October 23, 2007
Culina shown the door
Branko Culina and Sydney FC have “decided to part ways amicably”
Intense speculation has culminated in the sacking, or friendly cheerio if you listen to Sydney FC Chairman Andrew Kemeny.
Kemeny revealed that the only news he could reveal is that “… we’ve decided to part ways amicably, and Branko will now stop working for Sydney FC …”
Culina was only appointed in a full time coaching role during April, having impressed during the AFC Champions League campaign but ultimately falling short.
The next coach becomes the fourth to take control in only three seasons.
Pierre Littbarski guided Sydney to the inaugural A-League Championship in 2005-06, but did not return after being offered a significantly reduced contract offer for the following season.
Terry Butcher then took over and managed to reach the finals amongst player disquiet and a high injury toll, but was fired at the end of the 2006-07 season.
Rumours are that Graham Arnold had been offered the job, but turned it down to pursue other coaching avenues.
Former Adelaide United coach John Kosmina continues to be linked to the Sydney FC role and appears the man most likely to take over.
Other coaches names to make the rumour mill include Perth Glory assistant David Mitchell and Young Socceroos coach Steve O’Connor.
What you think.
Who is the right person to appoint from here?
The les Murray response - Media looking after media and Culina always has been well looked after!!
Branko’s grubby demise - Les Murray
Branko Culina’s gone and the oldest and easiest trick in the football book, jettisoning the coach when the results are less than rosy, lives and will never die.
It’s normal in this cruel game and, in a grubby way, even understandable.
One loss too many, a modest position on the table, an alarming drop in attendances and the pressure builds on the board to act.
Sydney FC’s crowd was a humble 12,922 for Culina’s last home game, the 1-0 loss to Adelaide. On that trend the next home game might attract 10,000 or even less, very poorly figures, not to say lousy in terms of revenue, for a club like Sydney FC.
Such things trigger boardroom paralysis and panic. Swift action and a change of coach, demonstrating managerial decisiveness, tend to bring immediate results.
Out of sheer curiosity, excitement and a sense of anticipation, a newly sexed up market can bring a boost to the gate for the next game. The announcement of a new coaching appointment, depending on who it is, might bump that crowd up to 18,000 or even 20,000 for Sydney’s next home game against league leader Central Coast.
The extra revenue, at say $12 per head, can mean an additional $90,000 to the club for just one home game. There are serious business reasons for sacking coaches if the time is right and if the incoming man has broad respect.
And if the team was to win, given that the installing of a new coach tends to lift player ambition, there will be more.
But it won’t last.
The problem is that the sacking of Culina, however justified by short-term expediency, is a band-aid cure. There are serious problems with the club, and its playing squad, that no new coach, whether it’s John Kosmina or Marcello Lippi, can solve.
The roots of Sydney’s ills are at the beginning, when grown men, fuelled by flamboyant short-term ambition, embarked to fashion a side for immediate success. They planned for year one of the A-League and thought nothing of beyond.
By and large veteran players with overseas experience but in the twilight of their careers were recruited two-and-a-half years ago and are still there. A bucket of money was spent to lure them to the club and even more on marquee star Dwight Yorke and ‘name’ coach Pierre Littbarski.
Australian coaches with good credentials, like Culina, were shunned, as were gifted young Sydney-based players, like Nathan Burns, Bruce Djite, Nicky Carle, Alex Brosque and Mark Bridge, all of whom have since become genuine stars of the A-League.
Sydney duly won the title in its first season but after that, not surprisingly, it all went belly up.
Why? Because there was never a long-term plan, either technically or commercially. The club produced red ink to the tune of nearly $7million in season one, forcing it to allow the departure of Littbarski and, eventually, Yorke.
Replacing Littbarski with Terry Butcher at half the price proved to be another colossal blunder, not because of the team’s results but because he turned what was meant to be a class act in to a bunch of ragged toilers who lost the respect of their coach.
Culina was brought in to reinstate belief and footballing substance. But while there was temporary respite as the team kicked again for an impressive run in the Asian Champions League, in the end the damage proved to be terminal.
Splendid performers Alvin Ceccoli, Sasho Petrovski and Nikolai Topor-Stanley were allowed to leave while star turn David Carney was also lured away, leaving a lopsided mixture of ageing veterans and a few unproven youngsters, signed on modest wages due to the exhaustion of the salary cap.
The squad now contains no less than eight players, all of them nominally first choices, over the age of 31. Three of them are over 34.
It was with these ingredients that Culina, himself on a humble pay packet, was asked to bake a cake. Injuries, suspensions and the repeated absence of players on international duty did not help and eventually spelled his demise.
Culina leaves with the team in sixth position after nine rounds, five points out of the top four, having recorded four losses and two wins. Is that a hanging record given the above circumstances?
At the same stage in the 2005-06 season, when it ended up winning the title, Sydney also had four losses, including a 5-0 thumping by Melbourne Victory. It did have four wins but two of those were against the pathetically weak New Zealand Knights who no longer exist to provide an easy nine points per season to its opponents.
Right or wrong, the sacking of Culina is at best a temporary breather. The club’s problems, because of the vast blunders of year one, are deep and need macro remedies. There is no short-term fix.
Worst of all, back on the job queue is one of Australia’s most gifted coaches and, importantly, one who believes in the beautiful football that a club like Sydney should always aspire to.
Good luck to his replacement, whoever that will be, for he is not to blame for the demise of his predecessor.
He will need it.
Comment by Oncesackedcoach — October 23, 2007 @ 12:02 pm
I’m sorry OSC, but I have to agree with everything Les has said there.
Comment by Tommy — October 23, 2007 @ 1:30 pm
Have to agree Tommy, Branko did a very good job during the Asian Champion’s League so he knows what he’s doing. Inheriting poorly recruited squads is hardly his fault. There were calls on Melbourne to sack Merrick at the end of season 1 but they persisted and were subsequently rewarded. It all comes down to whether the club has a longer term plan.
Comment by Danny G — October 23, 2007 @ 2:28 pm
Tommy everyone to his own , just belief it is marvelous that Farina - Smith and Merrick have all come under more critisim that Steve McClaren , but the friend of SBS hasn’t at any stage been subject to a foster or Murray swipe!!.
Did Culina let Alvin Ceccoli, Sasho Petrovski and Nikolai Topor-Stanley LEAVE -yes he was incharge and yes he chose to keep Zrdilic over Sasho - did he recruit - Poper yes - and he has really turned the League on fire an outstanding defender ???, agree with the young guys that let slip but again James Holland and Sebastion Ryall were both NSWIS athletes under Branko at soccer nsw - two more you could add the sydney list of young stars lost to Sydney FC .
Comment by Oncesackedcoach — October 23, 2007 @ 2:35 pm
According to the article the departures of Ceccoli, Petrovski and Topor-Stanley were not his decisions. It is a bit difficult these days to determine who is making football staffing decisions, boards, managers, technical directors or owners? Look at Chelsea, Madrid, Valencia, Milan and Barca all these clubs have in part had people other than the man in charge of the players select who comes and who goes.
I might as well come clean here and admit that I am a Roar supporter, I loved their verve under Bleiberg, I’ve not been so impressed with the Farina era.
Comment by Tommy — October 23, 2007 @ 3:12 pm
If you a re a Miron fan no wonder you like Les and Branko ..lol
Type in Miron Bleiberg in youtube and see the real Miron …
Comment by Oncesackedcoach — October 23, 2007 @ 3:38 pm
OSC said: If you a re a Miron fan no wonder you like Les and Branko ..lol
.
I’m not sure what you mean by that OSC? I never said I liked them, I said that I agree with what Les said.
Comment by Tommy — October 23, 2007 @ 4:22 pm
OSC, hilarious video about miron and the kid from the solomons. Its so totally random.
Comment by Danny G — October 23, 2007 @ 7:49 pm