Ex-players as pundits and managers

[dww]

Reading the thread about Whelan I was struck by a thought that so many ex-Liverpool players from both our great teams and those of the 90s are well known pundits yet none are managers at the top levels of the game. A number of United players from the 90s are now managers so what is it that differentiates the two groups?

I guess there is an element of the fact that management moved on as the PL grew up and foreign ideas took hold.

I actually find the standard of punditry in general including from our ex-players is less than wonderful. So maybe it is simply that those that can't do anything useful in terms of coaching management try their hands at being gob****es.

[Rafael Benítez Maudes]

which pundits do you people like?
and who are the "gob****es"?

[red g]

Reading the thread about Whelan I was struck by a thought that so many ex-Liverpool players from both our great teams and those of the 90s are well known pundits yet none are managers at the top levels of the game. A number of United players from the 90s are now managers so what is it that differentiates the two groups?

I guess there is an element of the fact that management moved on as the PL grew up and foreign ideas took hold.

I actually find the standard of punditry in general including from our ex-players is less than wonderful. So maybe it is simply that those that can't do anything useful in terms of coaching management try their hands at being gob****es.

but most of them have tried and failed in management/coaching havent they?

i dont think there is a differentiator i think its quite simply great players dont necessarily make great managers.....or pundits for that matter!

many of the greats of both united and liverpool have spectacularly failed in management.

aslso there is the timescale thing here maybe the 90's players of scum will become pundits in another few years?

[dww]

In terms of ex-players:
I quite like Lawrenson but he is an undoubted gob****e.
Collymore is a decent presenter but an utterly infuriating gob****e as a pundit.
Robbie Fowler and McManaman I like but offer very little by way of insight.
Everything I read from Whelan annoys me although I don't watch Irish Setanta so he could conceivably be misrepresented.
Hanson was good but increasingly seems to soft pedal criticisms or degenerate into self parody.
Jamie Redknapp - why, oh why does he have a job as a pundit? Also could someone ask him to wear slightly less tight trousers please.
Souness - again only seen him on UK TV but he is full of criticism of everything and offers little of interest.
Actually Danny Murphy was decent when I saw him the other day.

Others:
Andy Grey has a mental obsession with technology and offers minimal insight while falling in with the tabloid story driven style of Sky which I hate.
Alan Green - likes the sound of his own voice, irritating fog horn like gob****e
Graham Taylor - Like him says a lot of interesting things. Seems quite old fashioned but willing to accept that other opinions are valid.
David Pleat - Oscillates between interesting insight and baffling nonsense.
Alan Shearer - never knowingly says anything of consequence

[Shaggy]

Danny Murphy will one day make an excellent pundit.

[dww]

but most of them have tried and failed in management/coaching havent they?

i dont think there is a differentiator i think its quite simply great players dont necessarily make great managers.....or pundits for that matter!

many of the greats of both united and liverpool have spectacularly failed in management.

aslso there is the timescale thing here maybe the 90's players of scum will become pundits in another few years?

I was meaning that there are a few United players - Hughes and Bruce spring to mind but a number have at least short term done well such as Ince and Keane. None of our players from a similar era or even the one before where we were in the position of United as the best team in the country.

Also there seem fewer former United players as pundits even though they were more successful in recent years.

[liverpoolrat]

but most of them have tried and failed in management/coaching havent they?

i dont think there is a differentiator i think its quite simply great players dont necessarily make great managers.....or pundits for that matter!

many of the greats of both united and liverpool have spectacularly failed in management.

aslso there is the timescale thing here maybe the 90's players of scum will become pundits in another few years?

no doubt about, Hansen is a great pundit. The Spannish will the same of Michael Robinson I believe.

Jamie Redknapp is growing on me. He's getting a bit ballsier now, sitting on the fence less, and I think he's quite funny.

I don't mind McManaman or McAteer either to be honest- and one player that will make a really good pundit in 5 years is Danny Murphy.

All the Barneses, Venisons, Houhgtons, etc are dull as dishwater. Not offensive about the club in any way, just not particularly interesting.

[dww]

Danny Murphy will one day make an excellent pundit.

He does seem to have some talent at it that's for sure.

On a related note Hodgson always talks well about football too.

[liverpoolrat]

Weird we all thought the same thing about Murphy independantly...

Shame he left when he did, he had a couple more season in him at Anfield

[Shaggy]

Danny's different to most footballers - he's articulate and actually has a personality.

[Jack D Rips]

Keegan and Dalglish didnt do too badly

[red g]

I was meaning that there are a few United players - Hughes and Bruce spring to mind but a number have at least short term done well such as Ince and Keane. None of our players from a similar era or even the one before where we were in the position of United as the best team in the country.

Also there seem fewer former United players as pundits even though they were more successful in recent years.

daglish, keegan, souness, steve nicol, steve staunton

[dww]

Steve Staunton doesn't really count as he was an abject failure and didn't really last in a job he got purely through his name.

I'd forgotten about Nicol to be honest.

I guess I was discounting Dalglish as he got his first job with us (when we already had a good team) which is probably unfair. Souness is a very fair point too.

[Joe King]

Keegan and Dalglish didnt do too badly

As managers or as pundits? As pundits, Keegan is awful. Dalglish offers real good insight, if you can understand him of course.

I agree with Shaggy and dww, Murphy seems to be a good pundit, he was on last weeks MOTD2, no?

Gary Gillespie is quite good on the Liverpool channel, offers good insight and reasonable analysis from the gantry or from the studio. Very passionate about the club which is allowed on a Liverpool channel.

David Fairclough is ok, I think he still holds a grudge with Jordy Brouwer.

[saj]

Keegan, Dalglish, Souness (for Rangers), Steve Nicol and John Toshak have all done well as managers