“I’m an honest man, I’ve never lied in my life.”
Tony Adams must be wondering if he’s lying to himself right now about whether or not he’s capable of keeping a poor Spanish team afloat in La Liga.
In the last couple of years alone, David Moyes, Gary Neville and now the Arsenal legend have made the trip to Spain to head up three different clubs and each will be as short-lived and as painful as the next.
In the last couple of days alone, Tony Adams has come across as a bit of a mug, if we’re being brutally honest.
With six games remaining, his new side Granada are seven points from safety but next up is just a journey to fourth-placed outfit Sevilla, with them lying just three adrift of Atletico.
It’s amazing and a little cruel how quickly a legend can be shone in a completely different light. Tony Adams is no longer sticking his head where most wouldn’t flick a toe into. He’s no longer playing football with the sort of distinction that saw them erect a statue of him outside of the Emirates. He’s a manager now and looks to be out of his depth once more.
So far in his career – in his managerial career, because how he could kick a ball is neither here nor there anymore – the former England captain has struggled.
Wycombe Wanderers
- 12 months
- Relegation to League Two
Portsmouth
- 16 games
- Won 10 points
Gabala
- 17 months
- Returned as Sporting Director
From Wycombe to Portsmouth to Azerbaijan, Adams has so far failed in management but he’s been handed a rescue mission in one of the best leagues in the world anyway.
It’s safe to say that after his first training session though, he probably already lost the dressing room.
Tony Adams manages his first Granada game at 7:45pm on @SkySports 1.
Expect to see more of this on the sideline 😂
— Soccer AM (@SoccerAM) April 16, 2017
Maybe that happened sooner when he exclaimed that he was coming in to kick some arse.
And after a 3-0 loss at home in his first game, he tried to maintain his brave persona.
Asked a question by Spanish football reporter Sid Lowe, Adams stuck to the trusted formula.
“Good question, Sid.” he responded to the question. Always say it’s a good question. Always use their name when you can. Always be in control.
Unfortunately, there was just a minor detail that let him down.
“I don’t know how to answer. What was your first question?”
Our @sidlowe asked Tony Adams a question in the post match press conference last night (after a 3-0 defeat) which left him a bit baffled pic.twitter.com/cAQbrhfrf9
— The Spanish Football Podcast (@tsf_podcast) April 17, 2017
Regardless, he went on to exclaim La Liga as ‘the best league in the world’ before cracking, “just don’t tell the English that,” haha.
Naturally, the jokes and grandstanding don’t amount to much when you’re losing.
