Without the fighters you are out of business … If fighters are dirt, what are managers made of? The Harder they Fall, Humphrey Bogart, cited After the Last Round, 1956
In my early days I always knew what I wanted to do. Bobby Robson: More than a Manager, Bobby, Netflix 2018
Ipswich: I didn’t have any real credibility as a manager. No real experience. I was a young greenhorn. They were taking a chance on me. ibid.
Miles ahead of his time. ibid. Terry Butcher
A fantastic piece of management. ibid. Alex Ferguson
He just had this aura about him. ibid. Terry Butcher
He made you feel so good about yourself and about your job. ibid.
Maradona handled the ball into the goal. Didn’t he? Didn’t he? ibid. Bobby
The relationship between Bobby and Gazza was extraordinary. ibid. Lineker
He made me feel calm. ibid. Ronaldo
Take time to smell the roses. ibid. Robson
‘Do I not like that.’ Graham Taylor: The Impossible Job, opening scene in dugout, Channel 4 1994
There are certain advantages in being the former manager of the England football team. The morning post is friendly, the critics have discovered new targets and the world’s no longer free of unwanted advice. ibid.
‘Now all of the problems that go with that … it’s never been an easy job for anyone; some people would describe it as an impossible job.’ ibid. Taylor
I sweat a lot. You know, I’m waking up with the usual pyjamas wet through. ibid.
‘He turned the average into the extraordinary.’ Clough: The Brian Clough Story, 2009
He played for England only twice in a career cut short by injury. ibid.
Within two years of Brian Clough’s arrival, Derby were Second Division champions. ibid.
‘Good managers make good sides.’ ibid. Clough
By 1972 Derby County were League champions for the first time in their history. ibid.
‘There was nearly anarchy at the football club [Leeds]. ibid. Gordon McQueen
David Peace has pangs of regret about writing The Damned United. ibid.
Clough’s contract worth about £100,000 was paid up in full. ibid.
‘In the end he succeeded and Leeds didn’t.’ ibid. Geoffrey Boycott
‘You have to be a bit mad to be a manager.’ ibid. Mrs Barbara Clough
‘There’s something about the aura of the man can make you do anything.’ ibid. Kenny Burns
Clough became only the second manager to win the League championship with two different clubs. ibid.
According to the man who headed up the FA’s press office, the interview process was flawed. ibid.
30 years ago Nottingham Forest became the best team in Europe. ibid.