La Magicast Episode 40: Will Luis Enrique stay or will he go?

Starring Alex, James and Julian

La Magicast

Julian returns with James and the ever present Alex in a very interesting podcast about the current situation with Luis Enrique . Tune in!

Also discussed: The current state of the team, Villas Boas, Zeman and Stekelenburg.

Podcast: Download

Posted on May 9, 2012 by Alexander Fredriksen in La Magicast
  • http://twitter.com/DamianBuckley1 Damian Buckley

    Just caught up with this – enjoyable as ever.

    I think it’s a tough decision as to whether Enrique should stay or go. It hasn’t been a disastrous season, but there hasn’t been enough promise, either. You have to wonder whether Enrique will ever preside over a functioning defence (not a great defence – just a functioning one), and if he does stay, the scenario James described fills me with horror: a shaky start to the season, immense pressure on Enrique, fan protests, and maybe an unplanned change of manager midseason.

    On balance, I would be more excited by Enrique leaving than him staying, which is a bit of an indictment.

    I’m not sure who I’d replace him with – I agree with Julian that the weaknesses Villas Boas showed at Chelsea are weaknesses that could recur at Roma. (Inability to handle senior players who need to be phased out; insistence on playing a high defensive line when the defenders are too slow to cope with it). Ancellotti has a track record of holding on to players past their prime, so he would totally inappropriate for The Project. Zeman and Bielsa would satisfy the romantics, and I wouldn’t be against them as an interim appointment. Imagine the excitement at the start of next season with one of them in charge. Truth be told, the excitement has drained out of my Roma-watching in the second half of this season.

    The perfect candidate would be an Italian Brendan Rodgers, but I don’t know if such a manager exists.