“It is a shame because when you look at what he has done in his football career, he is a legend,” Ince told Sky Sports. The fact that Campbell had to start in such a bleak position left some furious, including Paul Ince, who also began his managerial career with Macclesfield 12 years earlier. He was taking over Macclesfield Town, a club dominated by a severe lack of funds, managerial instability, and every other club in League Two. In the year that preceded him joining, there were regular reports of players not being paid, two managerial departures in the form of John Askey and Mark Yates, and a dire run of form that left them seven points from safety when he was appointed at the beginning of October. In fact, this is obvious throughout history – as José Mourinho and Brian Clough would be all too quick to declare.Įventually, though, he did get his chance. But if Barton’s appointment presents anything, it’s that being a character doesn’t stop you being a manager. Barton, a player who achieved only a fraction of what Campbell did and someone twice as divisive had been given his first managerial job within months of retiring.Ĭampbell’s marmite personality did hinder his chances of becoming a manager – no one can deny that. All three appointed before Campbell all three younger than Campbell all three hired by big clubs.īut of all the appointments, it was that of Joey Barton at League One Fleetwood which really rubbed salt into the wound. Gary Neville went to Valencia, Steven Gerrard found himself at Rangers and Frank Lampard got the Derby gig. That chance didn’t come and Campbell’s frustration only grew as his former England teammates eased into management. I’m up for that … I’m itching to start, I just need a chance.” ![]() “If they can’t pay me a salary just pay me a win bonus. “People may think that I just want to manage in the Premier League but I’m prepared to go to a non-league club,” he told The Guardian in 2017. It would have been easy to give up and move into the comfort of the television studio or the security of obscurity. ![]() The man self-described as “one of the greatest minds in football” had become a joke to his doubters. They believed he was over-confident, delusional and inexperienced, judging him harshly and ignoring the accomplished player he was during the previous decade. Yet many didn’t accept this as the reason why Campbell couldn’t find a job. Read | Kolo Touré and Sol Campbell: the bedrock that propped up Arsenal’s Invincibles It’s one of English football’s most disturbing and ugly truths. For those who bother to scratch beneath the surface, there is a clear subconscious prejudice at boardroom level a failure to see BAME individuals as candidates. This equates to just 4.35 percent of managers, a damning statistic considering approximately 25 percent of players are BAME individuals. In a 2015 League Managers Association report, only four of the 92 managers from the Premier League and Football League were BAME (Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic) individuals – Chris Houghton at Brighton and Hove Albion, Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink at Burton Albion, Ricardo Moniz at Notts County and Keith Curle at Carlisle United. I’ve spoken to other black players who want to coach and they feel the same, that attitudes here are archaic.” “Everyone has to ask themselves why there are not more black managers in this country. Inspired by working under a great like Arsène Wenger, and Harry Redknapp and Glenn Hoddle, he expressed his desire to become a manager, believing he had what it took to succeed.īut he feared he wouldn’t get an opportunity due to the colour of his skin: “There are no opportunities for me here, not until attitudes change anyway,” Campbell told The Guardian in 2013. His bid to manage in Europe began shortly after he retired in 2012, when he started coaching at the Gunners. Make no mistake, Campbell is a unique character. ![]() ![]() And, before he even had his first managerial job, he told The Times his destiny was “to lead a top team in Europe”. After he retired, he ran for the Conservative Party nomination for Mayor of London. In the summer of 2001, he stunned the game by making the controversial move from Spurs to Arsenal. Apart from missing out on a Champions League winners medal in 2006, there wasn’t much he didn’t achieve in the club game. Sol Campbell is one of the best-known figures in English football. During his glittering playing career, he captained Tottenham, became an invincible with Arsenal, and picked up 73 caps with England.
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