Sunderland FC has a new manager
Like many people, I wonder what was going through Ellis Short’s mind when he hired Paulo Di Canio as the new head coach at Sunderland to replace recently deposed Martin O’Neill. How well was Di Canio vetted for the position? Did no one point out to Ellis Short that charming mug shot of Di Canio giving the fascist salute to his rabid and beloved Lazio Ultras?
Was Ellis Short unaware of Di Canio’s acrimonious departure from Swindon Town?
There is not much on the public record regarding Ellis Short’s mind. He doesn’t speak much, his Wikipedia page is shorter than mine ((assuming I had one, which I don’t)). Not much is really known about Ellis Short. He made his fortune in banking and finance in Texas. He had a little argy-bargy over there regarding his company’s purchase of a Korean bank. He bought Skibo Castle in Scotland in 2003. He bought Sunderland FC in 2008 and has done a reasonably decent job of running the club. For the most part he has stayed out of the HATED AMERICAN OWNER headlines. But that just might change given the man he’s appointed as head coach.
What was Ellis Short thinking when he appointed Di Canio to ((theoretically)) rescue the remains of Sunderland’s current season? Did he think that because Di Canio is/was an avowed fascist that he could make Sunderland win out and avoid the drop in the same way that Mussolini made the trains run on time? Or was he simply unaware of Di Canio’s past and predilections? I’m beginning to wonder to myself that Short must have known about this all along, and with the hiring of Di Canio, Ellis Short finally has HIS kind of man. If you read the wikipedia page about Skibo Castle, a little nugget of insight into the mind of Ellis Short emerges: in 2007, Ellis Short threatened to shoot a retired couple’s dogs because they were walking across the estate of Skibo Castle ((for those of you keeping score at The Grumpy Troll in Mt. Horeb WI, in most of Britain, ancient rights of way over open land, even though technically owned by someone, precludes the concept of trespass)).
Yes. Short has his kind of guy after all.
Di Canio has disavowed any support for or espousal of fascism. And in fact he’s even trying a democratic approach as he takes the reigns at Sunderland. But rest assured that THIS champagne socialist won’t be holding his breath. In any case, Di Canio’s reign will get off to a bad start, as the Black Cats tromp down to The Bridge on Sunday for a sacrificial burning at the hands of Chelsea.
Win or DIE!! A good thing for Di Canio that his fascist buddy is long gone to his death, then.
Chelsea meanwhile needs to win out. A good start on Monday over ManU(re). A nice 3-1 win today over Rubin Kazan. And on Sunday, Chelsea needs to stamp out fascism in football once and for all.
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