Damien Comolli

[Martin Scorsese]

Does anyone know if Eduardo Macia is still working at LFC, or was he dispensed with when the club appointed Damien Comolli as Director of Football Stratgey?

 

I think he is still here. I seem to remember Comolli or Roy mention him in interviews, but I am not totally certain.

[StevieH]

Although Eduardo Macia and the current & previous managers deserve flak for authorising some truly awful signings, the scouts around the world that are actually watching these players regularly need to be made accountable as well.

 

Presumably someone must have personally watched the likes of Itandje, Degen, Dossena, Voronin, Plessis, Paletta etc and then recommended them to Macia/Benitez.

 

Changing the person at the top of the food chain is a positive move, but the whole scouting system at the club probably needs a huge cull as well.

[Carradona]

It was mentioned in that Sky Sports article linking us with Samaras, that Macia was the one enquiring about him. So yes Stevie, I would assume he is still here.

 

Unfortunately for us, Macia is a deaf cunt and won't even hear the Celtic fans say that Samaras is useless.

[Turkish Delight]

I can see the sense in that, and I'm (largely) reserving judgement for the time being. What really worries me is the possibility that Roy might be here for the long haul.

 

The only way I can see that happening would be if NESV's strategy is minimum investment on the squad with an eye on selling for a huge profit in a couple more years once any stadium work has been done.

 

I understand that such a scenario is not worth panicking about as they could equally end up being good owners but I would say that the level of good will shown so far from many people is beyond the cautious welcome being spoken about a couple of months ago.

 

I understand the cause of that is the demise and humiliation of the other cunts but I think we would be foolish to just assume NESV are going to do the right thing by us just because they say they will. We have been there before after all and only when I have seen them consistently act in the correct way will I believe it.

[StevieH]

Liverpool's Damien Comolli returns to Tottenham under the spotlight

 

• Frenchman faces flak for claims over players he 'discovered'

• Redknapp angry over poaching of Spurs scout in France

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• David Hytner
  
• guardian.co.uk, Friday 26 November 2010 22.30 GMT
  
• Article history
  

Damien Comolli, right, with the Tottenham chairman Daniel Levy. The Frenchman was sacked by Spurs in 2008. Photograph: Matt Dunham/AP

 

Damien Comolli faces a frosty reception on his return to Tottenham Hotspur , after the manager Harry Redknapp joined his Arsenal counterpart Arsène Wenger in questioning the director's worth.

 

Comolli, who was appointed as Liverpool's director of football strategy earlier this month, held the position of sporting director at White Hart Lane from 2005 to 2008 and, before that, he had worked as a European scout at Arsenal for seven years.

 

The Frenchman has angered prominent figures at both north London clubs by talking up the role that he played in the recruitment of certain players. His claim, for example, that it was he who conceived the signing of Dimitar Berbatov at Tottenham in 2006 has numbered among the many to go down badly at the club. His predecessor in the role, Frank Arnesen, had done the legwork on the Berbatov deal.

 

Sources at Tottenham say that the only discovery Comolli made was that of the left-back Benoît Assou-Ekotto, while they also mock him for electing to pursue the signing of the striker Darren Bent from Charlton Athletic in 2007 rather than follow up the club's initial interest in Fernando Torres, who would join Liverpool from Atlético Madrid that same summer. It ought to be noted that Torres was realistically only ever going to leave Spain for Anfield.

 

Comolli has been happy to accept the credit for some of Wenger's signings – in particular, Kolo Touré, Emmanuel Eboué and Gaël Clichy – but, again, this has not been well received at Arsenal. Wenger's relationship with Comolli is strained.

 

"I let you write what you want [about Comolli]," Wenger said. "He was a scout here and not a director of football. He worked under Steve Rowley [the chief scout]. That is it. Only one person decides who comes in here and that is me. Nobody else."

 

Comolli was sacked by Tottenham in October 2008, together with the coach Juande Ramos, to pave the way for Redknapp's arrival in a more traditional management structure. At the time of his departure, Tottenham were bottom of the Premier League, with two points from eight matches.

 

Comolli was criticised by the Spurs chairman Daniel Levy for overseeing the sales of Berbatov and another striker, Robbie Keane, in the summer of that year, and failing to replace them adequately, leaving the squad unbalanced. Comolli points out that on his watch, Tottenham signed success stories such as Berbatov, Gareth Bale, Luka Modric, Heurelho Gomes and Assou-Ekotto.

 

"I am happy when people around Europe come to me and say they're my players and that they're doing well," Comolli said, in a recent interview. "I've had so much positive feedback since I've left Tottenham and I hope people now understand what the job was about. I give Harry full credit for adding a resilience which wasn't there before, but he had very good players to work with. He was fortunate to get into a club which is wealthy, organised and well run."

 

Redknapp told Levy that he would not come to Tottenham if he had to work under a sporting director and he made it clear what he thought of Comolli. "Yeah, I think he should take all the credit, for sure," Redknapp said, sarcastically. "They were all doing well when I arrived, you know. They were all good; they were all great."

 

Liverpool's new owner, John W Henry of New England Sports Ventures, appointed Comolli, with the manager Roy Hodgson not involved in the recruitment process.

 

Hodgson has insisted that he retains the final say on transfers.

 

"Damien has got a big network in France and abroad," Redknapp said. "And if he can work with Roy and they discuss who they're going to bring in, which I'm sure they will, then it's not such a problem perhaps. They may get on great together."

 

In an interesting twist, Comolli has taken Tottenham's principal overseas scout, Steve Hitchen, to Liverpool. "He's nicked him off us," Redknapp said. "Steve was excellent, an English boy who lives in France. We liked him a lot."

[StevieH]

Liverpool's Damien Comolli returns to Tottenham under the spotlight

 

• Frenchman faces flak for claims over players he 'discovered'

• Redknapp angry over poaching of Spurs scout in France

• 
  
  • 
    
  • Share8
    
  • 
    
  • 
    

• David Hytner
  
• guardian.co.uk, Friday 26 November 2010 22.30 GMT
  
• Article history
  

Damien Comolli, right, with the Tottenham chairman Daniel Levy. The Frenchman was sacked by Spurs in 2008. Photograph: Matt Dunham/AP

 

Damien Comolli faces a frosty reception on his return to Tottenham Hotspur , after the manager Harry Redknapp joined his Arsenal counterpart Arsène Wenger in questioning the director's worth.

 

Comolli, who was appointed as Liverpool's director of football strategy earlier this month, held the position of sporting director at White Hart Lane from 2005 to 2008 and, before that, he had worked as a European scout at Arsenal for seven years.

 

The Frenchman has angered prominent figures at both north London clubs by talking up the role that he played in the recruitment of certain players. His claim, for example, that it was he who conceived the signing of Dimitar Berbatov at Tottenham in 2006 has numbered among the many to go down badly at the club. His predecessor in the role, Frank Arnesen, had done the legwork on the Berbatov deal.

 

Sources at Tottenham say that the only discovery Comolli made was that of the left-back Benoît Assou-Ekotto, while they also mock him for electing to pursue the signing of the striker Darren Bent from Charlton Athletic in 2007 rather than follow up the club's initial interest in Fernando Torres, who would join Liverpool from Atlético Madrid that same summer. It ought to be noted that Torres was realistically only ever going to leave Spain for Anfield.

 

Comolli has been happy to accept the credit for some of Wenger's signings – in particular, Kolo Touré, Emmanuel Eboué and Gaël Clichy – but, again, this has not been well received at Arsenal. Wenger's relationship with Comolli is strained.

 

"I let you write what you want [about Comolli]," Wenger said. "He was a scout here and not a director of football. He worked under Steve Rowley [the chief scout]. That is it. Only one person decides who comes in here and that is me. Nobody else."

 

Comolli was sacked by Tottenham in October 2008, together with the coach Juande Ramos, to pave the way for Redknapp's arrival in a more traditional management structure. At the time of his departure, Tottenham were bottom of the Premier League, with two points from eight matches.

 

Comolli was criticised by the Spurs chairman Daniel Levy for overseeing the sales of Berbatov and another striker, Robbie Keane, in the summer of that year, and failing to replace them adequately, leaving the squad unbalanced. Comolli points out that on his watch, Tottenham signed success stories such as Berbatov, Gareth Bale, Luka Modric, Heurelho Gomes and Assou-Ekotto.

 

"I am happy when people around Europe come to me and say they're my players and that they're doing well," Comolli said, in a recent interview. "I've had so much positive feedback since I've left Tottenham and I hope people now understand what the job was about. I give Harry full credit for adding a resilience which wasn't there before, but he had very good players to work with. He was fortunate to get into a club which is wealthy, organised and well run."

 

Redknapp told Levy that he would not come to Tottenham if he had to work under a sporting director and he made it clear what he thought of Comolli. "Yeah, I think he should take all the credit, for sure," Redknapp said, sarcastically. "They were all doing well when I arrived, you know. They were all good; they were all great."

 

Liverpool's new owner, John W Henry of New England Sports Ventures, appointed Comolli, with the manager Roy Hodgson not involved in the recruitment process.

 

Hodgson has insisted that he retains the final say on transfers.

 

"Damien has got a big network in France and abroad," Redknapp said. "And if he can work with Roy and they discuss who they're going to bring in, which I'm sure they will, then it's not such a problem perhaps. They may get on great together."

 

In an interesting twist, Comolli has taken Tottenham's principal overseas scout, Steve Hitchen, to Liverpool. "He's nicked him off us," Redknapp said. "Steve was excellent, an English boy who lives in France. We liked him a lot."

[StevieH]

BILLY NO BEANE COUNTER

 

 

 

Damien Comolli, left, greets new Anfield American owner John Henry.

 

 

Saturday November 27,2010

 

By Paul Joyce

 

 

Have your say(0)

 

AS EVER with Billy Beane, there was an eye-catching number to grab the attention.

 

 

Fabled general manager of the Oakland A’s baseball team, Beane has burst on to public consciousness at Liverpool given his close ties with the club’s new owners. And his words of reassurance carry weight.

“John Henry knows how to run his sports clubs,” said Beane. “He wants to win not just for today, but for the next 100 years.

“Liverpool fans should be really happy that John decided to buy their club.”

 

 

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Just six weeks ago Beane’s name would have meant little to Anfield supporters. Yet now, a closer study of what Henry is trying to do on Merseyside means Beane’s career, already chronicled in the book Moneyball and soon to be transferred to the silver screen with Brad Pitt in the lead role, is an unmistakable reference point.

It was Beane who put Henry in touch with Damien Comolli, prompting his appointment as Liverpool’s director of football strategy. Beane’s fondness for sabermetrics, the use of statistics to narrow the risks involved in player recruitment, has also been closely followed by both men.

Many a misconception abounds regarding this new principle. Henry’s Fenway Sports Group are undoubtedly opportunists, lured to Anfield not by a deep-rooted love for the club but a £300million deal that was too good to turn down. But the perception they will now fund the club’s renaissance on the cheap is flawed.

The Boston Red Sox, one of Henry’s other sporting loves, have one of the highest payrolls in baseball. They are not afraid to spend, and spend well – as two World Series testify.

SEARCH FOOTBALL for:

 

 

“Football’s strength is its spontaneity and the fact it is free-flowing,” said Beane. “It is far easier to measure a player’s worth in baseball and cricket.

“John won’t simply try and impose something that works in baseball on football. But what he is likely to do is look to see whether the practices we use can make his football team run more efficiently. Surely that’s a good thing.

“People take a step back whenever stats are mentioned, but measurements are used in every sport. Every day, people look at the Premier League table. Who’s top? How many points are we behind?

“There is a perception with metrics that we are not looking to spend money, but that is completely incorrect. Good players can cost a lot of money, but just because someone is paid a lot of money doesn’t automatically mean he’s good.

“We are just trying to avoid the mispricing of players.”

Given all those millions squandered over two decades on the likes of El-Hadji Diouf, Alberto Aquilani and Andrea Dossena, Liverpool more than most would benefit from that approach. However, scepticism remains – also in regard to the director of football model that Henry has introduced. It has not worked in England thus far, but that does not mean that it cannot.

Frenchman Comolli returns to White Hart Lane tomorrow having been sacked in 2008 by Tottenham as Juande Ramos’s reign nosedived – but with his credibility seemingly enhanced by the passage of time. More than half of the Spurs side who swept aside Werder Bremen on Wednesday were signed during his tenure. He first established contact with Beane after reading Moneyball, and they spent time together at the World Cup in 2006. Beane visited Tottenham. Comolli visited Oakland. And they remained in touch.

“Recommendation is too strong a word. I introduced John to Damien, but John is savvy. He makes his own decisions,” said Beane, who was on the verge of becoming Henry’s general manager at the Red Sox until a late change of heart. “I have known Damien for a long time and we are friends. He’s a clever guy and I’ve enjoyed seeing the success the players he took to Spurs have since had.

“We have general managers in baseball, but it is the same principle as a director of football. You are just spreading the knowledge around and if everyone pulls in the same direction, it will work. But if it’s fragmented then that is when problems can arise. John is putting a strategy in place at Liverpool.

“When decisions, particularly in football, are made purely with the short term in mind you can see what happens. Portsmouth and Leeds did that and have not recovered.”

The supporters might raise eyebrows that Henry should turn to a legendary figure in a sport that remains alien to many in England for advice. Yet Beane’s interest in football runs far deeper than that of casual observer.

When Liverpool brushed aside Chelsea he was huddled around his television, blown away by the majesty of Fernando Torres’s goals but also picking up on Dirk Kuyt’s performance.

“It was great to see Kuyt come straight back into the team and immediately provide an assist for Torres. His energy is so important to the way Liverpool play,” said Beane, who has also worked with Major League Soccer side San Jose Earthquakes. “I liked Yossi Benayoun, too, and it’s a shame he left.

“Everyone thinks their own particular sport is best, but I started taking a personal interest in football because the rest of the world is so engrossed with it.

“From visiting Damien at Tottenham, Chelsea’s academy, and studying Arsene Wenger, I have applied things from the Premier League to baseball.

“The detail with which you look at nutrition for players is something I brought back over here. Now, I can’t wait to come to Anfield.

“Hopefully, there’ll be good times to come.”‘The new owner has a great strategy so fans should be really happy’

[marcus50bucks]

In all honesty I still have doubts about a dof. I don't see much positives with this appointment. I have this horrible feeling Comoli's going to do to us what he did to spurs, which is to make unecessary signings and make our squad unbalanced. I remember many of criticising spurs a few years ago for constantly being in the paper about signing players for positions that didn't really need filling. Their squad was so unbalanced when Comoli was there.

[Frankenhooker]

As that Guardian article states, Torres was only going to join Liverpool so bringing his name into it is daft, also Bent is a top striker, better than any forward Spurs presently have. His confidence was completely shattered by Redknapp to the point that staying wasn't possible.

 

While I do believe Comolli likes to blow his own trumpet, Redknapp can fuck off. This is a manager that has won one trophy in his managerial career and has left a number of clubs in an absolutely dire financial position and now thinks he's among the elite. He's nothing but a crook whose word shouldn't be trusted, and certainly not pandered to.

[StevieH]

As that Guardian article states, Torres was only going to join Liverpool so bringing his name into it is daft, also Bent is a top striker, better than any forward Spurs presently have. His confidence was completely shattered by Redknapp to the point that staying wasn't possible.

 

While I do believe Comolli likes to blow his own trumpet, Redknapp can fuck off. This is a manager that has won one trophy in his managerial career and has left a number of clubs in an absolutely dire financial position and now thinks he's among the elite. He's nothing but a crook whose word shouldn't be trusted, and certainly not pandered to.

 

So too does Harry Redknapp. Every club that he has managed has gone into financial meltdown after he and sometimes Peter Storrie have left.

[Frankenhooker]

So too does Harry Redknapp. Every club that he has managed has gone into financial meltdown after he and sometimes Peter Storrie have left.

 

 

 

It staggers me that the media seem completely oblivious to that. Wasn't Redknapp in court during the week to try and get this tax evasion case threw out, does anyone know how that went ?

[Trucker Paddy]

I'm all for the DOF position, Benitez pissing away millions in his last 2 summers convinced me no 1 man should have the complete say on transfers unless he's proven over a number of years if been succesful.

Hodgson won't be here next summer so it's not gona be an issue with him.

[caracaracara]

I have worked with a lot of good Fench pepole and you only have to look at Houllier - it inside them to exagerate their own importance and involvement in soemthing and are very good a spin. This is a consistent trait I have observed.

 

So, on a personal level they are very good people but on a business level 'watch your back' otherwise they may 'steal' you efforts and good work. As I say, this is a consistent observation of over 10 years.

 

Comolli is doing exactly this and very cleverly not locking down eveything, where he knows he would get shot down but enough to make it appear that he had major influence.

 

I happy he is here in the short run until we get rid of Hodgson.

[05 Milan]

Droopy needs to shut the f up, as usual.

[Guest TesticleOReilly]

It staggers me that the media seem completely oblivious to that. Wasn't Redknapp in court during the week to try and get this tax evasion case threw out, does anyone know how that went ?

 

They choose not to talk about it, at least in derogatory terms.

[The Tott]

Harry = Peter Storrie - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 

If you think harry is a saviour, well ......

[coop]

That article is full of shite to be honest .

 

It states a DOF has not worked in England but isn't that what Chelsea have and they are the current Premier League champions.

 

It also states that Comolli can only be credited for signing one good player and the whole article comes across as a sour grapes story from someone who appears upset that they have lost a valuable scout.

 

It also mentions Arsene Wenger but he doesn't really have a go at Comolli but purely says is was a scout there and that Wenger had the final say on transfers.

 

I can remember when Comolli was first appointed that Wenger was full of praise for him.

[zigackly]

Anyone would think we were playing Spurs soon or something.

[lifetime fan]

Anyone would think we were playing Spurs soon or something.

 

Bingo.

[The Tott]

Anyone would think we were playing Spurs soon or something.

 

dead on

[StevieH]

That article is full of shite to be honest .

 

It states a DOF has not worked in England but isn't that what Chelsea have and they are the current Premier League champions.

 

It also states that Comolli can only be credited for signing one good player and the whole article comes across as a sour grapes story from someone who appears upset that they have lost a valuable scout.

 

It also mentions Arsene Wenger but he doesn't really have a go at Comolli but purely says is was a scout there and that Wenger had the final say on transfers.

 

I can remember when Comolli was first appointed that Wenger was full of praise for him.

 

Spot on.

 

Wenger actually defended Comolli when he was getting stick at Spurs.

[Trucker Paddy]

Chelsea have just announced Frank Arnesen is leaving at end of season according to Matt Law from the Express

[stringvest]

We have never done that.

 

The closest we came to doing that sort of thing was when we picked up Irish players in the 70's. Oh, and Hypvia of course.

[05 Milan]

Anyone would think we were playing Spurs soon or something.

 

Well duh! It's the most obvious story to pick from ahead of the game. Well, I know I would have went for that angle..

[ngogswilly]

Haha Redknapp having a dig with his sarcastic comments the cheeky fucker.

 

Yes Harry the players weren't doing great but Comolli hardly left you with shite now did he. Juande Ramos was the problem with those players not Comolli.