Clarets have proved that cash gap can be overcome
AROUND Manchester United, some of the murmurs in the wake of Manchester City’s commanding lead in the Premier League — and controlled win at Old Trafford — are that it is becoming “increasingly impossible to compete against a state”.
The reference, of course, is to the extra depth of Abu Dhabi resources available to Pep Guardiola. The wonder is what a number of Sir Alex Ferguson’s Premier League competitors over the years would think of that — given how United were the first to really industrialise the commercialisation of their club — let alone Burnley.
Sean Dyche’s side travel to Old Trafford today in one of a small number of fixtures that so fully focus and crystallise one of European football’s dominant factors right now.
Given the broadcasting money washing into the game, as well as the distinctive nature of some ownerships, it is simply impossible to get away from the imposing power of cash.
It also creates more of a discussion for managers, since the difference in resources become so distinctive and disparate that they more transparently display one of the ‘fundamentals’ of the job: who is best “managing” the assets and money available to them.
There can be no debate about Dyche. He is currently doing a sensational job with the Clarets.
Burnley, of course, aren’t the only club to threaten a sensation halfway through a campaign. Leaving aside the outstanding outlier that was Leicester City 2015-16, there were cases like Steve Clarke’s West Brom.
A lot of the talk around the Christmas of 2012-13 was whether they could really keep it up and qualify for the Champions League.
They couldn’t, and fell away. Even if Burnley follow that example rather than something clos- Challenge: Jose Mourinho and Burnley’s Sean Dyche each face very different resource battles
er to the exception of Leicester, though, it shouldn’t obscure exactly what alchemy Dyche is producing here.
They have the third smallest wage bill in the Premier League going by the last accounts, so should barely be staying in the division, let alone looking somewhere between very comfortable and outright commanding.
Dyche has so honed and maximised what’s available to him, mixing some proper old-school football traits like a properly coherent unit, with a modern approach to analytics.
They’ve also made it difficult for a lot of the really big sides this
season, even those on very good form — like United.
This whole issue is a bit more complex for the Old Trafford club and Jose Mourinho, but there can be little debate he has done well in this campaign, especially when they have one of their best ever records at this point.
He has brought the side on, and it could have been enough to finally bring the Premier League trophy back — had it not been for City so stepping it up and standing on everybody’s throats. It is still, well, a bit rich for United to complain of resources.