A Tribute to Cesar Luis Menotti: Remembering his Short Spells in Europe

 

Cesar Luis Menotti, who just passed away a few days ago, only had short spells in Europe with three different clubs.

                    

Cesar Menotti is probably better known as the first manager to lead Argentina to the FIFA World Cup on home soil in 1978, despite the controversy surrounding their victory. He was also known as a football philosopher, whose influence on the game extended beyond the result and time itself.

 

Menotti's quotes are undoubtedly more famous than his stints at various clubs, with the exception of his notable first and most successful, Huracan in the early 1970s. You may have heard these philosophical quotes from the gaffer nicknamed 'El Flaco' below:

 

-       “Through good football, you get results. And when you’ve got that, it’s no good defending the result any old way.”

 

-       “Our football belongs to the working class and has the size, nobility and generosity to allow everyone to enjoy it as a spectacle.”

 

-       "To be a footballer means being a privileged interpreter of the feelings and dreams of thousands of people."

-       “A team is above all an idea, and more than an idea it is a commitment, and more than a commitment it is the clear convictions that a coach must transmit to defend that idea.”

-       “Don’t allow yourself to get browbeaten into playing differently, ever.”

As one can see, his understanding of football transcended boundaries, as he saw football in a deeper sense than just the sport itself. Perhaps that's what makes Menotti extraordinary. It is more than silverwares or results on the pitch.

Nevertheless, the manager who also won FIFA World Cup U20 in 1979, where Maradona had his first official center stage in the international level, did have his time in Europe, although none resulted major trophies. Menotti was at the helm of three clubs in Spain and Italy. Such may be brief but still worth remembering.

Barcelona (1983-1984)

He was appointed as Barcelona manager in March 1983 to replace Udo Lattek. Menotti realized the burden he had to bring back the glory in Catalan since they had not won a league title since Cryuff’s era in 1974. That was the famous term ‘historical emergencies’ came up. The former Huracan boss knew that a giant club like Barcelona is expected to win for the sake of their own existence, not only as a football club, but something more, such as an idea of beautiful game, the Catalan pride and identity etc.

He did managed to win two titles in his first season, despite taking charge of the club in the middle of their campaign. Barcelona might only finished fourth in La Liga but was able to clinch Copa del Rey and Copa de La Liga, (Spanish League Cup, which only lasted for four years from 1983 to 1986, due to the clubs disagreement and the league schedules), in which they beat their archrival, Real Madrid in both finals.

In his full season in Nou Camp, he guided them finish one place higher, on the third, but only won Supercopa de Espana and lost in Copa del Rey final to Athletic Bilbao, the national champions at that time. Menotti’s side in Europe was not satisfactory either. They only reached quarterfinal in 1983/84 Winners Cup after suffering a 3-2 loss on aggregate against Manchester United. Their campaign was marred by Maradona’s injury. The former Santos and Rosario man eventually left as his Argentine star was sold to Napoli.

Nevertheless, his legacy in the Catalan giant still remains today. He was known to introduce ‘reducing of spaces’ as one of his remarkable tactics. In principle, this is similar to today's high defence line, which aims to limit the opposition's space by winning the ball as close to their goal as possible. Such is something commonly seen today in Guardiola’s teams or the disciple of ball possession football school of thought. Furthermore, Menotti was famous of his attractive football by relying on less long ball and more on creativity, flexible formations and the evening training.

Notable players in his squad (number of games and contributions listed only during Menotti’s tenure):

	Season	Matches	Goals (Assists)
Diego Maradona (AMC, SS)	1982/83 1983/84	19 23	12 (8) 15 (5)
Bernd Schuster (AMC, DM)	1982/83 1983/84	17 29	2 (1) 10 (1)
Periko Alonso (Xabi Alonso’s father) (MC, DM)	1982/83 1983/84	16 39	4 (0) 3 (0)
Marcos Alonso Pena (Marcos Alonso’s father) (RW,LW, AM)	1982/83 1983/84	18 44	4 (0) 12 (0)

Notable results during his stint:

-       vs Real Madrid (H) 2-1 (La Liga 1983)

-       vs Real Madrid 2-1 (Copa del Rey final 1983)

-       vs Real Madrid 2-1 (Copa de la Liga final 1983)

-       vs Athletic Bilbao (H) 4-0 (La Liga 1984)

-       vs Manchester United (H) 2-0 (Winners Cup 1984)

-       vs Athletic Bilbao (A) 3-1 (Supercopa de Espana 1983)

Atletico Madrid (1987-1988)

El Flaco’s second club in Europe was still in La Liga. Atletico Madrid named him as Luis Aragones’s successor who plied his trade in his former club, Barcelona, in summer 1987. He fit the profile Los Rojiblancos needed to disrupt Real Madrid domination in the Spanish top flight.

At first, things went on well. Alemao and Co managed to stun Barcelona and Real Madrid with away wins. They thumped Blaugrana 2-1 and smashed Los Blancos 4-0 in Camp Nou and Bernabeu respectively. Unfortunately, his team was winless in six games consecutively from February till March leading to his dismissal.

Notable players in his squad (number of games and contributions listed only during Menotti’s tenure):

	Season	Matches	Goals (Assists)
Julio Salinas (ST)	1987/88	29	13 (0)
Alemao (DM)	1987/88	25	5 (0)
Paulo Futre (AMC)	1987/88	28	8 (1)
Marcos Alonso Pena (Marcos Alonso’s father) (RW,LW, AM)	1987/88	22	2 (0)

Notable results during his stint:

-       vs Barcelona (A) 2-1 (La Liga 1988)

-       vs Real Madrid (A) 4-0 (La Liga 1988)

Sampdoria (1997)

His final stint in Europe was in Sampdoria. He was hired in July 1997 but his contract was terminated in November due to the series of negative results. He was unable to optimize the squad which had the current Turkish boss, Vicenzo Montella, the young Juan Veron, Alain Boghossian and Sinisa Mihajlovic. Menotti only managed to seal four wins and two draws in 14 matches. His 4-4-2 or 4-3-1-2 formation did not really work well with his team. His only notable result during his brief tenure was holding Juventus in a 1-1 draw.

Notable players in his squad (number of games and contributions listed only during Menotti’s tenure):

	Season	Matches	Goals (Assists)
Sinisa Mihajlovic (CB)	1997/98	15	1 (2)
Vicenzo Montella (FC)	1997/98	14	6 (2)
Juan Veron (MC)	1997/98	11	0 (1)
Alain Boghossian (MC)	1997/98	13	5 (1)