One of Roberto Mancini’s closest allies in football, Sven-Goran Eriksson, has backed the Italian to bounce back from his dismissal at Manchester City but stopped short of condemning his former club for their treatment of his protégé.
Mancini played under Eriksson at Sampdoria and Lazio and the two men have remained close since with the outgoing City boss previously remarking that the Swede was “like a brother” to him.
Eriksson brokered Mancini’s short-term move to Leicester City before appointing him as his assistant during his final year with Lazio.
Successful managerial stints with Fiorentina, Lazio and Inter Milan followed before Mancini was appointed as Mark Hughes’ successor at City in 2009.
An FA Cup triumph and the club’s first league title in 44 years in his first two years in charge have failed to appease City’s Abu Dhabi owners, though, with Mancini axed after a trophyless 2013.
Speaking to Sport360° Eriksson, who is currently technical director at Al Nasr, offered his sympathies but was remarkably philosophical about his close friend’s departure.
“I feel sorry for him,” said Eriksson. “He was a player for me for many, many years but that’s life in football. It isn’t nice but we have to face it.”
Mancini is beeing tipped to make an immediate return to football with ambitious French side AS Monaco reportedly keen on his services, and Eriksson has backed him to be a success in the future. “Mancini will have a long and a very good career ahead of him, make no mistake.”
Despite winning City’s first league title since 1968 as well as the FA Cup in 2011 – their first trophy since the league cup back in 1976 – Mancini was dismissed less than 48 hours after defeat to Wigan Athletic in the FA Cup final.
City expressed their “regret” at the Italian’s sacking but amid suggestions he clashed key players and executives, the club said the Italian said had failed to meet their targets and implement “a holistic approach” .
Eriksson, who led City to ninth place in his one season in charge at the club, refused to be drawn on the reasons for Mancini’s demise. “I don’t know, they [the owners] have invested a lot of money so they want trophies, it is only something to accept and life goes on,” he said.
Talking to Sport360° back in February, Eriksson insisted Mancini was was the right man for the job.
“I think the players still want to play for Mancini,” he said. “He is a good coach and pressure, I don’t think he feels it. He feels it obviously, but I don’t think it disturbs him, he has been in that seat so many times.”
Where Mancini goes from here remains to be seen.
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– Setting the record straight: Eriksson on his Man Utd ‘move’
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