The Fall & Rise Of Scottish Football

How things do change. Normally the target of ridicule in football circles over the last decade, Scotland is now experiencing an upturn in its fortunes both internationally and domestically. What many people wonder however is whether this change in fortunes is merely temporary or signals a long term growth of Scottish football?

About 5 years ago Scottish football was on the brink of complete financial meltdown. The Scottish FA and also most of the clubs where harbouring serious debts that were only growing. This came from the period of ‘chasing the dream’ that Leeds Utd fans only know to much about. Every club in the Premier League was spending more on transfers and in particular wages than they could afford. It wasn’t just Rangers and Celtic who were splashing the cash so the whole league was suffering. The problem with this was that this spending didn’t improve the quality of football as much of the cash was being spent on over the hill foreigners who were only looking for one last big pay day.

By doing this it meant that young Scottish players weren’t allowed to progress and their growth was stunted. The international team suffered because of this and for a few years had to rely on older players who to be honest weren’t of the required quality for that stage or players who qualified to play through great-great-great grandparents. A lack of real quality young players emerging was a major problem for years mainly because the clubs just didn’t focus on it and preferred to try and buy success. When the money ran out however this philosophy had to be addressed and a shift of focus was needed.

At one point Rangers were in £80 million pound of debt and that was rising. Celtic were over £30 million and the other clubs were also in heavy debts with some also reaching double figures when it came to millions. After the realisation that this couldn’t continue a major restructuring of the finances was needed and was implemented. Rangers have now reduced there debts to about £6 million and Celtic are about the same. All clubs in the league have reduced their debts and now operate at a profit with the exception of Hearts.

The emergence of youth in Scottish football in the last few years has truly been a breath of fresh air. The most productive of clubs in terms of youngster has been Hibs. They have produced some of the best talent in Scottish football who have subsequently moved on to other clubs. Rangers have also started to produce some talented youngsters also but even other clubs have contributed. Even though some of the smaller clubs aren’t able to keep hold of these young players it benefits them financially and also gives the national team a much greater pool of talent in which to choose from.

The Scottish national team has went from being 72^nd in the world rankings to being 13^th, there highest ever rankings and only two places behind England. The main reason why the national team has progressed the way it has is that the national attitude has changed. A major part of the problem that hindered the progress of Scottish football was its great tradition of a having an inferiority complex. It’s always been the way of Scotland to always compare itself with England and have gripes with them. Recently however there been far greater emphasis on Scotland’s own problems and how to address them.

After Berti Vogts left Scotland needed a strong manager who could lift the team but also have the know how to get results on the pitch. Walter Smith was that man. He brought belief to the team and this then transferred into results and there was no looking back. Alex McLeish has carried on the good work that Walter Smith started and the feel-good factor has filtered down to the domestic game. Now Scottish clubs are competing much better in European competitions were as before they were seen as whipping boys. England’s domestic game is far greater than Scotland’s in every aspect pretty much but not the same could be said for the national game. England could do worse than following the way Scotland has transferred its national team around and adopting the same principals.

Scottish football has put in a lot of work to ensure stability in its game and if the same ethics applied in the past 3 years are continued then the game can only improve. If they fail to stay true to these and fall back into the traps of before then disaster is inevitable. However I think it's safe to say that Scottish football has certainly learned from its mistakes.

Rafa & The Rotation Conspiracy

Squad rotation, the most talked about topic when it comes to Liverpool and more specifically Rafa Benitez today and every other day for that matter. The subject is so writhe in the English press over the last year or so that when Liverpool are talked about in any way shape or form this will undoubtedly will be part of the piece. So just how bad is 'Rafa's Rotation'? Is it a disease? Is it simply to prove critics wrong? Or is it really a deep lying belief that Benitez feels will deliver results in the long term that is a full domestic and European footballing season?

I remember when Manchester United where on the quest for a treble in 1999 and the media where almost at a stump when it came to Alex Ferguson and in which the ease he could change his line up on a regular basis and still get results. It's always been the belief of the English footballing culture that a consistent and settled side will bring results, that a winning team cannot be altered and if you do alter it then you have ruined your chances of success and can only have yourself to blame.

It has only become the norm in the last 10-15 years to have a squad of players rather than a first team then a bunch of lesser players who can play if someone is injured or suspended. The main reason for this is that theres more games in a season than in previous years and the demands of modern day football cannot solely be placed on a squad of 16 players. So now we have teams with squads of 25-30 players and most of which are senior players and not just full of youth team players. There now comes the eternal question in football. How do you keep all those players happy? Well squad rotation is one way of doing so.

Rafa Benitez, the world's current most well-known consumer of the rotation brand. Whilst managing Valencia he deployed this method to great effect, winning two La Liga titles and also the UEFA Cup. Despite great results his rotation policy was still criticised in the Spanish media. Benitez argued that by using rotation it allows his players to be fresher come the latter stages of the season. No one could really argue when you looked at what he achieved. Fast forward to now and he uses the method with Liverpool, English football's most successful club side domestically and in European competitions. Now in his fourth season in charge of the Anfield side - in which time he has won one Champions League final and lost another, won the FA Cup and also won smaller trophies - he is still constantly subjected to talk about rotation. Some say he's addicted to rotation or that he simply rotates because everyone keeps telling him not to. Whatever way you put it its quite clear that 'Rafa's Rotation' has become a constant nationwide debate.

Now if you were to ask yourself which manager rotates the most in the Premiership its natural to say Benitez. The media have told you this every day for the last few seasons and its the easy answer since its up for constant ridicule. However you maybe shocked to learn that this is not the case.

Last season Alex Ferguson made 118 changes to his title winning side over the course of the Premiership season, an average of 3.11 changes per game. The season before that and Jose Mourinho made the exact same 118 changes also to his title winning Chelsea side. Now we come to Rafa Benitez and the number of changes he made last season. How many you ask? Well unbelievably it was 118. Yes the exact same as Sir Alex and 'The Special One' have made in previous campaigns. But what about the season before that when Chelsea won the league you may ask? Surely he made lots more that season. Well Benitez made 119 changes that season, a whole 0.02 more changes on average than 'The Special One' and helped Liverpool to finish third in the league with 82 points, which in 9 of the previous 12 seasons would have been good enough to win the league.

Yet Benitez is still labelled as the new tinker man (previously preserved for ex-Chelsea Manager Claudio Ranieri) and Ferguson and Mourinho are given special dispensation for their actions. Its true to point out that Benitez makes more changes in cup competitions but given his success in these it doesn't stand firm with me.

So why the constant scrutinizing of Benitez and his line-ups?

Lazy journalism is one of the main reasons. Instead of just accepting that this is the way Benitez does things and has done for years and instead talk about the actual performance or the tactical failings. Notice that when Liverpool win that rotation is barely mentioned, if at all. Journalists, pundits and commentators simply cannot get away from the rotation issue however and as soon as Liverpool don't win they simply bring out this excuse and run with it. Rotation may very well be part of why Benitez hasn't won the league with Liverpool but its an issue that is growing tiresome. Yes we know he rotates and may do so more than others but what I have proved is that its not to the extent that the media has made out. Instead of always using the lazy excuse of rotation as a way to criticise Liverpool and Benitez, these so-called experts should instead try and use there 'expert knowledge' and find other reasons as to why Liverpool didn't win.