Rafa Reprieved, and Mancini gone. The big shadow of the Champions League

By: Rob | March 11th, 2008

Tonights (or this afternoon, depending on your Time Zone) game couldn’t have had a bigger effect on the managers of the respective teams - but before the first leg, who would have thought it would be this way around? Honestly?

Basically, Liverpool won 1-0 (A review will be forthcoming from either myself or Adam), putting Liverpool into the last 8, and Inter, fresh from celebrating 100 years of Inter, with just the Serie A title. Inter manager Roberto Mancini has offically announced he’ll be gone by the end of the season while Rafa clings onto the Liverpool hotseat awhile longer. We all the knew the Champions League was big, but when did it get this big?

mancini says goodbye

It can’t have been that long ago, the days when being six points clear at the top of your league was enough that you didn’t have to think about leaving your job. While this suggests that some bigger thing is at work here (especially when taking into account Inter’s recent form) the most obvious conclusion is that Mancini is jumping before he’s pushed because though he can evidently do it in the league, he can’t deliver in Europe.

But rewind. Going into the first leg at Anfield, Inter were still unbeaten in Serie A, and looked untouchable. The first leg, though Inter looked lacklustre, was marred by the sending off of The Matrix. They then played hosts to Roma, who, on a high after getting a great first leg result against Real, outplayed them. Inter got lucky and got a draw, and maybe you thought, its just a wobble. Then the next game, they lost to Napoli, and you think, blimey, maybe they have gone to pieces. I mean, had they lost that game against Roma, they would only be leading Serie A by 3 points.

Despite all that, I don’t think going into that game too many people were fearing for Mancini’s job. Over at the Inter offside they might have been getting a bit miffed with him but the man was going to lead his team to Serie A whatever. But tonight, his tactics were baffling. Figo seemed to spend the entire 90 minutes warming up, never to come on. He gave a CL debut to Pele (not THAT pele) and brought off Ibrohimovic (who by the way, looked well fired up and showed in flashes why he’s the most damned entertaining player in Serie A at the moment, much as it pains me to say it - tho that facial hair is entertaining in itself, no?) when Inter needed to find 4 goals to get through. It stunk of putting the white flag up.

Which is what announcing quitting now has basically done. Why now? With Roma in high spirits, the last thing you want to do before they go into a tough run of fixtures is to spur them on! Its baffling, it really is. But it does show you the power of the CL. Mancini evidently is not satisfied with the prospect of another Serie A title - perhaps there is the feeling that he hasn’t won them with the ‘weaker’ Serie A. Or perhaps that to prove himself, he would have to do it in Europe. Who Knows? Its a bizzare one certainly.

Meanwhile, Rafa clings onto a job it looked like he would be losing a few weeks ago. Honestly, three weeks ago I thought if he lost to Inter - and with Inter in good form at that point it seemed a very real possibility - he would get the axe. Now, three weeks later, Liverpool just about sit in fourth in the Prem, and more importantly it seems, are through the QF’s of the Champions League. Is it gonna be enough to keep Rafa in? It seems he’ll make it to the next round at least, and it seems, that’s all that matters these days. Gone are the days when the CL was a fancy-ass bonus that you got you a tour round Europe for the year. Now its the only trophy worth winning if you wanna keep your job.

Crazy times? Or does it make it more exciting?