Have Spain shot themselves in the foot by sacking their manager?

Are Spain Cutting Off Their Noses To Spite Their Face? by Dan Smith

The Spain manager Julen Lopetegui signed a new contract as recently as March so it’s understandable his bosses would be put out by his decision to leave after the World Cup. After sleeping off their disappointment though they should have looked at the bigger picture. Their job as the head of the Spanish game is to give the country the best chance possible to succeed in Russia.

The decision to change managers on the eve of the tournament seems to benefit no one. A man who was unbeaten in qualifying misses the chance to achieve his dream, while the nation’s players and fans are hardly likely to appreciate chaos when it could of been avoided. This would only make sense if there had been a divide in the dressing room, which according to Ramos was not the case.

Players are used to manager changes after competitions, it’s hardly ground breaking. Naturally selfish, those who have won honours with Real Madrid and Barcelona are hardly going to sacrifice their own chances because of who the boss is. It begs the question could Real have held off the announcement and kept it to themselves for two weeks?

It shows how all involved thought it was no big deal, Real wouldn’t have wanted their new boss to miss out on such a unique opportunity. The Spanish FA could’ve simply accepted that their coach was made an offer too good to turn down and adapted. There are numerous examples of teams heading to World Cups knowing their manager was leaving afterwards.

Spain are capable of beating anyone on their day, this won’t change that. They are unique in the fact that like their leading clubs, their identity is built in their DNA to the point where it’s not vital who manages them.

This won’t help though. It suddenly puts a spotlight on then they could have done without.

Dan Smith

51 Comments

    1. Psychic pig called magical mystic Marcus has predicted Argentina,Uruguay,Nigeria and Belgium to make it to the World Cup semi finals.
      The pig has a 100% record and predicted Trump’ s victory,Brexit,Derby fc football matches and many many more all with success.

          1. Sokratis gets No. 3 or No. 5.Likely to be 5.
            Torreira gets No. 19 or No. 24.ILikely to get 19.
            Soyuncu will wear one of No. 3 or No. 5 depending on what is given to Sokratis decides.

  1. We are playing man city first at home then chelsea away. It seems the premier league wants to capitalize on the fact we have a new manager. And please why are we getting articles about spain?

      1. But arsenal isn’t participating. So show you spainsh support somewhere else , maybe on some other page not here. THIS IS ARSENALLL !

        1. Silly remark. Many Arsenal fans have their country represented in the World cup.

          Also football fans love the World Cup

          Also there is a limit on how many Arsenal articles you can post in the Summer. Its mainly transfer rumours

          So PLEASE continue the World Cup articles as well. I love them

        2. Spot on! There is always plenty to discuss on an ARSENAL SITE. That is why it is called JUST ARSENAL, not bl…dy England or world cup. OUR club is about far more than who may or may not be joining / leaving this summer. NARROW MINDS HAVE NARROW HORIZONS!

      2. I welcome these articles about the World Cup.

        They make a change to the other articles during the closed season, who we’ve signed, who we should sign (often unrealistic), who we nearly signed, who might sign, and worst of all, the fantasy teams people put on here using all of the above!

        As I’ve said before, if you don’t like the content of the article, or the posts that follow, just don’t read them, no one is holding a gun to your head.

        So admin, keep them coming, some of us appreciate them.

        1. SO SAD THAT YOU CAN’T THINK FURTHER ABOUT THE CLUB WE ALL SUPPORT THAN MERELY WHO IS COMING IN / LEAVING. THERE ARE MANY, MANY OTHER ARSENAL THINGS TO DISCUSS. History, how the club grew, why it is so widely supported, past players, long ago managers(plural) decisions made, our future say ten years from now and loads more. NARROW VISIONS LEAD TO NARROW HORIZONS!

      3. Mr. Admin, So what! There are plenty of world cup sites around for those who choose to watch this corruptly awarded organisation to a corrupt country! Today the new fixtures are out and as an Arsenal fan , I was counting down the minutes til 9 am. So were countless other Gooners. This is an Arsenal site, not England! Many , many others clearly think the same. If you keep boring us Gooners with irrelevant articles , you may well lose us.

        1. Well the signing is today.Today he becomes an Arsenal player regardless of being announced.
          I just expect them to at least make the fans know in a way officially.

      1. I saw some of his Photos wearing arsenal kit while holding jersey.You can find them on his Instagram page

  2. Would Emery stick with his 3 man midfield with Torreira, Xhaka and Ramsey,,, or would he play a 2 man midfield with Torreira and Ramsey to accommodate Ozil as a no. 10

    1. I believe he has to use Ozil as a starter with Wenger’s old 4-2-3-1:

      …………………….Leno
      Lichtsteiner . Sokratis . Soyuncu . Monreal
      ………….Ramsey ……… Torreira
      Martins …………. Ozil ………… Mkhitaryan
      ……………….Aubameyang

      Because the gap between Ozil’s salary and the others’ is very far (350K vs the rest). Unless Arsenal manage to find a buyer for Ozil, then Emery can use his 4-3-3 again

    2. Xhaka’s average.I can’t believe people want him to be here but want Mustafi sold.I can even see Wilshere having a better career than Xhaka though he’s not even lived up to expectations.

      1. Xhaka is way worse than average, at the level WE need. Musafi is equally dreadful and I want them both sold ASAP, along with Bellerin, Elneny and several others. But we obviously need direct replacements first. This looks to be happening, thankfully. Xhaka is dreadfully immobile, one paced , reckless and positionally unsound with no awareness of danger . He is a dud and will NEVER make a remotely good enough player at top Prem level. He does not suit our PREM WITH ITS FAST PACE AND WAS A TERRIBLE MISTAKE by Wenger to buy him.

      2. Really? So Mr wheelchair has a better career than a man who has over 30 caps for his country and is presently in the world cup.
        Be a bit more objective instead of being blinded by mass hysteria.
        Xhaka is an asset to Arsenal and any team he plays for. Unfortunately, he has been made a scapegoat due to a few individual errors he made in his first season. Wasn’t bad last season but is blamed along with Iwobi and Mustafi for all that is wrong with the team.
        Kocielny’s error cost us the semi final tie against Athletico, not Xhaka, not Mustafi!

  3. Because of Spain’s problems, England would be the favorite to win this World Cup

    I have a good feeling about the use of Southgate’s 3-5-2 formation in that competition

    1. Phlsychic pig with 100% record like the Octopus has predicted Argentina,Nigeria,Belgium and Uruguay to go to the semi finals of the World Cup.
      Remember the teams.

      1. What a silly, childish comment, esp by someone who claims to know what is happening at Arsenal before others. Octopuses, psychic pigs belong with mediaeval people like flat earthers and those who think the Loch Ness Monster exists. You should grow up!

        1. Why the need to belittle others? He simply stated a factual event which you can easily verify by using Google. He didn’t make it up.

      2. I can assure you that Nigeria will not qualify from he group. Belgium would be knocked out either second round or quarter final! Uruguay is a dark horse but their best days are behind them.
        So that pig is just pork waiting to be eaten

  4. too much discontent among arsenal fan…never satisfied with anything…
    let them go bring Viera back!!!

  5. He should not only have been sacked, he should have been fined as well for breach of contract.
    He should have informed his employer, the Spanish FA about Real Madrid’s approach. They would then give him permission to speak to the club.
    It’s very wrong to negotiate a contract and sign with a new employer while under contract and then your current employer learns of it in the news when your would be employers announce your appointment.
    Ideally he should have resigned.

    1. But Abel, this is Real Madrid and, just like Barca, PSG, Utd and now Liverpool, they can do no wrong.
      Football is corrupted from it’s core outwards as our club has learnt by believing that Fair play regulations would be adhered too.
      Thumbs up to the Spanish FA for at least having the guts to sack the man.
      England did its best with the odious Sam Allerdice, but then gave him millions as compensation… don’t get me started about our referees either, another band of incompetent, self centered establishment above any type of scrutiny in this country!!!!!!!!!

      1. Agree with on the referees Ken, that’s probably why England referees didn’t make it to the world cup despite refereeing one of the toughest leagues.
        Over recent years, Arsenal and Wenger have been the victims of terrible referee decisions that not only cost valuable points but blatantly favoured our opponents. There seemed to be an FA sanctioned onslaught on Arsenal. Even the media and pundits had knives out for us.

Comments are closed

Top Blog Sponsors