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FA must call Mourinho's bluff

International England
by philmcnultybbcsport (U1816352) 04 December 2007
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Jose Mourinho may or may not be bluffing about his interest in taking over as England coach - but there is one simple way to find out.

The Football Association should call Mourinho's bluff. Today.

Mourinho is far and away the outstanding candidate to succeed Steve McClaren. He is also available.

And yet we have the farce of the FA canvassing luminaries such as John Toshack, Michel Platini, Franz Beckenbauer and Sir Alex Ferguson before making its move.

This is utter nonsense. Never mind "the process", just get on the phone.

No-one with a basic working knowledge of football should need to consult anyone, let alone a man who has underwhelmed with Wales, to get the gist of Mourinho's ability and achievements.

And the same applies to Fabio Capello and Martin O'Neill, who would also be excellent choices.

The FA will not be criticised if Mourinho is asked and says no.

But chief executive Brian Barwick and his cohorts will be destroyed if Mourinho is not even asked the question because they are waiting on big Tosh's carefully-crafted opinion, or there is some other inexplicable hesitation.

Mourinho has teased England about his interest, leading to understandable claims that he is using potential FA interest to land the big one at Real Madrid, Barcelona or AC Milan.

So pick up the phone or better still get on a plane.

If a journalist can find the gates to his Portuguese home, the task should not be beyond the Football Association's finest.

If Mourinho is asked and turns the offer down, the FA can move on.

If he agrees, and his huge ego might just tempt him, almost all of the FA's sins will be forgiven.

But ask him. Now.

You might have gathered from this that I would happily lead the public campaign for Mourinho to succeed McClaren. From the ridiculous to the sublime.

Mourinho is charismatic, successful and might just frighten the life out of some of the grey men we saw announcing McClaren's departure - another reason to appoint him.

He is, above all, a proven coach with or without money.

Mourinho's achievements in winning the Uefa Cup and Champions League with Porto arguably carry more weight for him to be the next England coach than his achievements with Chelsea.

And world-class players speak in awe of Mourinho as a man manager able to get big performances from his players - another perfect quality for the hit-and-run nature of international football.

Now we come to the part of the equation that will have them shaking in their suits at Soho Square.

Namely Jose's combustible personality.

In short - who cares?

What does the FA want? A Mr Nice Guy who will never ruffle feathers inside or outside Soho Square or anywhere else, or a man who might upset some along the way but offers them the best chance of success?

I know which one I would pick. And I'd bet a huge majority of the English football public agree.

The FA can stop the speculation about Mourinho's intentions, or otherwise, by simply offering him the job.

He will either take it or it will flush out his true intentions.

Mourinho would be a brilliant choice. The FA would be negligent not to make the approach.

And it should be made now.

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comment by Denchanter™ (U2894071)

posted Dec 10, 2007

Exactly what I said not long back.....i'm resisting the urge to say I told you so....ooops I said it

All thsi rubbish about Jose wracking his brains wating the England job etc was a lie. People in the know knew from the start he was using the FA to get a big offer from a top European club, and he was proved to be doing just that.

No doubt he'll say it was a tough decision tc, but we ae used to his mind games, apart frm stupid football fans who believe what a fool has to say all the time.

That is why his 'eggs' jokes and silly comments appeal to football fans, as they have that sort of level of intelligence!
__________________

You are one of the few enlightened posters on this site. I too pointed out that the England job was not a priority for Mourinho.

But we English seem to have lost our pride. Going down on bended knew for the appointment of the 'special one'. With very little thought as to what that would mean.

What people do not realise is that, as it stands being linked with the England job is very good for your reputation. That puts you in a very strong position when it comes to negotiations.

Mourinho is using the FA's interest for his own gains. Only natural, I might add. The problem is that those idiots on the FA don't seem to have noticed. As usual the rest of us follow like sheep.

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comment by Aussieroo (U1946063)

posted Dec 10, 2007

Special one - my arsenal
He aint coming hes taking the piston
Big Sam for England
H H H O O O O O F F F F F ! !

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comment by corzellian (U9314173)

posted Dec 10, 2007

football love crazy and Denchanter...

Surprise surprise!... NOT!

I'm sure you and I and many others on here who were crtiicised for banging on about Jose's ulterior motives are feeling a mite smug now!

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comment by Horace35 (U9313683)

posted Dec 10, 2007

I would like an English manager but sadly none of the options are up to it imo. None of them have enough big time/European experience.
The only Englishman I would consider is Hoddle -and they wont go back to him.
So that only leaves Mourinho as far as Im concerned (if he will take it)

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comment by Ultras (U2164671)

posted Dec 10, 2007

Abola.pt (Portuguese paper) just announced online that Mourinho has rejected the offer officially.

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comment by BARCASPUR (U3768229)

posted Dec 10, 2007

I am pleased, and it proves he wouldn't have given a toss about England.

NO HAT BIG ENOUGH FOR THE ARROGANT PORK & CHEESE

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comment by Ultras (U2164671)

posted Dec 10, 2007

NO HAT BIG ENOUGH FOR THE ARROGANT PORK & CHEESE
-------------------------

and I'm pleased because England will not win the world cup anymore.

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comment by SCOTSMIKE (U10545021)

posted Dec 10, 2007

This is not a role that is big enough for Mourinho. I keep hearing from south of the border that this is the biggest job in football. Yeah, sure. Why would a top class manager want to manage a 2nd rate squad of players??

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comment by Denchanter™ (U2894071)

posted Dec 10, 2007

I would like an English manager but sadly none of the options are up to it imo. None of them have enough big time/European experience.
The only Englishman I would consider is Hoddle -and they wont go back to him.
So that only leaves Mourinho as far as Im concerned (if he will take it)
_______________

If he will take it erm

I see you've been keeping up to date with footballing affairs.

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comment by thelaticsfan (U9397094)

posted Dec 12, 2007

ye very smug you must be feelin proud that you were right, but it leaves one problem... still dont have our manager,

honestly people on these boards ar emore concerned bout how they look to other people rather than thee opinions

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