Football: High ambition to be a Don in Milan

Exclusive: Only a European giant could lure Joe Kinnear away. By Andrew Warshaw

HE IS asked the same questions over and over again, and gives the same answers every time. Yes, he's happy at Wimbledon. No, he's not going to manage Spurs. Yes, of course he wishes he had more money to spend on players. But no, he's not in the least jealous of those at more high- profile clubs.

But now, Joe Kinnear has revealed a new and fascinating aspect to his future ambitions in football. As he takes the team who have fewer supporters than any other Premiership side to Filbert Street for this afternoon's televised game at Leicester, Kinnear revealed on Friday that only foreign pastures would lure him away from Selhurst Park.

"I can't see anything wrong with staying at Wimbledon while I am still in English football," Kinnear said. "People say I have no ambition but everyone keeps pigeon-holing me with the job at Spurs every time a managerial vacancy arises just because I had 12 years there as a player.

"Spurs are not the be-all and end-all of my life. I'd like eventually to finish my education in Europe, preferably with a big club like Barcelona or Milan. I've been in the Premiership all my managerial career. Now, I'd only want to go abroad. That, if you like, is where my ambitions lie. I'd like to follow someone such as Robson."

While some would seriously dispute whether managing Wimbledon qualifies Kinnear for a job at the Nou Camp or the San Siro, there is a convincing argument to suggest the opposite. If he can keep Wimbledon in the Premiership on limited resources season after season, imagine what he could achieve with the unlimited funds which would be at his disposal at one of the European giants.

For the moment, Kinnear is happy to keep biding his time in the hope that Wimbledon will become a higher-profile club. A resurrected move to Dublin? A new stadium in London? He hedges his bets. "There are things I can't talk about, but put it this way: there are a lot of things going on in the background to make this club big and special and I'm going to be a part of that."

He talks with pride about being a barometer for other small clubs such as Macclesfield, promoted in their first season, and Halifax, who have just returned from the conference. "We sent them both a fax at the end of last season. They replied saying how much we were a flagship for their own ambitions."

Kinnear, 51, has already been offered a place on the Wimbledon board by the chairman, Sam Hamman, with whom he has a remarkably cordial relationship. Indeed, such loyalty - a word that is becoming increasingly passe in football - is something Kinnear cherishes.

"This club have looked after me and my family and as long as I'm doing a good job here, I intend to stay. However, I am vulnerable, like all managers, and things could, in theory, go sideways."

Unlikely, given Kinnear's track record of keeping Wimbledon in the top flight. Every pre-season, they are favourites for the drop because they cannot compete in the transfer market. And every opponent knows exactly how they are going to play.

And yet, last weekend's victory over Sheffield Wednesday pushed the Dons into fourth spot, their best ever start under Kinnear. How come? "There is no secret," he insisted. "We are beating sides on our own ability, but we do work hard on our style. If I could patent the way we play, manufacture it, bottle it and sell it, I'd be a millionaire. We know every movement we do off pat. And remember, every single one of these players is mine. No one else's, mine."

Kinnear scoffs at the suggestion that long ball and old fashioned centre- forwards are phrases that no longer have a place in the modern game. "I don't see anything fashionable about putting 24 passes together in your own half. It might look lovely but you end up still in your own half and you don't score too many goals.

"Everyone knows I like to have big target men. But teams have always had target men. The only difference at Wimbledon is that we punt it down the middle. The forwards hold it up, allowing the midfield players to pick up the pieces."

It was exactly this strategy that felled Sheffield Wednesday a week ago. "We dealt with most of the headers but it was the second man running in from midfield that caused us most of the problems," Danny Wilson, the Wednesday manager, said. "Wimbledon have a fantastic work ethic, coupled with great belief in themselves. When you have those ingredients, you don't have to have the greatest players in the world, and that's not being disrespectful."

Now it is Leicester's turn, under the effervescent Martin O'Neill, to try to break down the Dons. Two physical teams battling for supremacy. Two managers who never throw in the towel.

"We've always had tight-knit games," said Kinnear. "One thing is for sure: there will be no hiding places out there."