Identikit manager

By Charlie Henderson

Saints confirm Woodward move

Sir Clive Woodward's much-predicted and long-awaited move into the realms of football has been confirmed.

There is still the small matter of overseeing a Lions series in New Zealand before his rugby retirement but after that it will be all-systems go in the footballing phase of his career, with a first step on the managerial ladder being in a behind-the-scenes role at Southampton.

"It is a new challenge and I have to start right at the bottom," Woodward has said. "I have a tremendous amount to learn from football."

As the change in career implies, Woodward is an innovative man. He is renowned for a meticulous approach but is more facilitator than traditional manager.

He leaves no stone unturned in pursuit of excellence and drafts in personnel who can aid and abet any prospect of success.

The professorial mastermind of England's 2003 rugby union World Cup success needs no pointers from self-styled management guru David Brent - but there are many legendary footballing figures in English football he can learn from.

All are revered as greats of the game and, while they had a host of skills that helped create success at their clubs, each also had one defining characteristic that is crucial to the composition of the ideal manager.

THE TALENT SPOTTER

Present Southampton boss Harry Redknapp is dubbed a wheeler-dealer in the transfer market but if Woodward wants to make a real impact he will have to follow the lead of Arsene Wenger.

The urbane Arsenal manager's little black book hooks up to a diverse scouting network and he knows how to skim off the cream of the talent he sees.

The Gunners have a wealth of young stars knocking on the door of the first team, which itself is crammed with excellence Wenger signed up at knockdown prices.

Patrick Vieira was picked out of AC Milan's reserves for £3.5m and Thierry Henry came on a £10.5m deal and is now rated in excess of £50m. However, the piece de resistance is Nicolas Anelka, who came for £500,000 and left for £23m.

THE NURTURER

It is one thing spotting potential talent but quite another knowing what to do with it and how to improve it.

Wenger is undoubtedly a modern-day master at both but, in terms of bringing the best out of players, even he is overshadowed by Sir Matt Busby.

The Scot made the most of Manchester United's youth policy to create a team that seemed set to dominate English football after winning the 1956 title with an average age of only 22.

The Munich air disaster put an end to that dream in 1958 but not Busby's vision of how football should be played and his trust in youth.

And he started all over again, creating a second free-flowing successful team.

THE REVOLUTIONARY

As well as success on the pitch in 23 years at the helm at Old Trafford, Busby revolutionised Manchester United, who were the city's second team and who did not even have a ground when he arrived in 1945.

But while his shadow looms large over the club, Herbert Chapman made an astonishing impact in a short time at Arsenal and left a more lasting legacy for the whole of English football.

As well as making Arsenal the game's dominant force in the 1930s, he changed a host of things off the pitch at The Arsenal - including the name, from which he dropped the "the" so they would gain greater exposure at the top of any alphabetical list.

He quite literally put them on the map when he persuaded London Underground to rename Gillespie Road tube station Arsenal and he was an early advocate of floodlights and numbered shirts, which have had a far-reaching impact beyond the confines of Highbury.

THE ENTHUSIAST

Like Chapman, Bill Shankly opted to change a kit - believing if Liverpool wore all red they would be a more imposing prospect for the opposition.

But it is his all-encompassing enthusiasm and commitment to football that mark him out as a special manager.

Those characteristics persuaded Liverpool chairman VT Williams to take him on in 1959 and the rest, as they say, is history.

Like Busby and Chapman, he restructured the whole club but it was his enthusiasm and confidence in his players that helped inspire them to greatness.

THE SLIP-STREAMER

Allied to loyalty for a club is the vital aspect of continuity, and the legendary Boot Room that "Shanks" set up helped Liverpool dominate the game in the 1970s and 1980s.

The Scot paved the way for Bob Paisley, who won even more trophies at Anfield, despite initially being sceptical about taking on the managerial role.

He stepped up from being the team physio to the boss, a role in which he enjoyed unparalleled success - winning six League titles, three League Cups, three European Cups and one Uefa Cup in nine years at the helm.

Paisley was a popular figure and a calm authority on the touchline, although he was also fiercely ruthless if and when needed, with the ability to bring the best out of his players.

THE MAN-MANAGER

It is said that Paisley, like many winning managers, made ordinary players good and good players great.

Brian Clough ensured that all his players reached the limit of their potential by the power of his personality, inspiring great confidence in those around him by whatever means necessary.

Like Jock Stein north of the border, he made a startling impact on two provincial clubs on his arrival as people responded to what he wanted and how he went about it.

And, despite his bravado, Clough also appreciated his own weaknesses and dovetailed well with assistant Peter Taylor, who was left to buy and select players, while 'Old Big Head' shaped them into winners.

THE COMMUNICATOR

The eccentric Clough is well-known for his one-liners such as "I wouldn't say I was the best manager in the business, but I was in the top one."

Today there is a new man on the scene with a deep reservoir of quotable views - starting with his belief that he is the "special one".

The modern manager faces huge pressure from the media but Chelsea's Jose Mourinho laps up the attention leaving his players free to concentrate on their football.

But his communication skills are crucial in the dressing room as well as the media conferences because he juggles the linguistic needs of his multi-national squad and he has huge empathy for their needs.

THE LONG-TERMER

Mourinho wants to create a dynasty at Chelsea and it is clear who he is taking his lead from - the red wine apart.

Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson is the most successful manager in English footballing history - if your criteria is silverware.

He is not a one-club man, having played for and managed various teams north of the border, most notably Aberdeen - where he proved himself by breaking the Old Firm duopoly.

But it is with United that he will forever be associated and, ignoring the silverware, his greatest success is his longevity at a club constantly under the microscope in an era of transient, quick-fix management.

THE ONE-CLUB MAN

"If you want to be a record breaker, dedication's what you need." Roy Castle may not often be mentioned in footballing managerial circles but he had a point.

Paisley was at Liverpool for 44 years but even that is overshadowed by Bill Nicholson, who served Tottenham with great distinction for more than 60 years as a player, coach, scout, club president and, most notably, manager.

He led Spurs to the double in 1961 and his teams played fast, fluent, push-and-run football - their attack-minded flair the complete opposite to the manager's blunt Yorkshire manner.

He lived within walking distance of White Hart Lane, which is not exactly Woodward's style, but the former England rugby boss will appreciate the time on his own driving to Southampton's training ground in his Jaguar - it is where he says he has his best ideas.

THE MASTER TACTICIAN

Great managers are linked to their tactics. Think Nicholson and you think of push-and-run, think Sir Alf Ramsey and it is his "Wingless Wonders".

Think Woodward now and it would be up-and-under, but Saints fans need not necessarily fear they are going to become long-ball humpers if the new man does eventually move into the top job on the south coast.

Ramsey learned his trade at Ipswich before moving on to the international stage and winning the ultimate prize with England at the 1966 World Cup, courtesy of stubborn organisation and a strong team ethic.

Rafael Benitez has proved an equally shrewd operator when it comes to tactics as his backs-to-the-wall Champions League success shows.

Woodward will want to make a similar impact on English football as the Liverpool boss and Mourinho before emulating Ramsey, as he would dearly love, on the international stage.

To do so he will have to take a bit from each of these greats - or at least find a man who can tick the boxes to do the job underneath his overall supervision - but he would do well to remember one piece of advice from David Brent.

"Be careful because there is always someone ready to step into your shoes and do your job better than you do it."

Woodward take note.