Post by QPR Report on Nov 6, 2009 9:40:14 GMT
Wales online
IT is hard to think of a pair of more disparate characters than the two managers who face off in tomorrow’s South Wales derby.
In the Bluebirds camp, there’s Dave Jones, your salt of the earth English tough-nut welded to 4-4-2 and an attitude hewn from the very bedrock of traditional British football.
In the Swansea City corner at the Liberty Stadium, we have Paulo Sousa, the flamboyant Portuguese, a world-class midfielder in his playing days, a man who has taken on the mantle of the creative game pioneered by former boss Roberto Martinez in Wales’ second city.
To add fuel to the fire both men are up for the Championship manager of the month award announced at noon tomorrow, with Nottingham Forest’s Billy Davies and Leicester’s Nigel Pearson both in the equation too.
A nice accolade perhaps, but both Jones and Sousa will be much more focused on the bigger prize of three Championship points and the small matter of bragging rights in one of British football’s tetchiest clashes.
The histories of Jones and Sousa present a fascinating contrast.
During his playing career Jones was your meat and potatoes full-back, a solid performer at his hometown club of Everton with a League Cup Final appearance in 1977 proving one of the highlights.
Sousa meanwhile feasted at the very top table as a player. There was a Portuguese Championship and spells in Serie A with Juventus and Inter. It was a career topped off by incredible successive Champions League wins with Juve and then Borussia Dortmund.
In fact, the one thing that unites both men is that they were both forced to stop playing early through injury. Jones aged just 28 and Sousa at 32.
It was probably a major motivating factor in getting both men into management in the first place.
In that field, Jones is light years ahead of Sousa, who is 14 years his junior.
Currently the longest-serving manager in the Championship, the Bluebirds boss has vast experience, particularly at Championship level and knows his way out of that division having taken Wolves up.
Sousa, however, remains the young pretender in the management stakes.
Schooled as an assistant with the Portuguese national side, he had a five-month spell in the Championship with QPR which ended in acrimony before arriving at the Liberty Stadium this summer.
He has been keen to continue the free-flowing style of Martinez, even if he has had to do it without key personnel like Jordi Gomez and top striker Jason Scotland.
But, after an indifferent start, Sousa has turned Swansea into one of the division’s form sides.
They have one of the Championship’s tightest defences, the Swans having shipped just two goals in an unbeaten nine-game run.
Indeed, Sousa’s side have nine clean sheets this season – the best in the Championship. But this record has been achieved without relying on negative play.
Sousa has persevered with the 4-5-1 pioneered by Martinez, morphing into an attractive 4-3-3 when the Swans are on the front foot.
Possession is the key to Swansea’s success, which is little surprise from a manager who, when he was a player, rarely wasted a pass.
Jones tomorrow will line up his troops in familiar style, but it is a system that has seen the Bluebirds get off to a great start.
Yet. if Sousa has no injury concerns, Cardiff are without, or sweating on, some key personnel.
Goal-machine Michael Chopra is suspended after picking up five yellow cards and midfielder Stephen McPhail, who has been in top form recently, is out with a thigh injury picked up in last weekend’s draw with Nottingham Forest.
There are also concerns over linchpin frontman Jay Bothroyd, pictured, who has on-going knee concerns and joint top scorer Peter Whittingham, also troubled with knee problem.
Bothroyd should make the cut, but Whittingham is rated as 50-50.
But perhaps the vital component from a Cardiff perspective is the return of striker Ross McCormack.
The Scot, who was named in George Burley’s squad to face Wales next week in Cardiff, has had a tumultuous season already.
Last season’s top scorer for Cardiff spent the summer ruminating on a proposed move to the Premiership which never materialised.
Then, he tore a hamstring at Blackpool from which he has only just recovered. Add to that the fact McCormack appears in court on Monday to face drink-driving charges and the game becomes big for the striker.
The managers' factfiles
PAULO SOUSA
Age: 39
Born: Viseu, Portugal.
Playing career: A cultured midfielder he began his career at Benfica winning the Portuguese League in 1991. Transferred to Sporting Lisbon in 1993. Moved to Serie A with Juventus and won the Champions League in 1996. Moved to Dortmund and won the Champions League again in 1997. Plagued by injuries and after uninspiring spells at Inter Milan, Parma, Panathinaikos and Espanyol he retired aged 32. Earned 51 international caps for Portugal with appearances at Euro 1996 and Euro 2000.
Management career: Started as a coach for the Portuguese national side and made assistant. In November 2008 he took charge at QPR, but was sacked after five months. Took charge at Swansea in June.
Greatest achievement: Yet to come as a manager, but back-to-back Champions League wins as a player with two different clubs is an incredible achievement.
Classic quote: “The club needs to be above everyone: the individuals, players, staff, the manager, everyone, This is our target. This is our philosophy.”
DAVE JONES
Age: 53
Born: Liverpool, England.
Playing Career: A tough-tackling defender for seven years at hometown club Everton. He lost in the League Cup Final with the Toffees in 1977. Jones moved to Coventry in 1979, but after three seasons a knee injury all but ended his playing career. He had spells at Seiko in Hong Kong and then finished playing at Preston aged just 28. Earned one cap for England at under-21 level.
Management career: Started as assistant manager at Stockport and took them to the second tier after taking charge. Manager at Southampton, before taking Wolves up to the Premiership. But, following relegation, he left Molineux and took over at Cardiff in May 2005 and is currently the longest serving manger in the Championship.
Greatest achievement: Taking Wolves to the Premiership and taking Cardiff to the FA Cup Final in 2008.
Classic quote: “There is a long way to go. This division is the longest and the toughest to get out of. That's not mind games, I can't even finish the crossword
www.walesonline.co.uk/footballnation/cardiff-city-fc/2009/11/06/the-odd-couple-in-the-derby-dug-outs-91466-25102749/
IT is hard to think of a pair of more disparate characters than the two managers who face off in tomorrow’s South Wales derby.
In the Bluebirds camp, there’s Dave Jones, your salt of the earth English tough-nut welded to 4-4-2 and an attitude hewn from the very bedrock of traditional British football.
In the Swansea City corner at the Liberty Stadium, we have Paulo Sousa, the flamboyant Portuguese, a world-class midfielder in his playing days, a man who has taken on the mantle of the creative game pioneered by former boss Roberto Martinez in Wales’ second city.
To add fuel to the fire both men are up for the Championship manager of the month award announced at noon tomorrow, with Nottingham Forest’s Billy Davies and Leicester’s Nigel Pearson both in the equation too.
A nice accolade perhaps, but both Jones and Sousa will be much more focused on the bigger prize of three Championship points and the small matter of bragging rights in one of British football’s tetchiest clashes.
The histories of Jones and Sousa present a fascinating contrast.
During his playing career Jones was your meat and potatoes full-back, a solid performer at his hometown club of Everton with a League Cup Final appearance in 1977 proving one of the highlights.
Sousa meanwhile feasted at the very top table as a player. There was a Portuguese Championship and spells in Serie A with Juventus and Inter. It was a career topped off by incredible successive Champions League wins with Juve and then Borussia Dortmund.
In fact, the one thing that unites both men is that they were both forced to stop playing early through injury. Jones aged just 28 and Sousa at 32.
It was probably a major motivating factor in getting both men into management in the first place.
In that field, Jones is light years ahead of Sousa, who is 14 years his junior.
Currently the longest-serving manager in the Championship, the Bluebirds boss has vast experience, particularly at Championship level and knows his way out of that division having taken Wolves up.
Sousa, however, remains the young pretender in the management stakes.
Schooled as an assistant with the Portuguese national side, he had a five-month spell in the Championship with QPR which ended in acrimony before arriving at the Liberty Stadium this summer.
He has been keen to continue the free-flowing style of Martinez, even if he has had to do it without key personnel like Jordi Gomez and top striker Jason Scotland.
But, after an indifferent start, Sousa has turned Swansea into one of the division’s form sides.
They have one of the Championship’s tightest defences, the Swans having shipped just two goals in an unbeaten nine-game run.
Indeed, Sousa’s side have nine clean sheets this season – the best in the Championship. But this record has been achieved without relying on negative play.
Sousa has persevered with the 4-5-1 pioneered by Martinez, morphing into an attractive 4-3-3 when the Swans are on the front foot.
Possession is the key to Swansea’s success, which is little surprise from a manager who, when he was a player, rarely wasted a pass.
Jones tomorrow will line up his troops in familiar style, but it is a system that has seen the Bluebirds get off to a great start.
Yet. if Sousa has no injury concerns, Cardiff are without, or sweating on, some key personnel.
Goal-machine Michael Chopra is suspended after picking up five yellow cards and midfielder Stephen McPhail, who has been in top form recently, is out with a thigh injury picked up in last weekend’s draw with Nottingham Forest.
There are also concerns over linchpin frontman Jay Bothroyd, pictured, who has on-going knee concerns and joint top scorer Peter Whittingham, also troubled with knee problem.
Bothroyd should make the cut, but Whittingham is rated as 50-50.
But perhaps the vital component from a Cardiff perspective is the return of striker Ross McCormack.
The Scot, who was named in George Burley’s squad to face Wales next week in Cardiff, has had a tumultuous season already.
Last season’s top scorer for Cardiff spent the summer ruminating on a proposed move to the Premiership which never materialised.
Then, he tore a hamstring at Blackpool from which he has only just recovered. Add to that the fact McCormack appears in court on Monday to face drink-driving charges and the game becomes big for the striker.
The managers' factfiles
PAULO SOUSA
Age: 39
Born: Viseu, Portugal.
Playing career: A cultured midfielder he began his career at Benfica winning the Portuguese League in 1991. Transferred to Sporting Lisbon in 1993. Moved to Serie A with Juventus and won the Champions League in 1996. Moved to Dortmund and won the Champions League again in 1997. Plagued by injuries and after uninspiring spells at Inter Milan, Parma, Panathinaikos and Espanyol he retired aged 32. Earned 51 international caps for Portugal with appearances at Euro 1996 and Euro 2000.
Management career: Started as a coach for the Portuguese national side and made assistant. In November 2008 he took charge at QPR, but was sacked after five months. Took charge at Swansea in June.
Greatest achievement: Yet to come as a manager, but back-to-back Champions League wins as a player with two different clubs is an incredible achievement.
Classic quote: “The club needs to be above everyone: the individuals, players, staff, the manager, everyone, This is our target. This is our philosophy.”
DAVE JONES
Age: 53
Born: Liverpool, England.
Playing Career: A tough-tackling defender for seven years at hometown club Everton. He lost in the League Cup Final with the Toffees in 1977. Jones moved to Coventry in 1979, but after three seasons a knee injury all but ended his playing career. He had spells at Seiko in Hong Kong and then finished playing at Preston aged just 28. Earned one cap for England at under-21 level.
Management career: Started as assistant manager at Stockport and took them to the second tier after taking charge. Manager at Southampton, before taking Wolves up to the Premiership. But, following relegation, he left Molineux and took over at Cardiff in May 2005 and is currently the longest serving manger in the Championship.
Greatest achievement: Taking Wolves to the Premiership and taking Cardiff to the FA Cup Final in 2008.
Classic quote: “There is a long way to go. This division is the longest and the toughest to get out of. That's not mind games, I can't even finish the crossword
www.walesonline.co.uk/footballnation/cardiff-city-fc/2009/11/06/the-odd-couple-in-the-derby-dug-outs-91466-25102749/