Tony Adams interview: Sorry Arsene, but George Graham was a much better coach than you
No wonder Arsenal have not won a trophy for six years – their favourite son Tony Adams reckons George Graham was a better coach than Arsene Wenger.
The former Gunners skipper, who won two titles under Graham and the Double twice under Le Professeur, is worried that the little empire he is building in Azerbaijan may never meet Arsenal in the Champions League – because Wenger is facing a battle to keep them in the top four.
And Adams, a north London legend who organised Graham’s offside trap, admitted he could never envisage working under Wenger because he would want a bigger say in coaching methods.
Crikey, that will ruffle more feathers at the Emirates than a fox in a hen house.
Adams, 44, is back in London attending three funerals and a christening – “It sounds like a film, doesn’t it?” – before pre-season training begins next month back in the Caucasus at FC Gabala, the unlikely outpost where he is honing his management skills.
He plans to deliver the domestic Azerbaijan title to wealthy backer Tale Heydarov within two years, which would put him on a potential collision course with Wenger in the Champions League.
But with a mischievous twinkle in his eye, he speculated that the Gunners might not even be flying in such lucrative orbits by 2013.
With Manchester United, Liverpool, Chelsea and Manchester City all spending big this summer, so far Arsenal’s only reinforcement is a Finnish kid from Charlton.
“I love Arsenal and I will always be proud to walk through the door as an Arsenal man,” he said, immaculate in a blue pinstripe suit which made him look more stockbroker than football boss.
But he knows whatever happens in the future, his playing record as a Gunner will always be a source of pride.
“If I went back there as a disaster, I would be a disaster as a manager, not as a player, so I’ve got no fear of going back there one day and doing it my own way – good, bad or ugly.
“Maybe not this year, but next season, I might have a chance of winning the Azerbaijan league title with Gabala and going into the Champions League qualifying rounds.
“We could even play Arsenal, but they are struggling to get in the top five now, aren’t they? Who knows?”
After a short-lived spell as boss at Portsmouth, a club on the brink of meltdown, Adams has travelled 2,500 miles to reboot his career – and it is clear he is modelling himself more on Graham’s frugal methods than Wenger’s fantasy idealism.
He said: “We kept 21 clean sheets in 32 games last season, including 11 on the spin, which I believe is the 89th best in the history of football.
“Good back four, everyone behind the ball, good at set plays, very George Graham. No disrespect to Arsene, but George’s coaching ability, defensive structure and technical ability, for me, is far better.
“No injustice to Arsene, but it’s his strength, and that was George’s particular strength.They say coaches are the best thieves and I think he stole it off Terry Venables.
“I think Arsene Wenger is a magnificent physiologist and psychologist. Those are the areas where he excels. He’s a lovely man and he has the respect of all the players he’s ever worked with.
“George was an outstanding coach – I think I won six or seven trophies under him, including the Cup Winners' Cup against Parma with a team including Ian Selley and David Hillier in midfield and Steve Morrow at the back.
“You kind of think the guy has got something.
"That back four – Lee Dixon, Steve Bould, Nigel Winterburn and myself - doesn’t happen by luck. We worked hard on organisation. Morning and afternoon. We hated George for it, but we were on top of our game and we reaped the benefits.
“We won the League in 1989 and 1991 but we should have done so much more – we under-achieved with that squad.
“I’ve been working at my job in Azerbaijan and when I came back at Christmas, during our winter break, I went to the Man City game at the Emirates and it was great looking at the madness back in England – the greed, the fear and the managers’ average shelf life of one year, three months.
“More than 50 coaches have lost their jobs in English football since I went to Azerbaijan.
"I love the anonymity and I don’t think working in England is for me – apart from the Arsenal.”
***
Culture shocks come in all shapes, sizes and deposits in Azerbaijan.
First-time visitors to the capital, Baku, are surprised to find backward Soviet grimness has been replaced by spotless squares and a European flavour, while one of Adams’ first training sessions at Gabala was interrupted by a bovine intruder leaving a cowpat in the centre circle.
But at a club which is outstripping even the pace of change in the country, Adams is building a Little Arsenal in an outpost with a population of just 13,000.
On the former England captain’s instruction, all the training pitches at Gabala’s new complex are exactly the same dimensions as his old Highbury stamping ground.
It was Adams who set the £3.5million wage budget for his squad next season – wealthy backer Tale Heydarov, the son of a government minister, was happy to trust his manager’s judgement and sign the cheques.
And with a cosmopolitan mix of Brazilians, Argentinians, Portuguese, French, Russian and Azeri in the dressing room, Adams keeps his team talks brief as a matter of necessity. But he is blissfully happy to far from the madding crowds of the Premier League.
He misses family, and nights out at West End theatres – he recommends Betty Blue Eyes – but would not have missed his Azeri adventure for the world.
“I could have stayed at home in Gloucestershire and smelled the flowers," he said, "but I have to drive in and out of cows on the school run over here – in Azerbaijan they have more sense.
“At Gabala I’ve got everything I need. I’ve bibs, balls, grass pitches, artificial pitches, an indoor dome, I’ve a satellite dish in the back garden so I can watch 10 games a week. What more could I need?
“They are an emotional people. I wouldn’t like to cross them. Berti Vogts, the national team coach, got toilet rolls thrown at him during a press conference the other day.
“But they are more respectful in their culture. Everyone calls me 'Mr Tony' and the players see me as the big boss.
“They would never dare go through a door before me, and there are no Friday nights going down the pub and getting smashed out of their heads.”
Read more: http://www.mirrorfootball.co.uk/news...#ixzz1Oqm6WYX5
Sign up for MirrorFootball's Morning Spy newsletter Register here
Reply With Quote
Originally Posted by Terry Tuffnutz
