By Chris Wright
Read any Djalminha retrospective and the same words seem to crop up; brilliant, mercurial,
elusive, tumultuous, profligate, turbulent and it's little wonder why.
Having intermittently illuminated Spanish football with his extrovert brand of grace and skill
after arriving at Deportivo La Coruna in 1997 (including a starring role in their title-winning
side of 1999/2000), Djalminha looked a shoe-in for a spot in Brazil's 2002 World Cup squad right up
until he pressed the self-destruct button two days before Phil Scolari was due to announce his
final draft headbutting Deportivo coach Javier Irureta during a training ground scuffle.
By Chris Wright
Read any Djalminha retrospective and the same words seem to crop up; brilliant, mercurial,
elusive, tumultuous, profligate, turbulent and it's no wonder why.
Having intermittently illuminated Spanish football with his extrovert brand of grace and skill
after arriving at Deportivo La Coruna in 1997 (including a starring role in their title-winning
side of 1999/2000), Djalminha looked a shoe-in for a spot in Brazil's 2002 World Cup squad right up
until he pressed the self-destruct button two days before Phil Scolari was due to announce his
final draft headbutting Deportivo coach Javier Irureta during a training ground scuffle.
Having parted company with Italian coach Carlo Ancelotti after a disappointing season,
Chelsea are once again searching for a new coach with Dutchman Guus Hiddink the bookies favourite
to take over the reigns at Stamford Bridge. Rolly Pelovangu investigates...
A poisoned chalice or a great opportunity to manage at one of world football's richest
clubs?
As personality clashes go, Phil Scolari's at Chelsea aren't the most earth-rivening imaginable,
largely because Phil Scolari's personality at Chelsea seemed to exist in a weirdly crumpled state
of defeatedness and timidity. Sure, he was Big Phil; yes, he was the manager who slugged players in
their pampered jaws right in the middle of games; absolutely, he was hired to bring fear
to an unruly dressing-room and blast away years of accumulated ego-grievances with the dynamite in
his head.
Big Phil Scolari hasn't exactly lead the worst life since his sacking from Chelsea all
forty-seven years ago (feels like it, anyway). Getting the heave-ho from Stamford Bridge means a
nice cushion mostly filled with rubles on which to land. And then he landed in Uzbekistan.
Where he found even more.
Big Phil Scolari hasn't exactly lead the worst life since his sacking from Chelsea all
forty-seven years ago (feels like it, anyway). Getting the heave-ho from Stamford Bridge means a
nice cushion mostly filled with rubles on which to land. And then he landed in Uzbekistan.
Where he found even more.
Frank Lampard has been busy this week tallking to reporters about Chelsea recent poor run of
form. Today Lamps spoke to the Daily Mail and said that Chelsea are going through a confidence
crisis similar to the one that led to former manager Phil Scolari losing his job.
"At the moment there's a bit of a feeling that we're not sure what's going to happen when we go
out there.
