Where Are They Now?

Many managers over the past few years have felt the full force of Daniel Levy’s axe, but the two most recent managers to be sacked, Martin Jol and Juande Ramos, are looking like totally reformed bosses at their respective clubs.

Juande Ramos left the club after just twelve months in charge, after gaining just two points in the first eight league games of the 2008/09 season. But before he had time to reflect on where it all went wrong, Ramos was offered a job at the helm of no other than Real Madrid. I thought I would catch up with the Spaniard after the first few months of his tenure, and monitor his progress.

After a dissapointing re-introduction to La Liga, in the form of a 2-0 defeat in the hands of rivals Barcelona, Madrid have played eight more domestic league games. Winning………………. eight. He couldn’t deliver Champions League football for Tottenham, but won his first match in the competition since leaving Seville, 3-0 against Uefa Cup holders Zenit. Ramos was originally a short-term replacement for Bernd Schuster, as clubs in Spain are not allowed to poach a manager from another Spanish club during the season. But he has impressed, and a new deal could be in the offing.

Martin Jol was the boss that Ramos took over from, and the Dutchman also took the reins at a new club this summer. He was to travel to Germany to manage Hamburg SV. 39 points from 20 Bundesliga games means Hamburg are currently sitting pretty in third place, just one point of the top. They have led for much of the season, and this is all despite the loss of star men Vincent Kompany and Rafael van der Vaart.

So it does raise questions about why it doesn’t work out in North London for all these great managers. Part of the blame must fall on the shoulders of the players, surely?