This morning’s football coverage is ‘all about José.’ Mourinho was always good copy for the media and his return to the Bridge gets extensive coverage in all the morning papers except the Financial Times. At a reported £8.5m a year the Special One will be the highest paid manager in the Premier League.
This morning’s football coverage is ‘all about José.’ Mourinho was always good copy for the media and his return to the Bridge gets extensive coverage in all the morning papers except the Financial Times. At a reported £8.5m a year the Special One will be the highest paid manager in the Premier League.
Anticipating his return, The Economist ran a story on ‘boomerang bosses’. A study of 275 top American firms found that when the CEO stayed on the board, a quarter of them were rehired when a new CEO was required.
The Economist reckons that the best argument for bringing back former CEOs is that they are known quantities, and will thus reassure both employees and investors. In this case, Chelsea fans are overjoyed.
But The Economist also thinks there are good reasons to worry about boomerang bosses: ‘Their return almost invariably signals that the company is in deep doo-doo, and often the mess they are brought back to fix is the one they left behind.’ However, a lot of water has flown under the Bridge since the Special One left and what happened is not his fault. Nor can he be blamed for a lack of succession planning.
The Economist points out that examples of failed returnees abound. In this case a lot will depend upon the relationship between Mourinho and Roman Abramovich. Second marriages can be stormy and some reports suggest that they have both become more combustible in the intervening period. Structures at Chelsea have changed as well, in a way that Mourinho may find difficult. The expectations of fans will be very high, requiring at the very least the Premier League or Champions League title and ideally both.
Nevertheless, it all makes next year’s Premier League season the most uncertain for a long time, the first three horse race since 2008. Whatever else happens, the Premier League will not be a loser.