Jose Mourinho cynically said that his role should be downgraded from manager to head coach. He expressed his frustration after he didn't get players that he wanted in summer transfer window. The statement was apparently directed at Ed Woodward, Manchester United's executive vice-chairman.
Mourinho said this as quoted by The Guardian:
“It will be a difficult season for everybody, not just for us. I had my plans for many months and I find myself with the market closed in a situation I did not think I would be in. It’s the last time I speak about it. It’s over, the market is closed. That’s football management. I think football is changing and managers should be called head coaches.”
“We play against a team that invest more than us. They spent more money than us, so in the Premier League we must get used to teams with players of the same quality that we have. Forget the name, the history, the shirt, every match is difficult.”
So, what is the difference between manager and head coach in football?
Manager position is very English, you can't found it in most European leagues. In English Premier League (EPL) managers are also head coaches. They have power in transfer market as well as in the pitch. They can choose players they want in transfer market, schedule regular training for players, formulate the strategy, give instruction on the pitch, make press conference after match etc. They are simply the face of the club. The best example of a manager was Sir Alex Ferguson when he was a United's manager.
While in other European leagues they have head coaches. Head coaches usually only responsible for performance of team on the pitch, they don't have power over transfer of players and administration. To bridge between head coaches and management, there are Director of Football positions. So head coaches can voice their aspiration to management regarding transfer of players and other things.
And that's why Mourinho said that his role as a manager should be downgraded to a head coach. Because he feels that he doesn't have enough power to decide which players United should buy. Transfer of players is indeed part of strategy for a manager. Winning the league started from winning the transfer window, strategy on transfer window is as important as strategy on the pitch. That's why Mourinho is so frustrated with United's decision not to buy players he wanted.
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