IBWM notes the return to club management of Michael Laudrup, who this week took over the top job at Real Mallorca......and it brought back a few memories.
I can still recall the World Cup in 1986 very vividly. Due to the time difference between Mexico and the UK, a lot of the games were played through the night, for us UK based folk anyway, which meant that a 12-year-old El Jethro was totally reliant on his tinny little radio with a single white earpiece, and BBC Radio 2's Peter Jones. I tried to listen to as many games as possible; while there will have been some television coverage of these, there was no way the precocious Jethro was going to be allowed to stay up and watch those. Not on a school night anyway.
In amongst the angst I can recall at Bryan Robson's injury and Ray Wilkins dismissal, was the beacon that was the 1986 Denmark team. Starting the 'group of death' with a 1-0 victory over Alex Ferguson's Scotland (Jock Stein had recently passed away and Sir was in temporary charge), the Danes then went nap against Uruguay with a 6-1 mauling of the South Americans, and a 2-0 win over West Germany.
The Danish side took to the pitch in those Hummel shirts that just looked fantastic (I'm back to the TV now, you understand) and they played mesmeric football. Verona's Preben Elkjaer scored a hat trick against Uruguay and was fantastic throughout; but he was assisted by many other talented players, none more so than Michael Laudrup.
At that stage Laudrup was with Juventus, playing second fiddle to Michel Platini, but he shone at Mexico. I was so convinced that having watched the Danes romp through the group stage with a 100% record that World Cup glory beckoned. Still too young to appreciate the finer points of the French, Brazilian, Italian and Argentinean sides of earlier tournaments, I concluded that Denmark were by far and away the best team I had ever seen. Spain next? Easy.
Denmark '86; mesmeric
Despite taking a 1-0 lead from a Jesper Olsen penalty, Denmark were savagely ripped apart by an Emilio Butragueno inspired Spanish side, with Real Madrid's 'El Buitre' helping himself to four goals in a 5-1 win. I think that loss actually hurt me more than England's defeat at the hand of Diego Maradona (IBWM still attaches equal blame to Terry Fenwick and Peter Shilton for that one), such was my admiration for Denmark, and probably lay the cornerstone of my fascination with World Football
Despite that setback, the Danes went on to fashion a new side that was ultimately successful in the 1992 European Championships, despite the lack of talisman Laudrup, who went on to achieve greatness as a player in Spain.
Facing regular comparison to Platini at Juventus, Laudrup ultimately made his was to Barcelona, and it was here that he really stood out. Helping his team to four straight league titles, Laudrup was one of the first Galacticos, defecting to Real Madrid where he picked up a fifth consecutive championship medal. Despite only turning out for two years in the Spanish capital, Laudrup was voted the 12th best player in Real's history. Quite an achievement for such a short spell.
Laudrup; trophy winner
After football, Laudrup moved into coaching where he was involved with the national side and then Brondby, whom he steered to a Danish League and Cup double in 2005 before resigning a year later.
Laudrup's most distinctive period as a manger so far only lasted 11 months, but it was enough to get him noticed. Having led Madrid's third side, Getafe, to the quarter finals of the UEFA cup and a second consecutive Copa Del Ray final, Laudrup's stock was particularly high, especially as his teams were playing high tempo attacking football. This period saw him heavily linked with Chelsea and Real Madrid amongst others, but ultimately taking the managers job at Spartak Moscow.
A clearly unhappy Laudrup did not stay long in the Russian capital, and was dismissed after only 7 months into his contract; the first time that the Dane had suffered this fate. Links with several other clubs have came and went, most notably Atletico Madrid, but Laudrup this week returned to La Liga to take the managers role at Real Mallorca.
IBWM is intrigued to see how this one pans out, as Laudrup will want to prove that his time in Moscow was a blip and that he still has what it takes to guide a team to better things. On the face of it, picking up a job in charge of a team that only missed out on the Champions League on the final day of the season looks like it should be a stroll, but the backdrop to this are Real Mallorca's debts, and the fact that the club entered into administration in May.
Tough ask, should be interesting.
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