Football: A word of advice: give up the day job

Conrad Leach learns that being a national coach is a full-time task

"I DON'T think I've got enough hours in the day for my job."

No, that is not Alex Ferguson talking about the pressures of managing Manchester United or Arsene Wenger, Arsenal's workaholic Frenchman. Instead, in the week when Kevin Keegan confidently took on the role of managing England part-time, while remaining in charge at Fulham, those telling words were uttered by Bobby Gould, the manager of Wales.

His job is not, you might think, a leading candidate for the most exacting in the footballing world. After all Wales have not played a Euro 2000 qualifier since October and don't play one again until the end of next month, but Gould, a manager for 18 years, does not have any difficulty in filling his hours with matters concerning the national side.

He explains his role and you begin to think that not just Keegan but Gould has bitten off more than he can chew, and he has only got the one job to worry about. "I'm in control of the teams from the under-16s through to the full senior side." At the same time he shares the scouting duties with his assistant Graham Williams; that is a role Keegan will be thankful he can pass on to Howard Wilkinson.

Wales have won their last two internationals to go second in their group and Gould believes that he is finally reaping the benefits, after three and a half years in charge, of having had the time - something Keegan will be conspicuously short of with England - to nurture his side.

Gould feels that if England are to prosper in the long term, they need to appoint someone on a permanent basis. "Part of managing an international team is building up relationships with players over time," he explained. "As good a motivator as anybody is, personal relationships on the international set-up are built up over a period of time, like at a football club. You go to a game and afterwards you talk to players." Unless Keegan is thinking of drafting in some of the Fulham team to the national side, then that is one thing he certainly will not be doing between now and England's next game, with Poland on 27 March.

But if Keegan is looking for positive precedents to get England to Euro 2000, he need look no further than his old adversary Ferguson. He was still manager of Aberdeen in October 1985 when he took temporary charge of Scotland after Jock Stein's death and guided them through a World Cup play-off and to the finals in Mexico the following summer. That same season Aberdeen won both the domestic cups, but even so Ferguson still believes that his club suffered because of his divided loyalties.

On the other hand, Bobby Robson thought he could still coach Ipswich Town on accepting the England post in 1982, but he was not encouraged by the then chief executive of the Football Association, Bert Millichip.

Robson quickly realised why and has now warned Keegan of the workload facing him. "You've got to get around and go abroad and see your opponents - there are so many things attached to the job. You also need a good rapport with other managers, and if you're running your own club you haven't got time for that. It's certainly not a part-time job in the long term, not by any means."

Further warning against continuing in a part-time vein comes from Eric Ribbeck, the vastly experienced German national coach. Ribbeck has managed several German club sides as well as the German B and Olympic teams, so he was under no illusions about what his workload would be. Even concentrating his efforts solely on the national side has not led to a perfect start in their Euro 2000 campaign. He says: "I couldn't imagine that I could be coach of a league club as well. The way I see it, it would be very time-intensive. As national manager there aren't only the games, but also in between the games there are lots of things to oversee."

Ribbeck has to get through an immense diet of matches and travelling, and he adds: "There are so many sides to the job, including the media, who all want interviews. Given all that, I would exclude the thought that I could still train a league club. I couldn't imagine the same thing working here. It's never been done in Germany and would probably never happen."

Yet actions similar to Keegan's are possibly part of a current trend. Vanderley Luxemburgo at first mixed managing Brazil after last summer's World Cup finals with his club duties at Corinthians but he has now abandoned his club tasks to his assistant, while both Russia and Slovakia at present have coaches doubling up.

But Robson, who took England to the semi-finals of Italia 90, sums up the situation that now confronts Keegan. With Euro 2000 qualification on the line, he warns: "The pressure of winning makes the job more time- consuming. We're not looking for part-time results."