Gullit Moves to Chechnya – Does a Ruud Awakening Await?

In what some quarters are already calling the worst football transfer in the world, Ex-Chelsea manager Ruud Gullit has been appointed as the new boss of Terek Grozny, the beleaguered Russian region of Chechnya’s top club and 12th in the Russian Premier League.

You could say it is a long way from Chelsea to Chechnya both geographically and in terms of football – and you probably wouldn’t be far wrong.  Yet what people are really scratching their heads about is what exactly Gullit was thinking about when he took the wallet.  The general consensus seems to be his wallet.

His immediate boss will now be Ramzan Kadyrov the President of Chechnya who isn’t exactly one of those cute bears you see as mascots east of what was the Iron Curtain.  If you can think of a human rights abuse, Kadyrov has probably been accused of it, both during his tenure as rebel fighter and now as President of Chechnya.

Mr Kadyrov wants to use football as a way to enhance the image of his country both in the Russian Federation and abroad – even though most people would be happy enough for him to enhance human rights instead.  When Russia received the right to hold the World Cup in 2018 he lost no time in suggesting that Grozny was a perfect host city for some of the matches.

This in a city of 210,720 people – thanks to the war a little more than half of the population a decade before and which is still in the process of rebuilding after many years of carnage and destruction.  Even translated from Russian, the name of the city means variously "fearsome", "menacing", or "terrible".

The British Foreign Office still advises against any travel to Grozny for any reason.  Suicide bombings are not as common as they were but they still happen.  However, kidnap, with its associated torture and murder can be listed in their hundreds over the last few years.

Ruud Gullit has not yet traveled to Chechnya and he may want to google the country and make a few notes before he goes there.  Yet he has signed an 18 month contract sight unseen and has been promised money – lots of it – by President Kadyrov (pictured below) – to build up a team.

Gullit’s appointment comes shortly after the departure of Victor Munoz (who played for Spain and managed several clubs).  Munoz arrived in Grozny last week to take up the position but has since walked out.  Whether that is because of the dry bars, the gangs of youths who roam the streets shooting women who are not wearing Islamic headscarves or the lack of shopping on Putin Avenue (yes you read correctly), the Chechen answer to Carnaby Street, is unknown.

The Terek club has stated that he demanded changes to his contract that they were not willing to make, so perhaps the walkout was over football after all.  Regardless of the reason, it has given Gullit the opportunity to step in to Munoz’ shoes, take the money and stay.

There are no details about just how much money is involved.  However, it is imagined that the sum is considerable.  A Chechen businessman is now funding the club and the financial input is thought to be sufficient for the new manager to buy a number of world class players.  Mr Kadyrov has already demanded that the club finish in the top eight of the Russian premier league next season.  It seems Gullit has his work cut out for him.

Gullit may have to watch his temper when it comes to his Chechen colleagues.

He has something of a history of descending precipitously from his perambulator (one way of saying falling out of his pram) and has in the past walked out of the Dutch national team and argued with the Chelsea chairman.

Yet he also supported Nelson Mandela when the South African statesman was in prison and coined the phrase sexy football which points to a more liberal temperament than perhaps his new paymasters.

It can only be hoped that Gullit is not in for too much of a Ruud awakening.

Image Credits
President Kadyrov
Terek Grozny Logo
Ruud Gullit
President Kadyrov with gun

Adidas Chinese Adverts

In each and every country in which they sell their products, global organisations have to be very careful to change their advertising message in order to attract the local market.  With China becoming one, if not the biggest, consumer of sports goods globally then companies like Adidas have had to change the way that they do things.

For instance, if you have a look at the top video featuring Chinese defender and midfielder Zheng Zhi.  The Shenyang born star who has played for Celtic and Charlton Athletic is seen in a number of what you might call patriotic poses.  The video, as well as his monologue that goes with it, stresses the importance of the Chinese Republic and the people in his career and the video shows them, in animated form, helping him to score.

Together with the nation rather than for individual triumph was the key to this clever campaign.  Buy Adidas and be a good communist all at the same time.  Clever, subtle and highly targeted advertising.


It is exactly the same with the video above featuring Zhi again as well as a number of other notable Chinese athletes.  Again, the emphasis is very much on the mass of the Chinese people helping these sports stars to victory over the others.

Individual achievement is carefully underpinned but also undermined in as much as the responsibility for success is handed over to the Chinese people who as good communists subvert their own identity to the good of the many over the individual aspirations of the one.  Or at least that's how it goes if you are feeling generous and not in the least cynical.

The final video which was made for the 2010 Olympics and only shown in China features the enigmatic diver Hu Jia.  Notice how Adidas subtly change the message of their slogan Impossible is Nothing to suit the market.  Again, Jia is helped in his ascent to the top of the diving game by the Chinese people who, in ghostly animated form, literally give their bodies over to him as a platform from which to raise the country's sporting profile.

No one ever said it would be easy - the marriage of rampant commercialism with Chinese communism.  However, Adidas is one of those brands who have carefully thought about their positioning in the market there and acted accordingly.  As each and every TV ad must be approved by central government, their shift in terms of their advertising from the pursuit of individual glory to collective achievement is subtle and well done.

Maradona Turns 50: 50 Facts for Diego's Birthday

Everyone at the World in Sport wishes Diego Maradona a very happy 50th Birthday.  

To help celebrate this occasion we would like to present you with fify facts and quotes about the famous (and infamous in equal measure) Argentinean soccer player.

 Happy birthday Maradona!


1 - Diego Armando Maradona was born on 30 October 1960, three days after Muhammad Ali won his first professional boxing fight.

2 - There has always been a rivalry between Maradona and Pele.  Talking about Pele’s award for ‘Best Ever Player, Diego said "Pele should go back to the museum."

3 - Maradona’s first name has its origins in Greek and Hebrew despite being used largely in Italian and Spanish these days.  It means either a supplanter or a teacher.

4 - Maradona has two children – legally.  In a slightly ambivalent attitude towards fatherhood he once said: "My legitimate kids are Dalma and Giannina. The rest are a product of my money and mistakes."

5 - Maradona’s middle name is Armando – it means man in the army.  Perhaps if we take it as a metaphor for his soccer career, it is quite appropriate.

6 - He represented his country, Argentina 91 times (though to his opponents it must have seemed much more than that).

7 - During that time he scored 34 goals for Argentina.

8 - He represented Argentina in four World Cups, 82, 86, 90 and 94.

9 - He played for Boca Juniors, being instrumental in their rise to the League Championship in 1982 before he moved to Barcelona.

10 - In 1985 he left Barcelona for Napoli where he contributed greatly to their winning two Series A titles – their only such title to date.

Image Credit Flickr User Mr.Boombust

11 - Maradona was skipper for Argentina sixteen times – this is the world record for the most appearances as skipper for a country in tat tournament.

12 - Maradona was only 15 when he started his professional career, making his debut for Argentinos Juniors on March

13 - He has really been in 5 World Cups.  He represented Argentina in their youth squad in 1979, winning the Youth World Cup in Japan.  The team won 3-1 against the Soviet Union.

14 - At 16 he made his international debut.  This was at the Bombonera stadium in Buenos Aires, the capital of Argentina.  The match was against Hungary

15 - Che Guevara is one of his heroes.  He has a tattoo of the revolutionary on his right arm. He is also best mates with Fidel Castro. 

16 - Diego was a consistent target for dirty tricks in his international career.  During the 1986 World Cup in Mexico alone there were 53 fouls against him.

17 - 1986 was a good year for Maradona.  He captained his country to World Cup victory against West Germany, beating them three goals to two in the final.

18 - The same tournament gave England fans his most notorious moment.  In an infamous moment he scored against the English team in the quarter final – using his hand.  After the incident, which he would not live down in the English press for many a year, he said: “The goal was scored a little bit by the hand of God, a little by the head of Maradona.”

19 - After smashing a photographer’s camera for being intrusive, Diego said "I did it with the hand of reason."

20 - Maradona had a problem in the USA at the 1994 World Cup.  He played only two games ad scored only a single goal (against Greece).  The reason?  He failed a dope test and was sent home with his tail between his legs. In 1991 Maradona also left Napoli after he had failed a test for cocaine.

Image Credit Flickr User juaedc

21 - Maradona and Claudia Villafane married on November 7 1989.  They were married for fifteen years, divorcing in 2004.

22 - He left owing Napoli a little bit of money to the Italian tax man.  Officials said in 2009 that Maradona owed them €37 million. However, more than half of this is interest on the original debt.

23 - Despite their rivalry, when Maradona became a chat show host on Argentinian television in 2004, Pele was his very first guest.

24 - Maradona became manager of the Argentina’s international squad two years ago, in October 2008.

25 - The next month saw his team get off to a great start – beating Scotland 1-0 on 19 November.

26 - It hasn’t always been a bed of roses since then.  During the World Cup qualifiers the team lost by an astounding six goals to one against Bolivia. 

27 - Despite this terrible defeat the team managed to get through to the tournament.  To his critics (who were legion) Maradona retorted. "To those who did not believe: now suck my d**k - I'm sorry ladies for my words - and keep on sucking it. I am either white or black. I will never be grey in my life. You treated me as you did. Now keep on sucking d**ks. I am grateful to my players and to the Argentinean people. I thank no one but them. The rest, keep on sucking d**ks.”  Not one for revenge then.

28 - FIFA weren’t terribly happy about this foul mouthed outburst.  They slapped a two month ban on him.

29 - Maradona got his own verbal revenge against FIFA when he complained vociferously about the new ball to be used in the 2010 World Cup tournament in South Africa. "I would ask all Fifa directors to stop talking about me and to start working on having a proper football. This ball is useless. It's impossible to control."

30 - Back in 1998 he said, about the World Cup of that year. "The players have all got square feet. They are like Robocops, they have more need of lubricant than massage. I don't believe the tournament could be worse."

Image Credit Flickr User Diego 3336

31 - He will stick by his players.  When Lionel Messi failed to score a single goal in the 2010 tournament he said. “Anyone saying he didn't have a great World Cup is an idiot.”

32 - Yet some will stick the knife in.  A former team  mate, Valdano, said of him.  “He is someone many people want to emulate, a controversial figure, loved, hated, who stirs great upheaval, especially in Argentina... Stressing his personal life is a mistake. Maradona has no peers inside the pitch, but he has turned his life into a show, and is now living a personal ordeal that should not be imitated.”

33 - Such is his following back home, the Argentine Football Association asked FIFA to put his famous No 10 shirt in to retirement, in his honor.  Unsurprisingly, FIFA said, “No, niet, non”.

34 - Maradona has a stadium named after him – the team Argentinos Juniors honored him by naming their ground Estadio Diego Armando Maradona.

35 - Politics are something upon which Maradona has been more than willing to comment.  After the 1986 Hand of God incident he said about England: “It was as if we had beaten a country, more than just a football team."  The two countries had been at war for real only four years previously.

36 - Maradona has had his own personal problems with drugs.  Interviewed in 1996 he said: "I was, I am and I always will be a drug addict. A person who gets involved in drugs has to fight it every day."

37 - The new millennium came and FIFA in their wisdom decided to award a player of the century title.  They couldn’t make their minds up and in the end awarded it to Maradona and Pele jointly.  Maradona said: "The people voted for me. Now they want me to share the prize with Pele. I'm not going to share the prize with anybody."

38 - In 1990 he was held in such high esteem that when asked which players he was putting on the pitch the Argentinean Manager Carlos Billardo famously replied: “Maradona – and ten others.”

39 - Although Maradona has not done a Cantona and acted in movies he was the subject of a documentary by the Serbian Filmmaker Kusturica.  It made its world premier at Cannes in 2008.

40 - Sir Bobby Robson said of the player in 1986: "With Maradona, Arsenal could have won the World Cup." Bob Wilson said of Maradona: “a flawed genius who has now become a genius who is flawed.”

Image Credit Flickr User Paulo Camera

41 - FIFA have called his 1986 goal against England the Goal of the Century.  No, not the Hand of God goal – the one which happened four minutes afters when he dribbled past desultory defenders to put one past England goalie Peter Shilton.  That made the score 2-0.

42 - In 2006 at the World Cup in Germany Maradona fell out of his pram about Pele – again.  He refused to go to the tournament’s opening ceremony, saying "I'm not here to look at bloody Pele walking around."

43 - Pele got his own back.  This year, reflecting on Maradona’s tenure as Manager of the Argentinean National Squad, Pele said: “But it isn't Maradona's fault. It is the fault of whoever put him in charge.”

44 - Maradona’s average goal-per-game in domestic club competitions is 0.526

45 - After only Batistuta and Crespo he is the third highest goal scorer for Argentina – ever.

46 - Ever since 1986, it is common for Argentines abroad to hear Maradona's name as a token of recognition, even in remote places.

47 - Psychologists have even got in to the scramble to say things about the famous player.  Pyschologist Gustavo Bernstein has said: “Maradona is our maximum term of reference. No one embodies our essence better. No one bears our emblem more nobly. To no other, in the last twenty years, have we offered up so much passion. Argentina is Maradona, Maradona is Argentina.”

48 - Maradona’s fans are famous for being the ultimate devotees.  In 1998 they started the Church of Maradona in Argentina.  So this 2- October this year is actually 50 DD (Despues de Diego or After Diego).

49 - For all his ups and downs, Maradona remains one of the best player the world has ever seen.

50 - There is little doubt that everyone wishes him another very happy fifty years!

Wayne Rooney Gets Back on the Old Trafford Bus

What do you do just before you sign a five year contract for £41.6m?  Apologise rather sheepishly if you are a certain Wayne Rooney who today did both.  He bowed his head and said sorry for causing offence to the fans, hurting the players’ feelings and causing Sir Alex his most recent press headache.

Then he was sent to the naughty step.  Well, not really but following this week’s events which would rival many a northern soap opera for their sheer ups and downs (hesitation, rancour, soul searching followed ultimately by compromise and resolution) Rooney should perhaps spend a minute or two there.

As U-turns go this was a fairly major one and now he is back on the Old Trafford Bus he can expect to earn £160K a week with incentives of probably another £40 or so at least.  We don’t expect he will be receiving Child Benefit for the kids when it becomes mean tested in a few years but if it was behaviour tested his mum would still be getting it.

At least Rooney, then, has something to celebrate on his 25th birthday on Sunday.  You can just imagine the metaphorical birthday feast.  Colleen forcing a smile, her parents clenching their fists and a group of fans like Tiny Tim (or at least a very fed up one) at the butcher boys window.   Not heard that one?  The police had to be called on Thursday to remove angry fans from outside chez Wayne.  To say he has one or two bridges to rebuild is to put it lightly.

Ian Holloway, the Manger of Blackpool certainly had something to say about football's authorities for allowing Wayne Rooney to manufacture his exit from the club.
 


If his contract is extended to 2015 you can only hope that the bruised feelings and hurt he has caused this week can heal before that.

Image Credit Flickr User dullhunk