has been talking in the press today about sticking to his footballing principles and not abandoning the way the team is playing, in favour perhaps of a more direct approach seen by some sides around the Premier League.

It is something I agree with, and Michael Ball was also echoing the sentiment today in that we are not doing a whole lot wrong, or different from the start of the season, and my view supports that with the exception we are not displaying the consistency we had throughout the team at the beginning of the campaign.

In a lot of ways, it was to expected though as the way we started this season was on the back of consistent team selection and key players were performing week in week out. There is also a truth in that many of the players - particularly key performers such as Elano and Petrov, were largely unknown quantities.

Over the second half of the season though, teams become a little more aware of the likes of Elano - singleing him out for more attention, and the squad depth (or lack of it) is something that is now being exposed with the spate of suspensions and injuries we are suffering from.

Sven and his backroom staff are calm characters though, and whilst this can grate on some people or be interpreted as a lack of passion, I believe it will stand us in good stead in the long run as despite the 'win now' demands of the modern day Premier League, the 'evolution not revolution' approach is the sensible one and by continuing to try and play football with a young, hungry side, we are more likely to achieve success in the long run than a return to the signing of over the hill players seen during the last days of the Keegan reign, or adopting a more physical, direct approach.

Unless you are blessed with Roman Abramovich's millions, you cannot simply buy overnight success given the gap the top four currently enjoy, but looking at the sides who are hoping to challenge - namely ourselves, Tottenham, Aston Villa, Portsmouth and Everton, they are generally sides that are being built with an emphasis on youth, as opposed to simply being acquired.

The continued success of the youth team this season is another positive and proof of the excellent foundations the club has, and whilst this season looks to end on a disappointing note given the start we enjoyed, we are clearly heading in the right direction - something that has been a rare feeling as we head towards the climax of a campaign in recent times.

More love for Sven

In todays Telegraph, from Don Howe, who was one of the doom merchants at the start of the season who have now have had to somewhat eat their words.

Kudos for me also a little bit, as in my season preview for OleOle, I said to look out for a media u-turn as far as Sven was confirmed, and it is amazing how quickly he has gone from persona non grata as far as the press corps were concerned to tactical genius who has gelled a side together in a matter of no time.

Sven to spend big in January?

"I am told there is money available in January but how much I don't know yet," the manager admitted.

"Before I get into lists of players in whom we might be interested I think it is vital to know what that spending figure will be. If we want to strengthen the squad then we have to be very clever about it.

"We must not buy average players. We have to buy top, top-class and for them to be better than we have already. That will cost a lot of money.

"We have to compete reputation wise with the big four who can offer Champions League football, but I am sure that we are one of the teams that foreign players are looking at and thinking: `I would like to play there.' And that is very good."

-MEN.

As I've mentioned previously, don't expect another glut of arrivals during the next transfer window, but Eriksson - perhaps feeling he is ahead of schedule in terms of progress, would no doubt love to add two or three genuine quality players to the club or what potentially could be a run at the Champions League, but certainly will be done with the aim of UEFA qualification.

He has been a savvy operator thus far in the transfer market, and I believe he knows the players he would like to bring in. With the start we have made, and if we are in a similar league position come the turn of the year, expect significant funds to be made available should Eriksson want it.

Interestingly though, for all the talk of the ten players or so Eriksson has brought into the club and that we needed a new team upon his arrival, there have only been four of his signings featuring on a regular basis - Garrido, Corluka, Petrov and of course Elano, with the remainder of the side made up of holdovers from the previous regime.

Eriksson silencing the doubters

The MEN ran a nice piece on Sven a couple of days ago as he passed the 100 day mark in charge of the club, and looking back to when he took over, the progress made to this point today is really something.

In the piece, Eriksson talks about some of the methods he has introduced to the club since taking over - citing a strong 'team spirit' and 'respect' as a huge part of his approach, and his belief that these factors are vital throughout the whole club from top to bottom. It is elements such as these that explain why we have had the start we have had, and why we are seeing the manner of performances that we are doing.

It's easy to forget Eriksson took over a side which had just returned to pre-season training, with a new ownership group in charge and already into the transfer window. He quickly assembled a near new staring XI in quick time, brought in a back room staff and navigated the pre-season encounters with relatively ease.

Then hitting the ground running, we saw ourselves topping the table after a home win in the derby. Despite the media still being sceptical, we then bounced back from a pair of defeats to put wins together to leave ourselves in the top three at the quarter mark of the season. We have put five wins in home league games together after turning in such dour, miserable efforts last season and the side is playing with an air of confidence and attacking spirit not seen for some time.

What is perhaps surprising at this point in the season given how we have fared so far is that there was a considerable groundswell of opinion against his appointment both before and after he was named as Stuart Pearce's successor. There were comments on this blog against him, as were some of the established fanzines and of course the farcical circumstances in which it was claimed '70% of fans' were against the appointment.

Personally, the qualities I thought he would bring to the club - his qualities in dealing with players, attracting 'name' signings, organisational skills and bringing a reasoned calmness to the job (lacking in previous managers) have all borne out thus far, and what has been perhaps most surprising is that general media who were so critical during his time in the England job, have been throwing platitudes and compliments from all angles at him and the side this season.

Still, 100 days on, and not many could have predicted things would have move quite as far and fast as they have done so far. He has (obviously backed by the new ownership) ushered in a new era at the club and helped reverse the worrying direction that the club was headed in.

Roll on the next 100.

Press all wrong with Eriksson Chelsea link

How ironic that the press lambasted Sven-Goran Eriksson for his dour approach and tactics whilst in charge of the England side, yet following the dismissal of Jose Mourinho he has been touted in some circles as the man to deliver the free flowing and flamboyant style of play demanded by the Chelsea owner/chief executive/manager/coach (delete as applicable) - a cautionary note if there ever was one for the perils of a rich owner beginning to think they are the be all and end all at a club.

Of course, Eriksson attended Sunday's Manchester United v Chelsea game at Old Trafford, a game which you would imagine a host of Premiership managers wanting to watch (particularly those in the vicinity of the North-West), yet of course this means that he is primed and ready to be the man to be in charge (or have his strings pulled by Abramovich) at Stamford Bridge in the post-Special One era.

Eriksson was of course asked about this over the weekend, and steadfastly denied any such notion and pointed to the fact he very much intends to honour his three-year deal. Of course, Eriksson has flirted around in the past, and the spectre of 'super-agent' Pini Zahavi looms large over all of this but I don't see any circumstance that would see Eriksson bolt to Stamford Bridge.
I believe he is genuinely excited and motivated by the challenge ahead at City - of turning us into a perennial European side with designs on the Champions League. He has swathes of cash available to him in addition to an enviable crop of youngsters coming through and perhaps most crucially, he appears to have as much of a 'free-reign' in charge of a club as any other manager in the Premier League.

As typical with the press, once again a headline and angle have been created from a total non-story.

Stick or twist between the sticks?

Has the impressive start to the season by Kaspar Schmeichel (and of course the defence in front of him) forced a rethink by Sven-Goran Eriksson as to whether to enter the transfer market for a goalkeeper?

Leading upto the start of the season in the wake of Andreas Isaksson's injury, it was widely speculated that Eriksson was keen to add another keeper to the squad - with Italy number 2 Marco Amelia tipped as the most likely candidate.

For whatever reason though a deal did not get done and we went into the opening day with Kaspar Schmeichel backed up by Joe Hart - something Eriksson admitted he was reluctant to do (despite praising their talents).

Three clean sheets later though and on the back of a trio of solid performances, Eriksson has admitted that the priority of signing a new keeper is now 'on ice', and on the back of the long-term injury to Valeri Bojinov his attentions have turned to attacking reinforcements (along with the possibility of a second attempt to sign Mark Bresciano). Perhaps the endless buckets of cash are not evident and there could well be limited funds to add to the players he has already brought in for a cost of around £40 million, with substantial wages on top.

I see it as likely now that Eriksson sees the need to add firepower up front as a far more pressing matter before the end of the transfer window than bringing in another keeper bearing in mind the job Schmeichel has done this season added to the fact that Isaksson is nearer to full fitness.

Schmeichel - despite lacking a little in height, has looked assured, confident and shown good anticipation. And of course he has been helped in no small part by the impressive performances the new look defence have displayed.

Whereas it may well have been a journey into the unknown at the start of the campaign, I feel that Eriksson is now more confident in the ability of Schmeichel (and Hart) to maybe not be the full-time number 1 but at least be capable of stepping up when required, and it would only make sense to add another keeper if it is with a view to replacing Isaksson as the first choice - something which Eriksson has given no indication he is looking to do.

City beat Spurs for Martin Petrov signing

The 28yr old LEFT WINGER !!! has signed for City on a three year deal for 4.7 million.

City have beaten off stiff competion from amongst others Spurs to land the Bulgarian International.

Alistair Mackintosh put it down to the sven factor !

A youtube taster

With a couple of Italians, plus a striker possibly still to come in im buzzing like an ann summers party for the start of the new season.

Eriksson adds Geovanni

City have made their third signing within a week by bringing
Brazilian midfielder Geovanni to the Club.
He passed a medical at City’s
Carrington training ground today, but is not expected to join the squad on the
pre-season tour of Sweden
The 27-year-old arrives on a free transfer and has
signed a one-year contract.
Most recently with Brazilian side Cruzeiro,
Geovanni brings a wealth of Champions League experience with him, having played
for Barcelona and Benfica, as well as having four international caps under his
belt.

-mcfc.co.uk

Strangely, he played for Portsmouth in a pre-season friendly (and scored) against Yeovil on Saturday but has opted for a one-year deal at City having played for Cruzeiro last season.

He seems to be a useful pickup and will strengthen us going forward without a doubt, and of course trotted out the usual platitudes upon signing:

“It’s been a dream for me to play in England, and this
is a dream as well to come to a club like Manchester City.
“It’s great to
here after playing in Europe for a few years already, and I can’t wait to get
started.
“Playing in England has been an ambition of mine, I watched a lot of
Premier League games when I was at Benfica and now that I’m here I just want to
start playing.”

The squad is beginning to take shape, and whilst this is a more short term addition than either of the previous two signings Eriksson has brought in, he is clearly beginning to mould the side a little into the style he wants to see and we should now begin to get an idea of the incumbent players which he likes the look of.

Now Sven appoints his number 2

Hans Backe is the latest City capture, the third in 24 hrs !

Backe will join as assistant manager, having previously been a manager himself in Denmark, Austria and Turkey.

Sven hailed his new number two as having great experience and knowledge of players.

Sven makes swoop number two - Gelson Fernandes

Sven has moved quickly after the signing of Rolando Bianchi by adding 20 year old Switzerland U21 captain Gelson Fernandes.

The midfielder has joined from swiss club FC Sion, again the fee is undisclosed.

Despite been linked with over 50 players by the press, they appear to have missed both signings until confirmed by one of the clubs. Tossers.

Anybody got any footage or know about this guy ? Leave it in the comments section.