It was a managerial style destined to
produce as many casualties as the final scene of King Lear. A man going about
his business like Denzel Washington in the final hour of Man on Fire with the
crazed intent of a teenage psychopath finally getting his hands on Grand Theft
Auto at a friend’s house after his own parents dared to say no. And yet the
whole farce was as predictable as an Italian political scandal.
Paolo Di Canio’s appointment at the Stadium
of Light at the tail-end of last season stands alone at the top of the podium
for “Genuinely Horrific Managerial Appointments” in the Premier League’s
life-time. Watching the situation in the North-East for the past six months has
been like watching You’ve Been Framed for ten years and persisting with it,
fully aware that Grandad will fall off his chair and plant his face into the
birthday cake. The fact there seems to be a universal approval of Ellis Short’s
decision to rid his team of its head-coach after a mere 12 league games
highlights just how disastrous the Italian’s reign has been.
Di Canio may have topped his coaching class
at home in Italy but whatever skills he might possibly possess in a tactical
sense will never transmit to his players as a result of his immature,
egotistical personality. The precursors were there; the two large elephants in
the room waving and making advances at the Sunderland board prior to their
final decision to charge Di Canio with the responsibility of keeping The
Mackems’ head above water in a season where half a dozen teams could have
staked a claim as worthy relegation-fodder. Not only was the Italian temperamental
on the pitch with a chequered past of controversy but also a somewhat successful, yet ultimately tumultuous debut in the dugout in charge of Swindon
Town; “management by hand grenade” in the words of chief executive Nick
Watkins.
There was the public row with a goalkeeper following a premature substitution after twenty minutes, constant ultimatums
towards the board, the youth team coach forced to take time off work due to high
stress levels under Di Canio, and any time in between involved falling-out with
his new signings whose agent’s fees added up to 46% of League Two’s total
figures.
Yet Short expected the egos of Premiership footballers
and that of a cocksure ex-pro to gel in matrimony. The writing was on the wall
in the first week, the club’s vice-chairman and son of a Jewish immigrant David Miliband resigned from his post as a result
of the new man’s political history and possibly due to the Fascist edition of
the Bayeux Tapestry tattooed onto the former West Ham striker’s back. Even
amidst protests from the Durham Miners’ Association the manager refused to deny
or denounce his position at the high-right side of the political compass.
The Sunderland faithful will always have their
3-0 victory over an abysmal Newcastle side in Di Canio’s second game in charge
but in truth it merely papered over the cracks. Dismal teams like Aston Villa
and West Brom were capable of making Sunderland appear embarrassingly toothless
in attack and as helpless as the runt of the pack in defence.
30 million pounds was spent during the
summer to bring in a total of 14 new players while other leading figures like Simon Mignolet and Danny Rose were either sold or handed back to their parent club. Di Canio was never expected to mould his new squad
together in the first month of the season however his methods never would have.
Criticising your own players tends to be a recipe for disaster, there’s a
reason Arsene Wenger and Alex Ferguson tend to over-achieve with the squads at
their disposal. In order to criticise players even in private you must first
earn their respect. Di Canio completely neglected this. Conor Wickham was “the
playboy model”, the foreign signings criticised for a lack of English, while he ridiculed the idea that he apologised to John O’Shea after describing the
captain’s sending-off in the limp loss to Crystal Palace as "absolutely poor and unacceptable". Di Canio was the self-righteous GAA supporter frowning upon soccer stars due to the money they earn, completely ignorant to the fact that they, as human being can be rubbed the wrong, and indeed the right way.
In his defence he likened his approach to
that of Ferguson, pointing to the fourth rule in the Scot’s recent blueprint for
successful management, “never, ever cede control”. However point five negated
Di Canio’s argument. “No one likes to be criticised. Most respond to encouragement.
For any human being there is nothing better than hearing 'Well done'”. Ferguson
was the master of motivating his players through a mixture of private criticism
and public backing. Andy Cole tells a story of being absolutely berated in the
dressing room by his manager only to be on the receiving end of friendly jokes
for the rest of the week leading up to the next match. Such warmth gave his
players an extra 20% in Cole’s opinion.
Last season Stephane Sessegnon was
beginning to show signs of discontent around the squad, a decline running
parallel with Sunderland’s slide southwards in the league table. While Martin O’Neill’s
tactical approach had gone stale, his vigorous ability to spark motivation into
his men still lingered over the squad. After a comforting conversation with his
manager the Benin international regained his status as the team’s figurehead
and sole creative outlet. This was something Di Canio could never and will
never be able to replicate. Once the sacking was announced last night West Brom’s
Gareth McAuley and Norwich’s Anthony Pilkington began tweeting of celebrations
in the Sunderland squad, clearly aware of the discontent in the dressing room.
One young recruit, El Hadji Ba was blunt in his reaction. “LOL”.
Sessegnon was one of the lucky ones who got
away from the former Lazio leader’s talons. Fortunately he was shipped off to
West Brom where, inspired by having his reputation slurred in the Italian’s
press conference, he aptly delivered the last rights to Il Duce’s managerial
career. A little motivation can go a long way.
