Wenger and Ferguson question managerial support

Arsene Wenger and Alex Ferguson believe the lack of support given to managers at some of the Barclays Premier League’s most ambitious clubs is hampering their efforts to challenge the established order.

The pair, who are the longest-serving and most decorated bosses in the English top flight, are concerned at the diminishing power being granted to their counterparts by the new breed of club owners.

Already this season, Alan Curbishley and Kevin Keegan have quit West Ham and Newcastle, respectively, citing boardroom meddling in transfer dealings as the major reason for their departures.

And Wenger, the Arsenal boss, insists managers must be given time to deliver the success craved by owners used to short-term gains in their business dealings elsewhere.

“What can deliver success to a club is stability, and to have stability you need success as well, so it is a little bit of a vicious circle,” the Frenchman said.

“You know the life expectancy of a manager is getting shorter and shorter, instability is higher and higher.”

He added: “The manager’s the most important man at the club. If not, why do you sack the manager when it doesn’t go well?”

Wenger believes managers can no longer be held accountable for a team’s failings if key issues are taken out of their hands.

He said: “I believe our luck is that we could work with our ideals, and if I lose a game I know that I must look inside, because that’s where I can find the solutions.”

Manchester United boss Ferguson showed solidarity towards both Curbishley and Keegan and insisted they were right to walk away from their clubs.

“We need strong capable managers who are prepared to stand up to the people trying to change the principles of management,” he said at the League Managers’ Association dinner for their Benevolent Trust and Community Fund at Wembley last night.

“The principle being, ’I’m not in control of my team any more’.

“Players were being sold over their head, so they walk because it’s a matter of principle and I totally agree with them.”

Curbishley believes owners need only look to Old Trafford and Emirates Stadium to see the dividends a long-term view can yield.

And he insists clubs cannot expect managers to have their best interests at heart if the demands placed on them are purely for short-term gain and, therefore, self-preservation.

“You look at the two managers – Sir Alex Ferguson, 22 years at United, and Arsene Wenger, 12 years at Arsenal – and the thing that stands out is the stability of the two clubs,” the former Hammers boss said.

“They’ve been getting results as well, and obviously if they weren’t, things might be a little bit different.

“But they’ve not only built fantastic football teams, they’ve built new stadiums, new training grounds, and they’ve had the club at the forefront of their intentions.

“Short-termism is entering football, and if short-termism is going to happen, managers are not going to have the best interests of the club at heart.”