Ollie’s alternative sporting universe No.1: Brian Clough, the greatest manager England ever had.
If you know me you know i’m a massive sport fan and a history nerd, so i’ve decided to combine the two into a series of posts i’m calling Ollie’s alternative sporting universe.
It will mainly look at the great sporting what if’s that could have changed the destinies of clubs, people and countries, and since this is the first one I thought it would be best to start with a biggie.
Brian Clough is often regarded as the greatest manager England never had, but what would have happened if the FA had bowed to public pressure and give him the job?
For this scenario, Ive decided that England offer him the job not long after Clough resigned from Derby County; choosing him over Leeds manager Don Revie. I did consider a couple others, such as England choosing him over Ron Greenwood in ’78, or as the legend goes, Bobby Robson carrying through his sentiments to the FA and resigning to give Clough the reigns. However, this scenario seemed to me the most interesting, anyway here it is.
*DISCLAIMER* The following events are fictitious and do not hold any standing in the real world, all quotations made by Mr Brian Clough are also a work of fiction.
London, 1988
Sir Brian Clough has officially resigned as England manager and retired from football management after failing to win the European Championships for a second time.
Clough stated he would stay on as manager for the 1990 World Cup should England triumph at this years competition, but believes it’s ‘time to put the family first’.
England reached the European Championship final for the second time this summer, however lost 2–0 to the Netherlands.
The charismatic figure read a prepared statement today saying that: “There is nothing more for me to do, and although getting the hat trick (of World Cup wins) would have been nice winning two of them isn’t too bad”.
Sir Brian also ruled out getting back into club management, after being linked with a return to Derby County and the Manchester United job following increasing pressure on Alex Ferguson, saying: “I have no appetite to return to club management, I have seen the world through my 15 years as England manager and swapping the trips to Mexico and Spain with rainy ol’ England doesn’t sound all that appealing”.
Following England’s World Cup triumphs in 1978 and 1986 ‘Cloughie’ is only the second manager in history to win the competition twice.
Sir Brian was appointed England manager in 1973 following England’s failure to qualify for the World Cup the following year.
The former Derby County manager had been considered a front runner for the job, along with Leeds manager Don Revie and West Ham boss Ron Greenwood.
The Middlesbrough born boss’ first task was qualifying for Euro 76, and succeeded without losing a single game during the qualification phase.
Clough’s team would then go on to win the finals in Yugoslavia beating the Netherlands, and West Germany on penalties, as England lifted their first trophy since the 1966 World Cup.
It was also a springboard for England’s second World Cup win in 1978, again The Three Lions qualified without losing a single game, most impressive being their 2–0 win against Italy who many saw as groups favorites.
Clough’s men won every single game they played during the group stages, including against hosts Argentina and West Germany in a rematch of their Euro 76 final.
After their two group wins, hosts Argentina once again awaited in the final, and once again England won on penalties with the game finishing 1–1 after extra time.
Brian Clough received a knighthood following England’s second World Cup triumph, as did Trevor Francis, who went on to be the first million pound player; signing for Liverpool in 1979.
The England National team’s success has also seen a resurgence in club football, with English clubs winning 10 European cups in a row.
Liverpool have the bulk of European honors, lifting the trophy eight times (1977–1981, 1983–1985) during Clough’s time at England; more than any other club, and also equaling Real Madrid’s record of five successive European triumphs; as they dominated both English and continental football with little challenge.
The only other clubs to lift the trophy were West Ham United, who under the management of Bobby Moore won the competition in 1982, whilst also triumphing in the UEFA Cup 1981 and the First Division the same year; and Everton, who lifted the trophy in 1986, after English and Italian clubs escaped being banned from the competition following the Heysel stadium disaster due to both nations’ ‘Immense stature in world football’.
1982 also signified however, Clough’s only disappointment as England manager, as The Three Lions were favorites among many to defend their crown.
The tournament started successfully with three wins, seeing England easily into the second phase, however Cloughie’s men couldn’t secure wins against West Germany or hosts Spain, and were knocked out in the second round.
Despite some media pressure to replace Clough with Bobby Moore who had just lifted the European Cup, the first English captain to lift the most prestigious trophy in football stated he had no interest in the job, and backed Clough fully to stay on as manager.
Optimism was again restored at Euro 84 with a semi-final appearance, yet England lost a penalty shoot-out for the first time in their history against Spain; hosts France would go on to lift the trophy.
Controversial as ever though, Clough stated at the time: “I don’t particularly care about how we’ve done at the European (Championships) because I want the World Cup, that’s the competition that matters”.
Two years later and Clough would get his second World Cup, buoyed by the electrifying performance of Everton forward Sir Gary Lineker, England would triumph against West Germany for a second time; winning the final 3–2.
Lineker equaled Eusebio’s record set twenty years prior by scoring nine goals at the competition, including the winning goal in the final, earning his knighthood in the process.
The triumph enshrined Cough’s place in football folklore, not since Italy’s Vittorio Pozzo in the 1930’s had a manager lifted the World Cup twice.
The Football Association will now begin the search for only their fourth ever manager.
Early favorites Bobby Moore and Bob Paisley have both ruled themselves out, with Barcelona boss Terry Venables, West Brom’s Ron Atkinson, and Watford’s Graham Taylor the current front runners for the job.
Other contenders for the job include Clough’s long time assistant Peter Taylor, former Liverpool manager Joe Fagen and Everton boss Howard Kendall.
Graham Taylor however, is rumored to have Clough’s personal backing, with one source saying that the manager reminded Clough of himself after building Watford into a title challenging force.
The top brass at the FA though have refused to ‘add to the already massive speculation’ about the next England manager and will ‘dedicate a large amount of time to find the right man for the job’.