Michael Laudrup - would you back him as the next Liverpool manager?
By royhendo - January 03 2011 - PRINT THIS ARTICLE
If not a truly ‘formative’ episode in my football timeline, the 1986 World Cup is still a regular feature in my mind’s private cinema. Maybe not the most regular feature, ahem, but still a vivid series of memories. The drama during my country’s qualification, the loss of Big Jock at Ninian Park, the palaver over whether Kenny and Jocky were gonna play, Strachan’s ‘refusal’ at the ad hording hurdle…
But as with all world cups, it’s the games and the players who live longest in your mind. Scotland were, of course, drawn with Germany, Uruguay, and Denmark at the time. It still looks a tough draw by today’s standards, but younger readers may be surprised to hear that, of the three sides, Denmark were the ones that caused the most hand-wringing North of the border. They were something of a glamour side, and alongside a certain slip of a lad named Jan Molby, a big part of that was a dashing young playmaker by the name of Michael Laudrup.
Oh, what an elegant sight he was, even to young eyes. In the opening game of the group they faced Uruguay, supposedly a strong side playing on more familiar turf. Denmark thumped them 6-1, with Mr Laudrup instrumental throughout.
For the benefit of those too young to remember it, here’s a brief snippet of our subject (then 22 years old) in action during that game.
From impressing at an early age in Danish football, Juventus snapped him up in 1983 after, believe it or not, he’d agreed a deal with Liverpool (*Goddamn Parry*). At the time, the Agnelli clan were doing their best to hoover up the cream of European talent, signing Liam Brady in 1980, Zbigniew Boniek and Michel Platini in ‘82, and Laudrup in ‘83, then aged 19. As such, he flew to Mexico as an established ‘name’, despite having been farmed out to Lazio on loan due to the then ‘two foreigners’ rule in force in Serie A. He would play for Juventus for three seasons between 1985 and 1989, taking over Platini’s pivotal role in the side and leading the team.
He then made what was arguably the defining move of his playing career, again joined a footballing superpower choc full of superstars, and managed by one of the icons of the world game, Johan Cruyff. The team Cruyff assembled went on to be tagged The Dream Team of course, with players like Guardiola, Koeman, Stoichkov, and Romario complementing Laudrup’s gliding grace and intelligence beautifully. As well as La Liga titles and Spanish Cups, they won the European Cup in 1992. Quite a side really - one of the defining sides in history, much like our own at that very time.
As if that wasn’t enough, having fallen out with Cruyff (as many people do) in ‘94, he moved to Real Madrid. Phew! The book “Laudrup - A Football Dynasty†quotes Cruyff as follows.
“One of the most difficult players I have worked with. When he gives 80–90% he is still by far the best, but I want 100%, and he rarely does that.â€
“When Michael plays like a dream, a magic illusion, determined to show his new team his extreme abilities, no one in the world comes anywhere near his level.â€
This led Laudrup to the distinction of being the only man ever to win five spanish titles in a row playing for two different clubs. Real fans voted him the 12th best player in their history in 2002 - quite an honour given the pantheon they already boasted at that time. Raul said he was the best player he’d ever played with.
He later travelled for a stint in Japan and finished his career winning the Dutch title at Ajax, retiring in 1998, aged 34.
It’s best to leave the footage to do the talking really. You can find footage of the Dream Team side here:
Against Real Madrid: http://tinyurl.com/2ugltkp
Against Sevilla: http://tinyurl.com/35sa6cf
Against Dinamo Kiev: http://tinyurl.com/37ecyuc
Against Man Utd: http://tinyurl.com/32vwdux and http://tinyurl.com/2wjbmbe
As a player, he was one to remember, particularly for the thinking man. If he’d played today, you’d be seeing non-stop ‘guapa’ clips and youtube virals made in his honour.
But enough of all that. We know how good he was as a player - why bother going over that? Well, it underlines three key points for me.
1. He’s a natural leader - he can’t avoid it. At a tender age, he was already his country’s ‘leader’ in developing their play on the world stage. Juve would ask him to take on a similar role, then Barca, then Real Madrid. Each time he took it in his graceful stride and led his team to trophies. That’s massively significant in my view.
2. He’s learned his trade with some of the true greats, and in particular, was nicely marinaded in the formative years of Cruyff’s tenure at Barca - the fruits of which are only really now beginning to bear fruit. He has an insight into the ‘big picture’.
3. He’s a purist. Look at how he played, and how he conducted the teams around him - they were always a joy to watch. That was down in large part to him. We’ll come back to that later, but it defines him as a manager too, and it’s the kind of purism that should also (in my view) define our future at Liverpool FC.
But enough - we get the general picture by now. If he’s being considered as a candidate for the Liverpool job, it’s all very well being a ‘great’ on the park. What we’re interested in is how he does at the side of the park, or on the training ground, or on the phone to players and agents. How does he fare on that front?
Once again we’ll go through the salient points in turn, but as you read, it’s worth noting the way his demeanour, his words, and his work chime with our understanding of the Liverpool Way.
Age?
He’s 46. That’s young enough for 20 years or more at the helm. Check.
Lingo?
He’s fluent in English, as he is in several languages. It seems he also has a flair with it, at least when his audience is Red.
It’s here that he first hooked me, to be honest. He’s no stranger to Liverpool FC’s official site. In two recent interviews, you got an insight into his charm, his views on the game, and his - wait for it - affinity and admiration for Liverpool FC. Who knew?
Some snippets from the first interview.
You actually came close to signing for Liverpool at first, didn’t you?
Yes, in 1983 I had the opportunity to sign for Liverpool. We actually agreed a deal and I came over with my father to talk to Liverpool’s representatives. We agreed a three-year contract and went away thinking it was all done. But two weeks later they came back saying they wanted to offer me the same package, but for four years because I was still young and needed time to develop. I was disappointed because although nothing had been signed, we had an agreement. I decided not to join them and people thought I was crazy. This 19-year-old was turning down the great Liverpool. It wasn’t really like that though. I just felt an agreement is an agreement and people should stick to what they decide. After that, I had other offers and went on to join Juventus. That’s football for you.
You went on to play for the likes of Real Madrid and Barcelona, but never got to play at Anfield. Was that disappointing given the reputation it has for its famous atmosphere?
You know, it is really strange that I had such a long career and played in so many stadiums around the world - but never Anfield. I have been there though. I was there for the Champions League match against Barcelona about three years ago. You won 2-1 in the Camp Nou and then lost 1-0 at home. It was such an amazing atmosphere that night. I think the word special can be used too often to describe things, but there’s no doubt, that is the only word I can think of for Anfield.
It’s a shame that the incredible Barcelona side that you played in during the late 80s-early 90s didn’t go head-to-head with Kenny Dalglish’s team of the same era. Who do you think would have won?
Ha ha, I’ve never thought about it. It was a great team with fantastic players though. The likes of John Barnes and Peter Beardsley were at their peak back then. But that was how I always remember Liverpool. You have had so many great teams over the years. Growing up in Denmark as a kid, they were the games we saw on TV. Some of my favourites were Ray Kennedy, John Toshack and Kevin Keegan; but do you know who I really liked watching?
Kenny Dalglish?
No, he was a great player too - but I always enjoyed seeing Steve Heighway in action. He was very effective down the wing.
More on that article later - but it’s worth bookmarking for a read in full.
Potential Waiting To Flower?
One thing you’ll hear from people on the subject of Laudrup is that ‘he’s never done it at a big club’. That’s an interesting comment in my view, given his record as a player and his comfort in that kind of environment. Laudrup always appears as if he’s just waiting to be parachuted into the throne at one of the European Superpowers. It’d just take one of them to take what’s conventionally perceived as a ‘risk’ to appoint him. But then it’d be no bigger a risk than Real appointing Toshack, or Barca appointing Bobby Robson. If you’ve got it, you’ve got it. And in my view, he’s got it.
He started out as Morten Olsen’s assistant ten years ago with the Danish national team. And guess what - they deployed a 4-2-3-1 and a possession-based short passing game. That led him to his first fully fledged manager’s job, with Brondby.
Clearly the Danish Superliga isn’t the Blue Riband of the biscuit tin, but guess what? He got Brondby playing a 4-2-3-1 with a possession-based short passing game. You might call it the emergence of a trend. Passing football. Purist’s football.
While there, he quickly pruned the squad of the less effective veterans, bringing in fresh young blood to help him implement his scheme. They won the Danish Cup the first year, coming second in the league. They then came 2nd again the following season, before winning the league and cup double in his third.
After another 2nd place finish, the club dilly-dallied on his contract terms, and Laudrup was snapped up by Getafe, Madrid’s ‘little team’. Guess what? He inherited Bendt Schuster’s side and continued their trajectory, playing a possession-based short passing game, and using it to reach the final of the Copa Del Rey and the UEFA Cup quarters (a dramatic loss to Bayern having been 3-1 ahead going into the closing minutes). During that run, they had neatly picked apart Jol’s Spurs side without much bother. Commoli was present. Jol was allegedly sacked by Daniel Levy at half time during that very game.
Oddly, he announced his departure at a press conference, and it’s not clear what the reasons were for his departure. Sky Sports reported it as follows.
Laudrup told a news conference: “My time at the club has come to an end.
“I’m making this announcement so that the club can have a chance to look for a replacement and in order to express my thanks to them for having given me this opportunity.
“This club is a very recent arrival to the first division, but despite that people said to me when I took over here that I had gone to a club which had great expectations.
“I replied that they were right but that it was a great challenge and look how it turned out. I hope the person that replaces me will be able to do even better even though the club is going to be in the Uefa Cup again.â€
Why leave when things were going so well? A few tweaks to the side, and you’re talking a powerful unit. It’s an enigmatic statement, isn’t it? Reading that, you’re scratching your head. Why leave? It was a good consolidation of Schuster’s work at the club, where evidently the already high standard of football was further improved. His agent illuminated things a little. Again, it seems his ambition precipitated the issue.
“Spain is like his second country and his family is very happy here. If he stays here though, it will have to be a team at the same level as Michael,†said [his agent].
...“Sevilla? Why not? There are various clubs in different countries that are interested. Galatasaray are mad about him… Others have called me from Portugal, Russia and England… “I am not talking about Chelsea though, it was another club.â€
[His agent] was adamant that his client was set to switch clubs and stated that things could have been so much better had Getafe let him have the players he wanted.
“It is not that Getafe is too small. Angel [Torres, Getafe president] has left him to work, for all his faults and good points, but the chapter of Laudrup at Getafe has finished.†Tutumlu told Globo FM.
“I was really unhappy when the team lost to Bayern. It could have been the best season for a hundred years. I am not happy with the season overall. Things could have much better. If you are leading 3-1 against Bayern with only a few minutes to go, you should not lose the tie.
“I do not blame the Getafe goalkeepers, they are very good, but they have failed at decisive times. Also, if Michael had some strikers that could score more regularly then Getafe would now be qualified for the Champions League or the Uefa Cup.
“Of the five forwards there, none scored as many goals as Dani Guiza. That is just bad management. Angel is my friend, but he can also make mistakes.â€
Finally, Tutumlu revealed one of the key reasons why Laudrup was ready to move on from Getafe and search for a new challenge after only one season at the helm.
“He is not going to be able to do more than he has done after the way he and the players felt after losing to Bayern. I do not believe that they will have the same reaction next year,†he added.
“If you have asked me a month ago about all this I would not have said anything about the offers, not until the club were safe. Now I have said everything. We must not move ahead of ourselves.â€
Reading that knits my brow a little, I have to confess. In management, things don’t always go the way you want them to. It seems, at that early stage of his career at least, that Laudrup, with his independent wealth, his ambition, and his comfort with confrontation (he’s confident and calm after all - why would negotiations worry him), is prone to being ‘flighty’.
But maybe it’s simpler than that. As he hinted at above, in 1983, he turned down his own dream move to Liverpool. Why? On principle, because they changed the terms without reference to him.
As he himself said: “I just felt an agreement is an agreement and people should stick to what they decideâ€. Whether that’s a realistic expectation in an industry like football isn’t clear.
Clearly, however, he enjoyed his time in Spain, as apparently he insisted on taking his next job that he could leave if an offer came in from a Spanish club.
It’s little wonder - he has God-like status there. Check these out. It’s Quaker Oats type-stuff, in case you’re wondering.
Who does he think he is? The boy Lineacre?
After a short spell out of the game, Spartak Moscow evidently agreed to Laudrup’s ‘back to Spain’ clause, hiring him in September 2008. It seems he secured the job through his La Liga connections, with Valery Karpin, formerly of Celta Vigo, the Spartak Executive Director. When he took the job, they were third in the Russian Premier League and about to start their UEFA Cup campaign.
Shortly after his appointment, Jonathan Wilson commented as follows (the article hints at the context - “Divided Spartak turn to Laudrup to halt their downward spiralâ€).
“Six seasons of failure is about to become seven. But after the appointment of Michael Laudrup as coach last month, there is at least now a sense of new direction…
...The drip-drip of frustration reached breaking point in July, with a 5-1 defeat to CSKA. Fans rioted, while Fratria, the most influential supporters’ group, published an open letter to the club’s leadership on their website. “July 12 has become a black date in Spartak’s calendar,†itread.
“Unfortunately there are no grounds to believe that the catastrophe in the derby was a one-off case that can just shrugged off. We cannot tolerate going and watching how the football team and the club as a whole is declining. We demand that the bosses of the Joint-Stock Company of Spartak Moscow Football Club resign.â€
The club had sold key players like Pogrebnyak and Torbinski - both central to the national team’s exploits in the European Championships. Tricky Disco, no? Wilson continues.
Laudrup… has been linked with a number of jobs since leaving Getafe after raising them to unimagined heights.
By royhendo - January 03 2011 - PRINT THIS ARTICLE
If not a truly ‘formative’ episode in my football timeline, the 1986 World Cup is still a regular feature in my mind’s private cinema. Maybe not the most regular feature, ahem, but still a vivid series of memories. The drama during my country’s qualification, the loss of Big Jock at Ninian Park, the palaver over whether Kenny and Jocky were gonna play, Strachan’s ‘refusal’ at the ad hording hurdle…
But as with all world cups, it’s the games and the players who live longest in your mind. Scotland were, of course, drawn with Germany, Uruguay, and Denmark at the time. It still looks a tough draw by today’s standards, but younger readers may be surprised to hear that, of the three sides, Denmark were the ones that caused the most hand-wringing North of the border. They were something of a glamour side, and alongside a certain slip of a lad named Jan Molby, a big part of that was a dashing young playmaker by the name of Michael Laudrup.
Oh, what an elegant sight he was, even to young eyes. In the opening game of the group they faced Uruguay, supposedly a strong side playing on more familiar turf. Denmark thumped them 6-1, with Mr Laudrup instrumental throughout.
For the benefit of those too young to remember it, here’s a brief snippet of our subject (then 22 years old) in action during that game.
From impressing at an early age in Danish football, Juventus snapped him up in 1983 after, believe it or not, he’d agreed a deal with Liverpool (*Goddamn Parry*). At the time, the Agnelli clan were doing their best to hoover up the cream of European talent, signing Liam Brady in 1980, Zbigniew Boniek and Michel Platini in ‘82, and Laudrup in ‘83, then aged 19. As such, he flew to Mexico as an established ‘name’, despite having been farmed out to Lazio on loan due to the then ‘two foreigners’ rule in force in Serie A. He would play for Juventus for three seasons between 1985 and 1989, taking over Platini’s pivotal role in the side and leading the team.
He then made what was arguably the defining move of his playing career, again joined a footballing superpower choc full of superstars, and managed by one of the icons of the world game, Johan Cruyff. The team Cruyff assembled went on to be tagged The Dream Team of course, with players like Guardiola, Koeman, Stoichkov, and Romario complementing Laudrup’s gliding grace and intelligence beautifully. As well as La Liga titles and Spanish Cups, they won the European Cup in 1992. Quite a side really - one of the defining sides in history, much like our own at that very time.
As if that wasn’t enough, having fallen out with Cruyff (as many people do) in ‘94, he moved to Real Madrid. Phew! The book “Laudrup - A Football Dynasty†quotes Cruyff as follows.
“One of the most difficult players I have worked with. When he gives 80–90% he is still by far the best, but I want 100%, and he rarely does that.â€
“When Michael plays like a dream, a magic illusion, determined to show his new team his extreme abilities, no one in the world comes anywhere near his level.â€
This led Laudrup to the distinction of being the only man ever to win five spanish titles in a row playing for two different clubs. Real fans voted him the 12th best player in their history in 2002 - quite an honour given the pantheon they already boasted at that time. Raul said he was the best player he’d ever played with.
He later travelled for a stint in Japan and finished his career winning the Dutch title at Ajax, retiring in 1998, aged 34.
It’s best to leave the footage to do the talking really. You can find footage of the Dream Team side here:
Against Real Madrid: http://tinyurl.com/2ugltkp
Against Sevilla: http://tinyurl.com/35sa6cf
Against Dinamo Kiev: http://tinyurl.com/37ecyuc
Against Man Utd: http://tinyurl.com/32vwdux and http://tinyurl.com/2wjbmbe
As a player, he was one to remember, particularly for the thinking man. If he’d played today, you’d be seeing non-stop ‘guapa’ clips and youtube virals made in his honour.
But enough of all that. We know how good he was as a player - why bother going over that? Well, it underlines three key points for me.
1. He’s a natural leader - he can’t avoid it. At a tender age, he was already his country’s ‘leader’ in developing their play on the world stage. Juve would ask him to take on a similar role, then Barca, then Real Madrid. Each time he took it in his graceful stride and led his team to trophies. That’s massively significant in my view.
2. He’s learned his trade with some of the true greats, and in particular, was nicely marinaded in the formative years of Cruyff’s tenure at Barca - the fruits of which are only really now beginning to bear fruit. He has an insight into the ‘big picture’.
3. He’s a purist. Look at how he played, and how he conducted the teams around him - they were always a joy to watch. That was down in large part to him. We’ll come back to that later, but it defines him as a manager too, and it’s the kind of purism that should also (in my view) define our future at Liverpool FC.
But enough - we get the general picture by now. If he’s being considered as a candidate for the Liverpool job, it’s all very well being a ‘great’ on the park. What we’re interested in is how he does at the side of the park, or on the training ground, or on the phone to players and agents. How does he fare on that front?
Once again we’ll go through the salient points in turn, but as you read, it’s worth noting the way his demeanour, his words, and his work chime with our understanding of the Liverpool Way.
Age?
He’s 46. That’s young enough for 20 years or more at the helm. Check.
Lingo?
He’s fluent in English, as he is in several languages. It seems he also has a flair with it, at least when his audience is Red.
It’s here that he first hooked me, to be honest. He’s no stranger to Liverpool FC’s official site. In two recent interviews, you got an insight into his charm, his views on the game, and his - wait for it - affinity and admiration for Liverpool FC. Who knew?
Some snippets from the first interview.
You actually came close to signing for Liverpool at first, didn’t you?
Yes, in 1983 I had the opportunity to sign for Liverpool. We actually agreed a deal and I came over with my father to talk to Liverpool’s representatives. We agreed a three-year contract and went away thinking it was all done. But two weeks later they came back saying they wanted to offer me the same package, but for four years because I was still young and needed time to develop. I was disappointed because although nothing had been signed, we had an agreement. I decided not to join them and people thought I was crazy. This 19-year-old was turning down the great Liverpool. It wasn’t really like that though. I just felt an agreement is an agreement and people should stick to what they decide. After that, I had other offers and went on to join Juventus. That’s football for you.
You went on to play for the likes of Real Madrid and Barcelona, but never got to play at Anfield. Was that disappointing given the reputation it has for its famous atmosphere?
You know, it is really strange that I had such a long career and played in so many stadiums around the world - but never Anfield. I have been there though. I was there for the Champions League match against Barcelona about three years ago. You won 2-1 in the Camp Nou and then lost 1-0 at home. It was such an amazing atmosphere that night. I think the word special can be used too often to describe things, but there’s no doubt, that is the only word I can think of for Anfield.
It’s a shame that the incredible Barcelona side that you played in during the late 80s-early 90s didn’t go head-to-head with Kenny Dalglish’s team of the same era. Who do you think would have won?
Ha ha, I’ve never thought about it. It was a great team with fantastic players though. The likes of John Barnes and Peter Beardsley were at their peak back then. But that was how I always remember Liverpool. You have had so many great teams over the years. Growing up in Denmark as a kid, they were the games we saw on TV. Some of my favourites were Ray Kennedy, John Toshack and Kevin Keegan; but do you know who I really liked watching?
Kenny Dalglish?
No, he was a great player too - but I always enjoyed seeing Steve Heighway in action. He was very effective down the wing.
More on that article later - but it’s worth bookmarking for a read in full.
Potential Waiting To Flower?
One thing you’ll hear from people on the subject of Laudrup is that ‘he’s never done it at a big club’. That’s an interesting comment in my view, given his record as a player and his comfort in that kind of environment. Laudrup always appears as if he’s just waiting to be parachuted into the throne at one of the European Superpowers. It’d just take one of them to take what’s conventionally perceived as a ‘risk’ to appoint him. But then it’d be no bigger a risk than Real appointing Toshack, or Barca appointing Bobby Robson. If you’ve got it, you’ve got it. And in my view, he’s got it.
He started out as Morten Olsen’s assistant ten years ago with the Danish national team. And guess what - they deployed a 4-2-3-1 and a possession-based short passing game. That led him to his first fully fledged manager’s job, with Brondby.
Clearly the Danish Superliga isn’t the Blue Riband of the biscuit tin, but guess what? He got Brondby playing a 4-2-3-1 with a possession-based short passing game. You might call it the emergence of a trend. Passing football. Purist’s football.
While there, he quickly pruned the squad of the less effective veterans, bringing in fresh young blood to help him implement his scheme. They won the Danish Cup the first year, coming second in the league. They then came 2nd again the following season, before winning the league and cup double in his third.
After another 2nd place finish, the club dilly-dallied on his contract terms, and Laudrup was snapped up by Getafe, Madrid’s ‘little team’. Guess what? He inherited Bendt Schuster’s side and continued their trajectory, playing a possession-based short passing game, and using it to reach the final of the Copa Del Rey and the UEFA Cup quarters (a dramatic loss to Bayern having been 3-1 ahead going into the closing minutes). During that run, they had neatly picked apart Jol’s Spurs side without much bother. Commoli was present. Jol was allegedly sacked by Daniel Levy at half time during that very game.
Oddly, he announced his departure at a press conference, and it’s not clear what the reasons were for his departure. Sky Sports reported it as follows.
Laudrup told a news conference: “My time at the club has come to an end.
“I’m making this announcement so that the club can have a chance to look for a replacement and in order to express my thanks to them for having given me this opportunity.
“This club is a very recent arrival to the first division, but despite that people said to me when I took over here that I had gone to a club which had great expectations.
“I replied that they were right but that it was a great challenge and look how it turned out. I hope the person that replaces me will be able to do even better even though the club is going to be in the Uefa Cup again.â€
Why leave when things were going so well? A few tweaks to the side, and you’re talking a powerful unit. It’s an enigmatic statement, isn’t it? Reading that, you’re scratching your head. Why leave? It was a good consolidation of Schuster’s work at the club, where evidently the already high standard of football was further improved. His agent illuminated things a little. Again, it seems his ambition precipitated the issue.
“Spain is like his second country and his family is very happy here. If he stays here though, it will have to be a team at the same level as Michael,†said [his agent].
...“Sevilla? Why not? There are various clubs in different countries that are interested. Galatasaray are mad about him… Others have called me from Portugal, Russia and England… “I am not talking about Chelsea though, it was another club.â€
[His agent] was adamant that his client was set to switch clubs and stated that things could have been so much better had Getafe let him have the players he wanted.
“It is not that Getafe is too small. Angel [Torres, Getafe president] has left him to work, for all his faults and good points, but the chapter of Laudrup at Getafe has finished.†Tutumlu told Globo FM.
“I was really unhappy when the team lost to Bayern. It could have been the best season for a hundred years. I am not happy with the season overall. Things could have much better. If you are leading 3-1 against Bayern with only a few minutes to go, you should not lose the tie.
“I do not blame the Getafe goalkeepers, they are very good, but they have failed at decisive times. Also, if Michael had some strikers that could score more regularly then Getafe would now be qualified for the Champions League or the Uefa Cup.
“Of the five forwards there, none scored as many goals as Dani Guiza. That is just bad management. Angel is my friend, but he can also make mistakes.â€
Finally, Tutumlu revealed one of the key reasons why Laudrup was ready to move on from Getafe and search for a new challenge after only one season at the helm.
“He is not going to be able to do more than he has done after the way he and the players felt after losing to Bayern. I do not believe that they will have the same reaction next year,†he added.
“If you have asked me a month ago about all this I would not have said anything about the offers, not until the club were safe. Now I have said everything. We must not move ahead of ourselves.â€
Reading that knits my brow a little, I have to confess. In management, things don’t always go the way you want them to. It seems, at that early stage of his career at least, that Laudrup, with his independent wealth, his ambition, and his comfort with confrontation (he’s confident and calm after all - why would negotiations worry him), is prone to being ‘flighty’.
But maybe it’s simpler than that. As he hinted at above, in 1983, he turned down his own dream move to Liverpool. Why? On principle, because they changed the terms without reference to him.
As he himself said: “I just felt an agreement is an agreement and people should stick to what they decideâ€. Whether that’s a realistic expectation in an industry like football isn’t clear.
Clearly, however, he enjoyed his time in Spain, as apparently he insisted on taking his next job that he could leave if an offer came in from a Spanish club.
It’s little wonder - he has God-like status there. Check these out. It’s Quaker Oats type-stuff, in case you’re wondering.
Who does he think he is? The boy Lineacre?
After a short spell out of the game, Spartak Moscow evidently agreed to Laudrup’s ‘back to Spain’ clause, hiring him in September 2008. It seems he secured the job through his La Liga connections, with Valery Karpin, formerly of Celta Vigo, the Spartak Executive Director. When he took the job, they were third in the Russian Premier League and about to start their UEFA Cup campaign.
Shortly after his appointment, Jonathan Wilson commented as follows (the article hints at the context - “Divided Spartak turn to Laudrup to halt their downward spiralâ€).
“Six seasons of failure is about to become seven. But after the appointment of Michael Laudrup as coach last month, there is at least now a sense of new direction…
...The drip-drip of frustration reached breaking point in July, with a 5-1 defeat to CSKA. Fans rioted, while Fratria, the most influential supporters’ group, published an open letter to the club’s leadership on their website. “July 12 has become a black date in Spartak’s calendar,†itread.
“Unfortunately there are no grounds to believe that the catastrophe in the derby was a one-off case that can just shrugged off. We cannot tolerate going and watching how the football team and the club as a whole is declining. We demand that the bosses of the Joint-Stock Company of Spartak Moscow Football Club resign.â€
The club had sold key players like Pogrebnyak and Torbinski - both central to the national team’s exploits in the European Championships. Tricky Disco, no? Wilson continues.
Laudrup… has been linked with a number of jobs since leaving Getafe after raising them to unimagined heights.
