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Grant Deserves Sympathy
Topic Started: May 24 2008, 09:34 PM (192 Views)
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http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/t...sea/7418845.stm

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Avram Grant cradled heartbroken John Terry in his arms as Chelsea's iconic captain broke down in despair after missing the penalty the would have won the Champions League.

It is to be hoped there is sympathy left over for Grant after he was acquainted with the savage ruthlessness that now accompanies the dogfight for honours at the top of the English game.

Grant's sacking, announced at 1759 BST on Saturday, was no great surprise after messages from Chelsea's hierarchy since their defeat on penalties to Manchester United in Moscow gave him no cause to start planning for the future.

No surprise - but still a startling example of what football has become at the sharp end. It may be madness but this is now the price on the ticket for some managers.

It is a sign of the cut-throat nature of the modern game that a decent, dignified man is sacked three days after missing out on club football's biggest honour by the width of a post and on the Premier League title on the last day of the season.

Chelsea will simply say - close but not close enough. Second is nowhere as far as billionaire owner Roman Abramovich is concerned and a man regarded as his friend has paid the price.

Grant took on one of the toughest tasks in football when he succeeded Jose Mourinho in September. He was a man in sharp contrast to the charismatic, endlessly quotable "Special One" who was the headline writers' dream and loved by every Chelsea fan.

The 53-year-old Israeli was perceived as dour and low-key, despite time revealing Grant's dry sense of humour and quiet decency in the face of almost daily questions about his future.

And yet he kept his head and kept Chelsea in the title race until the final afternoon, and achieved a feat beyond even the celebrated Mourinho when he defeated Liverpool to guide the club to their first Champions League final.

Grant's wife Tsofit was unforgiving towards the media before Chelsea's defeat in Russia, saying: "It was clear that we would mainly go out to beat the media, the guillotine people, bloodthirsty and hungry for raw flesh. That is how I see the media."

But it was not the media who merely let the dust settle on the season before unceremoniously showing Grant the door. This honour goes to Abramovich, Chelsea chief executive Peter Kenyon and chairman Bruce Buck. They were the ultimate executioners in this gloves-off pursuit of glory.

Grant had moments when he deserved criticism. He badly mismanaged the Carling Cup final defeat against Spurs, and the substitution of Joe Cole after he scored two goals at Spurs was the catalyst for the concession of two important points.

He has been accused of many things, but no-one can seriously say a man who reached a Champions League final, a Carling Cup final and finished second in the league has done a bad job.

Grant has been ill-served by the carping of some of his players, and if Chelsea's hierarchy harboured any doubts - which they clearly didn't - about whether to keep him at Stamford Bridge, he was not well-served by his highest-profile signing during his time in charge.

He lavished £15m on Nicolas Anelka and yet all he got in return was a refusal to take one of the first five penalties in the Moscow shoot-out, followed up by an ill-timed attack on Grant's methods that applied a kick when he was down.


Grant had won over many Chelsea fans with his composure in the face of pressure, but there was always the lingering feeling that his lack of a "wow factor" and an understandable inability to shimmer stardust over the game in the manner of his flamboyant predecessor would count against him unless he could bring the big prizes to Stamform Bridge.

If it is any consolation, Grant leaves Stamford Bridge with his reputation as a person and a football man enhanced. It is a hard heart that does not feel a measure of sympathy for a man who is the latest victim of the relentless search for perfection.

Grant handled himself in a way that did him huge credit right up until his final moments in charge, when he received generous applause from the world's media following his Moscow press conference.


He will now go in search of another chance to prove his credentials - and he can leave Chelsea with his head held high.

In an ordinary world, Grant's efforts this season would have been more than enough to earn him another crack at leading Chelsea next season.

Sadly for Grant, football is no ordinary world, especially not at a club with one of the world's richest men at the helm, a man for whom second place is as bad finishing bottom of the pile.


my sentiments, especially the bold and even more so the underlined.

Golden rule of football...Never Buy Anelka
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flak
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It's nearly Christmas
Completely agree. It just shows what is expected of managers these days and the kinds of pressure on them. To get so close in the big two competitions, starting behind in the Premiership and reaching the Champions League final for the first time in the clubs history is a disgrace. I hope Grant gets a new job soon and the manager who takes over at Chelsea does rubbish.

I spy a spelling mistake in their article. :P
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flak
May 24 2008, 09:05 PM
Completely agree. It just shows what is expected of managers these days and the kinds of pressure on them. To get so close in the big two competitions, starting behind in the Premiership and reaching the Champions League final for the first time in the clubs history is a disgrace. I hope Grant gets a new job soon and the manager who takes over at Chelsea does rubbish.

I spy a spelling mistake in their article. :P

Stamform is the new mecca......oppps, Avram left :lol: (the clever ones will get it ;) )
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i do have a lot of sympathy for grant, he had done a brilliant job and had just gotten some of the players on his side... it is a big mistake by chelsea to let him down and i have a feeling grant is going to have the satisfaction of seeing chelsea fail as Roman Abramovich keeps the managerial merry go round spinning
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stacie
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chelsea better hope that money alone can attract the top players if they want greater success, no trophies and managerial instability won't look good so if they wanna sort it, they better do it but QUICK
flak and gary love stacie and weep sorrowful tears when she's not around

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RetardedDwarf
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If they get a top manager in, i dont think he will have anything to worry about, as has been said before, the main reason AG went was because the majority of big name players wanted him gone. This was done and dusted over a month ago.
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stacie
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They wanted him gone, he knew they wanted him gone, so they allowed him to oversee the rest of the season?

"Sorry Avvy, we don't want you here anymore, you're really not good enough and the players can't stand ya. Just one thing though - we're not that bothered about the league but could you help us get past Liverpool and pick up that shiny European trophy? Great, just leave it in the cabinet on your way out, yeah?"

[camera cuts to Grant as a dark shadow passes over his face and he mutters quietly: 'You will win nothing. Congratulations Manchester United.']
flak and gary love stacie and weep sorrowful tears when she's not around

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Nokia
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RetardedDwarf
May 25 2008, 04:26 AM
If they get a top manager in, i dont think he will have anything to worry about, as has been said before, the main reason AG went was because the majority of big name players wanted him gone. This was done and dusted over a month ago.

Yeah and with Grant in charge he was never, ever going to attract big names to the club.

Tbh, I would be quite happy if I was Grant right now, big pay packet and managed to prove his credentials at a top club. I could see him getting appointed at a smaller club and working his way to the top.

Also, I'm very suprised at well he done, we all thought he was going to be rubbish (tactialy yes but he can improve) and he picked up a team with low morale after JM left and in eight months he took it to the last day with Man Utd and got to two other finals; yet all he had was the January transfer window to make any signings.

Well done Grant and best of luck in the future. :clap:
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flak
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Moto
May 25 2008, 08:53 AM
Yeah and with Grant in charge he was never, ever going to attract big names to the club.

I'd hardly call Anelka, Ivanovic and Bosingwa small names as there were other clubs in for these players as well.

Apparently City are interested but I reccon that's just paper rubbish.
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roo86
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yes he did well on paper.. but i said it then and still think that it was the players that carried one another. good luck to him though
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flak
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Why do you think it was the players that carried each other? If the players weren't happy with his appointment then you'd think they would do the reverse and play badly just so that the manager gets sacked sooner.
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RetardedDwarf
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flak
May 25 2008, 02:01 PM
Why do you think it was the players that carried each other? If the players weren't happy with his appointment then you'd think they would do the reverse and play badly just so that the manager gets sacked sooner.

No team is going to play badly just because they dont rate the manager. They didnt so much dislike him, just didnt think he had the experience.
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roo86
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flak
May 25 2008, 01:01 PM
Why do you think it was the players that carried each other? If the players weren't happy with his appointment then you'd think they would do the reverse and play badly just so that the manager gets sacked sooner.

well for one.. the chelsea teams mentality wouldnt allow them to play poor just to spite the manager. another too much self pride?? could you see the likes of terry /ballack just laying down and getting beat without a fight?? i think its a good move by Roman, tbh
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flak
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They could do if they thought it was the only way to get rid of the manager considering he was supposedly good friends with the owner. Not lying down without a fight, more not giving their all and the extra 10% that they gave for Jose.

What happens if the players don't like the next manager? Don't people think it's wrong the players get to decide who they want to manage them.
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roo86
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flak
May 25 2008, 01:22 PM
They could do if they thought it was the only way to get rid of the manager considering he was supposedly good friends with the owner. Not lying down without a fight, more not giving their all and the extra 10% that they gave for Jose.

What happens if the players don't like the next manager? Don't people think it's wrong the players get to decide who they want to manage them.

well its up to the manager to impress and stamp his authority and gain the players respect and to make them believe he has what it takes to succeed as well as being able to have a good on and off the field relationship with the players.. difference between a top and average manager.. for ex grant lacked several of those characteristics and that was fairly evident
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