Claudio Ranieri: Anyone Else Feel Bad For This Guy

After reading a headline we all knew was coming - Ranieri sacked by Inter Milan - a range of thoughts registered in my mind.

Mother always said there'd be days like these...

Oh Ranieri, sacked again was my first thought. This scenario has happened time and again to the unlucky Italian. I know all coaches at top clubs get put under the ol' Bunsen burner, but it seems like Ranieri is constantly roasted at any club he arrives at and ultimately sacked or forced to resign.

He totally deserved it was my second thought. Based on his history of being the "nearly man," I figured this was bound to happen to Ranieri at Inter. He nearly led (X) to the pinnacle (X = Valencia, Chelsea, Juventus, Roma etc...) year after year after year. Will this man ever finish first? It was only a question of when for poor Claudio. It came sooner than I thought, but Ranieri fully deserved to be fired... Right?

Wrong. Ranieri was set up for failiure is my final thought. Even though he often falls victim to the axe and in the past had deserved it for being the guy that almost won it for the team, at Inter Milan, a post-golden age Nerazzurri, Ranieri and any other coach (see Rafa Benitez and Gian Piero Gasperini) did not stand a chance. People will claim Jose Mourinho's massive shadow of success has led to the club's meltdown, but as far as I'm concerned, President Massimo Moratti failed Inter, not Mourinho's mirage and most definitely not Claudio Ranieri. 

Inter President Massimo Moratti

Consistent missteps by the flamboyant club president have resulted in Inter's troubles. He has made a myriad trivial moves over the past two seasons, which have led to the downfall. He sold Samuel Eto'o to Russia, albeit for big money, when Eto'o was the club's main force upfront. Older players like Dejan Stankovic, Esteban Cambiasso, Christian Chivu, Lucio, etc... have not been sold, yet still relied upon as an integral part of the team. Younger players like Andrea Ranocchia and Coutinho have been heavily relied upon, only to perform below-par. Wesley Sneijder has been run-ragged trying to keep this team together, which has ultimately crushed his world class form of a few years back. And the list goes on.

Ironically, Moratti blames the coaches - ones that he chose to hire - for poor performances. Hey Massi: when this keeps happening, it might not be the coaches. 

Does anyone else feel bad for Ranieri? This time, it wasn't the Tinkerman's fault.


Photo Credits:
Ahram Online
guardian.co.uk

When Big Club Coaches Get Sacked For Doing Bad...

...they automatically draw speculation on which big club they will arrive at next? Sounds like a strange thesis, wouldn't you say? Interestingly enough, this seems to be the odd trend.

AVB's signature Chelsea look of disbelief

Over the past few days, Andre Villas-Boas (pictured above), freshly sacked by Chelsea, has went from the career low of being dismissed by his first big club, to somewhat of a revival in the news with all the speculation involving which big club he will land at next. The Portuguese tactician is already linked with Serie A money spenders Roma and Inter, and I would imagine as the season dwindles down, clubs like Barcelona, Madrid, et. al will be thrown into the mix. How does this make any sense? In football, it just does.

You could argue AVB was a good coach in a bad situation, similar to Carlo Ancelotti last year; or that his ideals simply did not match those of the team, causing the negative results. Still, it is peculiar when someone recently fired for not doing the job correctly is desired by other firms days later. Would this make sense in your field of work? Nevertheless, in football, it just does.

Lets look at some more of these conundrums and how they turned out:

Who Rafa Benitez When June 2010 Verdict FAIL

Rafa Benitez with his own signature look of failure

All throughout the 2009-10 season, Rafa Benitez had the weight of Liverpool on his shoulders. Ultimately, the Spaniard lead the team to an undesired finish and was dismissed. For some reason...I blame Alberto Aquilani? Anyway, seven days later, Inter scooped up the goatee sporting gaffer to replace Jose Mourinho, the man who won Inter a treble weeks prior. After running Liverpool off the rails and arriving in the shadow of Mourinho, the "destined for failure" motto floated about Milano.

As it turns out, it was an epic fail. In spectacular fashion, Benitez was dismissed after Inter's Club World Cup win. Following the triumph, Benitez stated in the media reinforcements were needed in January...to a team that just won a treble and the Club World Cup. Puzzling comments and a dismal start to the season resulted in the sack for Rafa. Inter might have hoped for better in the situation, but really got what they deserved by hiring a recent failure.

Who Claudio Ranieri When Anytime Verdict FAIL

Claudio Ranieri's "not again" look of despair

The nervous looking Claudio Ranieri is the AVB scenario on repeat. His career is like a broken record that repeats 5 steps: 1) do well for a season 2) dismal results begin 3) pressure mounts because of dismal results 4) pressure boils over and equals firing 5) miraculously hired again. This has happened to Ranieri everywhere. Where is he now, you ask? At Inter. Doing what? Well, he skipped step 1), went straight to steps 2) and 3) and is nearing step 4). We'll probably be reading about his step 5) return to Chelsea in June.

Who Luciano Spalletti When Nov./Dec. 2009 Verdict WIN

Luciano Spalletti's "I have the balls to be bald in Russia" look

Just to prove the anomaly of hiring a freshly sacked manager is not as outrageous as it sounds, behold former AS Roma coach Luciano Spalletti. Spalletti saw a few bad results at the beginning of the 2009-10 season and was forced out of the Capital. But, being the ever-so-awesome bald man that he is, was scooped up be Zenit St. Petersburg in a month and ultimately lead them to the title in his first year at the helm, something they had not won in 10 years. In this case, Zenit's gamble of hiring a coach who recently faltered paid off.

What do these instances mean? The football world is unpredictable. Keep your eyes on the Villas-Boas saga that will surely unfold over the next few months!


Photo Credits:
footballz.com
soccerisfutbol.com
topnews.in
britishblogs.co.uk

Resignation Tendered

Immediately following AS Roma's shock loss to Genoa - one which saw the Giallorossi throw away a 3 goal lead - coach Claudio Ranieri tendered his resignation. As a Roma fan, I am relieved.

Last season, Ranieri picked up the pieces of Roma and rolled the dice successfully. He made countless bold moves during the campaign - substituting Francesco Totti and Daniele De Rossi at halftime in the Derby della Capitale (which is the boldest of moves in any Romanista's eyes) - which nearly won the capital club the Scudetto. But those same ballsy decisions have been the wrong ones this season. Everything decreed by the Tinkerman has worked against the squad and today's game was a prime and final example. Though his time in the capital was short and tumultuous, he must be thanked for his service and lauded for stepping aside when appropriate. True integrity and class.

Now to the future: it looks like Vincenzo Montella, il Aeroplanino and current coach of Roma's youth academy, will take the reins for the rest of the season. I am both excited and frightened by this. Montella is a smart man and has been doing good for Roma's youth team, but might run into some resistance when managing players who were very recently peers. Will egos get in the way? This is Rome...so yes. We can only hope that Montella can cope and see this season to a successful end.

That information aside, will we see Carlo Ancelotti take over at Roma in the summer? The wily tactician has widely stated his desire to coach his former club, where he played from 1979 - 1987. The opportunity to build a trophy winning side is imminent, since new owners will be in control soon. Add to that a world class gaffer with a winning mentality...this could mean big things, Romanisti.

Let's keep our chins up.